Field Guide · Regional

Wildlife in Massachusetts

The birds, plants, and insects most often recorded in Massachusetts. A starting field list, drawn from iNaturalist research-grade observations, for what is likely living near you.

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Birds

Birds Commonly Recorded In Massachusetts

Most-recorded birds reported across the state.

  1. American Robin American Robin Turdus migratorius 17,288 records
  2. Canada Goose Branta canadensis 14,943 records
  3. Mallard Mallard Anas platyrhynchos 14,136 records
  4. Wild Turkey Wild Turkey Meleagris gallopavo 11,376 records
  5. Black-Capped Chickadee Black-Capped Chickadee Poecile atricapillus 10,654 records
  6. Northern Cardinal Northern Cardinal Cardinalis cardinalis 10,447 records
  7. House Sparrow House Sparrow Passer domesticus 9,804 records
  8. Red-Tailed Hawk Red-Tailed Hawk Buteo jamaicensis 9,077 records
  9. Blue Jay Blue Jay Cyanocitta cristata 8,543 records
  10. Song Sparrow Song Sparrow Melospiza melodia 8,503 records
  11. Great Blue Heron Great Blue Heron Ardea herodias 8,341 records
  12. American Herring Gull American Herring Gull Larus smithsonianus 7,470 records
Plants

Plants Commonly Recorded In Massachusetts

Plants observers log most often statewide.

  1. Eastern White Pine Eastern White Pine Pinus strobus 16,158 records
  2. Pitch Pine Pinus rigida 10,973 records
  3. Garlic Mustard Alliaria petiolata 10,183 records
  4. Striped Wintergreen Striped Wintergreen Chimaphila maculata 9,791 records
  5. Eastern Skunk Cabbage Eastern Skunk Cabbage Symplocarpus foetidus 9,291 records
  6. Asian Bittersweet Asian Bittersweet Celastrus orbiculatus 9,069 records
  7. American Pokeweed American Pokeweed Phytolacca americana 9,057 records
  8. Ghost Pipe Ghost Pipe Monotropa uniflora 7,888 records
  9. Canada Mayflower Canada Mayflower Maianthemum canadense 7,536 records
  10. White Oak White Oak Quercus alba 7,248 records
  11. Alder Buckthorn Frangula alnus 7,194 records
  12. Yellow Birch Yellow Birch Betula alleghaniensis 7,191 records
Insects

Insects Commonly Recorded In Massachusetts

The insects that turn up most in records.

  1. Common Eastern Bumble Bee Common Eastern Bumble Bee Bombus impatiens 20,734 records
  2. Western Honey Bee Apis mellifera 11,770 records
  3. Asian Lady Beetle Harmonia axyridis 10,071 records
  4. Monarch Monarch Danaus plexippus 7,994 records
  5. Brown-Belted Bumble Bee Brown-Belted Bumble Bee Bombus griseocollis 5,193 records
  6. Blue Dasher Blue Dasher Pachydiplax longipennis 4,896 records
  7. Winter Firefly Winter Firefly Photinus corruscus 4,391 records
  8. Small White Small White Pieris rapae 4,208 records
  9. Eastern Carpenter Bee Eastern Carpenter Bee Xylocopa virginica 4,162 records
  10. Isabella Tiger Moth Isabella Tiger Moth Pyrrharctia isabella 3,713 records
  11. Oriental Beetle Oriental Beetle Exomala orientalis 3,410 records
  12. Eastern Tent Caterpillar Moth Eastern Tent Caterpillar Moth Malacosoma americana 3,368 records

Go Deeper

Use the live finder to narrow this to your town and season. Then read Who Lives Here, how to attract wildlife to your yard, and planting for local wildlife. For tools and field guides, see the recommended gear.

Photographs via iNaturalist contributors, used under their Creative Commons licenses: (c) John D Reynolds, some rights reserved (CC BY-NC), uploaded by John D Reynolds  ·  (c) anonymous, some rights reserved (CC BY-SA)  ·  (c) Judy Gallagher, some rights reserved (CC BY)  ·  (c) Kent Ross, some rights reserved (CC BY-NC), uploaded by Kent Ross  ·  (c) Laura Keene, some rights reserved (CC BY-NC), uploaded by Laura Keene  ·  (c) Ximo Galarza, some rights reserved (CC BY-NC-SA)  ·  (c) Craig K. Hunt, some rights reserved (CC BY-NC), uploaded by Craig K. Hunt  ·  (c) Josiah Reed, some rights reserved (CC BY-NC), uploaded by Josiah Reed  ·  (c) Ad Konings, some rights reserved (CC BY-NC), uploaded by Ad Konings  ·  (c) Dan Roach, some rights reserved (CC BY-NC), uploaded by Dan Roach  ·  (c) Guy Lemelin, some rights reserved (CC BY-NC), uploaded by Guy Lemelin  ·  (c) Forest and Kim Starr, some rights reserved (CC BY)  ·  (c) Patrick Hanly, some rights reserved (CC BY), uploaded by Patrick Hanly  ·  (c) Clare Dellwo Cole, some rights reserved (CC BY-NC), uploaded by Clare Dellwo Cole  ·  (c) Jeff Skrentny, some rights reserved (CC BY-NC), uploaded by Jeff Skrentny  ·  (c) cgbb2004, some rights reserved (CC BY-NC), uploaded by cgbb2004  ·  (c) Timothy Valentine, some rights reserved (CC BY-NC-SA)  ·  (c) Eric Keith, some rights reserved (CC BY-NC), uploaded by Eric Keith  ·  (c) Kir Talmage, some rights reserved (CC BY-NC), uploaded by Kir Talmage  ·  (c) scotstewart, some rights reserved (CC BY-NC), uploaded by scotstewart  ·  (c) Virginia Rivers, some rights reserved (CC BY-NC)  ·  (c) Steven Mlodinow, some rights reserved (CC BY-NC), uploaded by Steven Mlodinow  ·  (c) Cameron Eckert, some rights reserved (CC BY-NC), uploaded by Cameron Eckert  ·  (c) Katja Schulz, some rights reserved (CC BY)  ·  (c) Liu JimFood, some rights reserved (CC BY-NC), uploaded by Liu JimFood  ·  (c) Christopher Eliot, some rights reserved (CC BY), uploaded by Christopher Eliot  ·  (c) Larry Clarfeld, some rights reserved (CC BY-NC), uploaded by Larry Clarfeld  ·  (c) Jason M Crockwell, some rights reserved (CC BY-NC-ND), uploaded by Jason M Crockwell  ·  (c) Nick Block, some rights reserved (CC BY), uploaded by Nick Block