Birds That Start With A

13 birds Animals and nature Checked 9 Oct 2026

Here are 13 birds that start with A, each with a one-line description so you can tell what it is. The best-known ones come first, then the full list in A to Z order.

A has 13 birds, and most are seabirds and waders rather than garden visitors. The albatross is the best known, a huge-winged ocean glider, and the auk and avocet follow.

The anhinga is a water bird that swims with only its neck above the surface. Some entries are less common, such as the adjutant stork, the argus pheasant and the ant thrush. The archaeopteryx is an ancient bird-like creature known from fossils, a great surprise for young dinosaur fans.

Birds starting with A: 13
Best known: albatross, auk
Longest name: argus pheasant

Best-known birds that start with A

The ones most people will recognise, good for school lists, quizzes and games.

albatross
auk
avocet
anhinga

All birds that start with A

#	Name	What it is
1	adjutant	large Indian stork with a military gait
2	adjutant stork	large Indian stork with a military gait
3	albatross	large web-footed birds of the southern hemisphere having long narrow wings; noted for powerful gliding flight
4	amazon	mainly green tropical American parrots
5	anhinga	long-necked diving bird of warm American waters
6	ani	black tropical American cuckoo
7	ant bird	any of various dull-colored South American birds that feeding on ants some following army ant swarms
8	ant thrush	a kind of antbird
9	archaeopteryx	extinct primitive toothed bird of the Jurassic period having a long feathered tail and hollow bones
10	argus	large brilliantly patterned East Indian pheasant
11	argus pheasant	large brilliantly patterned East Indian pheasant
12	auk	black-and-white short-necked web-footed diving bird of northern seas
13	avocet	long-legged web-footed black-and-white shorebird with slender upward-curving bill

Short birds with A

auk
ani
argus

Questions people ask

How many birds start with A?

This list has 13 birds starting with A, from well-known ones like albatross, auk, avocet to rarer kinds.

What birds start with A?

Well-known examples are albatross, auk, avocet, anhinga.

Source: Princeton WordNet, a public dictionary database, reviewed by our editors to keep only clear, real members of the list. Meanings are short dictionary glosses.

See every letter on one page: birds A to Z