California chose the California Quail as its state bird — a plump grey-and-brown ground bird with a comma-shaped plume bobbing on its forehead, usually crossing a yard in a line. It feeds on the ground and is common in the right places, but it does not make California's top 25 feeder birds.
California's feeders are led by the House Finch, at 85% of sites — and second place goes to a bird that would be impossible in a winter count almost anywhere else.
The twelve birds California feeders report most
From Project FeederWatch, the Cornell Lab of Ornithology's winter count, in which volunteers record what turns up at their own feeders. The 2023–24 season had 728 participants in California — a large sample, so the order near the top is reliable. The percentage is the share of California feeder sites that reported the bird at least once.
| # | Bird | Share of CA feeders |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | House Finch | 85.0% |
| 2 | Anna's Hummingbird | 78.1% |
| 3 | White-crowned Sparrow | 69.4% |
| 4 | Dark-eyed Junco | 69.4% |
| 5 | Mourning Dove | 68.5% |
| 6 | Lesser Goldfinch | 67.7% |
| 7 | California Towhee | 66.3% |
| 8 | California Scrub-Jay | 65.5% |
| 9 | Yellow-rumped Warbler | 54.4% |
| 10 | Oak Titmouse | 50.3% |
| 11 | American Crow | 43.6% |
| 12 | Golden-crowned Sparrow | 43.2% |
Four things in that list worth knowing
A hummingbird in second place — in winter
Anna's Hummingbird is at 78% of California feeders during the winter count. It does not migrate, and males sing and perform diving displays in the middle of winter. Keep a nectar feeder up all year: four parts water to one part sugar, no red dye.
Two winter sparrows with crowns
White-crowned Sparrow ties the junco for third, and Golden-crowned Sparrow is twelfth. Both nest further north or higher up and spend the winter in California yards, usually scratching on the ground under shrubs. The names describe exactly what to look for on the head.
Birds named after the state
California Towhee (#7) is a plain brown bird with a rusty patch under the tail that hops around the edges of lawns. California Scrub-Jay (#8) is blue and grey with no crest and is bold at a feeder. The Oak Titmouse (#10) is plain grey with a small crest, tied to oak woodland.
The cardinal and Blue Jay are missing
Neither makes California's top 25. The House Finch is the state's red bird and the scrub-jay its blue one.
What is on our California mug, and where each bird actually ranks
The Backyard Birds of California mug shows a hummingbird (Anna's is #2, 78%), the Mourning Dove (#5, 68%), the House Finch (#1, 85%) and a goldfinch. California has two: the Lesser Goldfinch (#6, 68%) and the American Goldfinch (#22, 31%).
The ones we would add next are the White-crowned Sparrow (#3) and the California Scrub-Jay (#8). They are on the list of designs we still owe this state.
If you want more of them
Black-oil or hulled sunflower seed covers the House Finch, titmouse and scrub-jay. Nyjer in a tube or sock holds the goldfinches and siskins. Millet scattered on the ground brings the sparrows, towhees, doves and juncos. And the nectar feeder stays up all winter.
Where these numbers come from: Project FeederWatch, Cornell Lab of Ornithology, Top 25 Feeder Birds for California, 2023–24 season. These are volunteer reports from their own feeders, not a formal survey, and they describe the winter feeding season rather than the whole year. Percentages are the share of participating sites that reported the species.
See the mugs for the other states → · Identify a bird in three questions →