Birds beginning with I

Iago Sparrow - The Iago Sparrow , is a passerine bird of the sparrow family Passeridae. It is also known as the Cape Verde Sparrow and the Rufous-backed Sparrow. It is endemic to the Cape Verde Islands, in the eastern Atlantic Ocean. It was first collected by Charles Darwin, and was described for him by John Gould, as with the Darwin's finches. It is sometimes considered to be a subspecies of the Great Sparrow of mainland Africa, but it actually is more closely related to the House Sparrow and the Spanish Sparrow.

Ibadan Malimbe - Its natural habitat is subtropical or tropical moist lowland forests. It is threatened by habitat loss.

Ibisbill - The Ibisbill is a bird related to the waders, but sufficiently distinctive to merit its own family Ibidorhynchidae. It is grey with a white belly, red legs and long down-curved bill, and a black face and black breast band. It occurs on the shingle riverbanks of the high plateau of central Asia and the Himalayas. It lays its eggs in a ground scrape, and feeds on

Iceland falcon - The bird's common comes from French gerfaucon, and in medieval Latin is rendered as gyrofalco. The first part of the word may come from Old High German gîr , "vulture", referring to its size compared to other falcons, or the Latin gȳrus from the species' circling as it searches for prey, unlike the other falcons in its range. The male gyrfalcon is called a gyrkin in falconry. The scientific name is composed of the Latin terms for a falcon, Falco, and, for someone who lives in the countryside, rusticolus.

Iceland Gull - The Iceland Gull, Larus glaucoides, is a large gull which breeds in the Arctic regions of Canada and Greenland, but not Iceland, where it is only seen in the winter. It is migratory, wintering from in the North Atlantic as far south as the British Isles and northernmost states of the eastern USA, as well as in the interior of North America as far W as the western Great Lakes. It is much scarcer in Europe than the similar Glaucous Gull.

Icterine Greenbul - Sassi's Greenbul, formerly considered a distinct species, is nowadays usually regarded a subspecies Phyllastrephus icterinus lorenzi of the Icterine Greenbul.

Icterine Warbler - This small passerine bird is a species found in open deciduous woodland with bushes and also parks and gardens, often near water. Four to six eggs are laid in a nest in a tree or a bush.

Ifrit - The Blue-capped Ifrita is placed as the only member of the genus Ifrita, which is itself placed in the family Cinclosomatidae. This enigmatic bird is one of only three bird genera known to have poisonous members, the others being the genus Pitohui - also from New Guinea, and the Little Shrike-thrush .

Ihering's Antwren - Its natural habitat is subtropical or tropical moist lowland forests.

Ijima's Leaf Warbler - References==

Imitator Sparrow Hawk - It is threatened by habitat loss.

Immaculate Antbird - The Immaculate Antbird is a species of antbird in the family Thamnophilidae. It is found in Colombia, Costa Rica, Ecuador, Panama, Venezuela, and possibly Honduras. Its natural habitat is subtropical or tropical moist lowland forests. The species feeds on insects, and regularly follows swarms of army ants in order to catch prey flushed by the swarms, but it is not an obligate ant-follower like some species of antbird

Imperial Amazon - The Imperial Amazon is endemic to mountain forests of the Caribbean island nation of Dominica in the Lesser Antilles, Its diet consists mainly of fruits and seeds. It nests in hollow trees.

Imperial Heron - The White-bellied Heron is found in the wetlands of tropical and subtropical forests in northeast India and Myanmar. It is also spotted in Himalayan Kingdom of Bhutan's sub tropical areas. The major threats the heron faces are hunting and habitat destruction .

Imperial Shag - The taxonomy is very complex and species-limits within this group remain unresolved. The following are usually considered part of this group:

Imperial Snipe - This 29–31 cm long snipe has a stocky body and relatively short legs for a wader. Its adult plumage is dark rufous brown except for the lower belly and undertail, which are white with heavy brown barring. The grey bill is long, straight and fairly robust, and the legs and feet are grey. The sexes are similar. The juvenile plumage is unknown, but in most snipes species, young birds differ from adults only in showing pale fringes on the wing coverts.

Imperial woodpecker - The male had a red-sided crest, but was otherwise black, apart from the inner primaries, which were white-tipped, white secondaries, and a white scapular stripe which unlike in the Ivory-billed Woodpecker did not extend on the neck. The female was similar but the crest was all black and recurved at the top. It was once widespread and, until the early 1950s, not uncommon throughout the Sierra Madre Occidental of Mexico, from western Sonora and Chihuahua southwards to Jalisco and Michoacan.

Inaccessible Island Rail - This rail has an average weight of 30 grams and a length of 17 centimeters. It is dark rusty-brown above and dark grey below, with a short black bill and a red eye.

Inca Dove - Inca Doves reach a length of 16.5 cm and weigh 47-48 g . They are slender, with a gray-brown body covered in feathers that resemble a scaled pattern. The tail is long and square, edged with white feathers that may flare out in flight. In flight, the underwing is reddish, like other ground doves, and on takeoff, the wings produce a distinctive, quiet rattling noise.

Inca jay - Green Jays have feathers of yellowish-white with blue tips on the top of the head, cheeks and nape, though some taxa have more blue than others, and the crown can appear almost entirely white in some South American subspecies. A black bib forms a thick band up to the sides of the head as well as a stripe through the eye line and one above it. The breast and underparts typically are bright to dull yellow, or strongly green-tinged in the far northermost part of its range. The upperparts are rich green. It has large nasal bristles that form a distinct tuft in some subspecies, but are less developed in others. The color of the iris ranges from dark brownish to bright yellow depending on the subspecies.

Inca Leptopogon - Its natural habitat is subtropical or tropical moist montanes.

Inca Tern - This uniquely-plumaged bird breeds on the coasts of Peru and Chile, and is restricted to the Humboldt current. It can be identified by its dark grey body, white moustache on the both sides of its head, and red-orange beak and feet.

Inca Wren - The Inca Wren is a species of bird in the Troglodytidae family. It is endemic to Peru. Its natural habitat is subtropical or tropical moist montane forests.

Incana incana - Its natural habitats are subtropical or tropical dry shrubland and subtropical or tropical high-altitude shrubland. It is threatened by habitat loss.

Indian Blue Robin - The Indian Blue Robin is a small bird found in South Asia. Formerly considered a thrush, it is now considered one of the Old World flycatchers in the family Muscicapidae. It was earlier also called the Indian Blue Chat. It is migratory, breeding in the forests along the Himalayas in India and Myanmar. They winter in the hill forests of the Western Ghats of India and in Sri Lanka.

Indian Bushlark - Pale and found mostly in arid areas. Has cheek patch completely bounded by white supercilium and post-auricular border. Crown and upperparts heavily streaked. Pale underparts have large spots on the breast. Differentiable from Jerdon's Bushlark by longer tail, shorter bill and legs. Most wing coverts, tertials and central tail feathers have pale centres. Primary coverts look all brown. Sings from bush tops but does not usually perch on trees or wires. Calls similar to that of Jerdon's but is lower and has longer rattling tremolos. Often falling in pitch.

Indian Chat - It is a ground feeding bird, like most chats; in fact, chats are the only ground feeding subfamily in the Old World flycatchers family ; until recently they were in the thrush family.

Indian Cliff Swallow - building nest in Kawal Wildlife Sanctuary, India.

Indian Cormorant - This is a common and widespread bird species, which breeds in freshwater wetlands. 3–6 eggs are laid in a nest in a tree.

Indian Courser - This courser is widespread in South Asia and overlaps with some other species such as the similar looking Cream-coloured Courser. This species is however brighter coloured than the Cream-coloured Courser and has a broader black eye-stripe that begins at the base of the beak. The crown is chestnut and the breast is rufous. The nape has a dark black patch where the long longer feathers forming the white stripe meet.

Indian Eagle Owl - The Rock Eagle Owl also called the Indian Eagle Owl or Bengal Eagle Owl is a species of large horned owl found in South Asia. They were earlier treated as a subspecies of the Eurasian Eagle Owl. They are found in hilly and rocky scrub forests, and are usually seen in pairs. They have a deep resonant booming call that may be heard at dawn and dusk. They are typically large owls, and have "tufts" on their heads. They are splashed with brown, and grey and have a white throat patch with black small stripes.

Indian Grey-Hornbill - The Indian Grey Hornbill is a common hornbill found on the Indian subcontinent. It is mostly arboreal and is commonly sighted in pairs. They have grey feathers all over the body with a light grey or dull white belly. The horn is black or dark grey with a casque extending up to the point of curvature in the horn. They are one of the few hornbill species found within urban areas in many cities where they are able to make use of large avenue trees.

Indian hill mynah - Gracula is a genus of mynas, tropical members of the starling family of birds. Until recently only two species were recognised, G. religiosa and G. ptilogenys; earlier still all Gracula were considered to belong to a very variable species commonly called Hill Myna. But three additional subspecies of G. religiosa are increasingly being considered distinct species.

Indian Honeyguide - Like other honeyguides it leads humans and bears to bee hives. They are among a few vertebrates capable of feeding on bees-wax.

Indian House Crow - In the dry parts of South Asia and Iran the subspecies C. s. zugmayeri is found and this has a very pale neck collar. The nominate race is found in India, Nepal and Bangladesh and has a grey neck collar. In southern India, the Maldives and Sri Lanka, the subspecies C. s. protegatus is darker grey. The darkest form however is the Myanmar form C. s. insolens and lacks the grey collar.

Indian Long-tailed Nightjar - When first discovered by Western naturalists, this species was originally included within its northern relative C. macrourus . Thomas C. Jerdon first described it as distinct in an annotation to his 1845 treatment of the Indian Jungle Nightjar in the Illustrations of Indian ornithology. Subsequently it was sometimes lumped again with C. macrouros, but today's authors generally treat them as specifically distinct. Jerdon's type locality mentioned as Ghatus has been considered to be the Eastern Ghats.

Indian mynah - The Common Myna or Indian Myna also sometimes spelled Mynah, is a member of the starling family. It is a species of bird native to Asia with its initial home range spanning from Iran, Pakistan, India and Kazakhstan to Malaysia and China. An omnivorous open woodland bird with a strong territorial instinct, the Myna has adapted extremely well to urban environments.

Indian Nightjar - Open woodland, scrub, and cultivation is the habitat of this nocturnal bird. It flies after sundown with an easy, silent moth-like flight. During the day, Indian Nightjar lies silent upon the ground, concealed by its plumage; it is then difficult to detect, blending in with the soil.

Indian Peafowl - The Indian Peafowl is a resident breeder in the Indian subcontinent and has been introduced into many parts of the world; feral populations exist in many countries.

Indian Pitta - The Indian Pitta, Pitta brachyura, is a medium-sized passerine bird. It breeds mainly in the sub-Himalayas and winters in southern India and Sri Lanka. These birds are found in thick undergrowth and are often more easily detected by their calls. They however often crash into houses during the migratory season and their brilliant colouration makes them an object of curiosity and are often covered in newspaper stories.

Indian Pond Heron - The Indian Pond Heron or Paddybird is a small heron. It is of Old World origins, breeding in southern Iran and east to India, Burma, Bangladesh and Sri Lanka. They are widespread and common but can be easily missed when the stalk prey at the edge of small water-bodies or even when the roost close to human habitations. They are however distinctive when put to flight, the bright white wings flashing in contrast to the cryptic streaked olive and brown colours of the body. The camouflage is so excellent that they will often allow humans to approach very close before taking to flight, and this has resulted in folk names and beliefs that the birds are short-sighted or blind.

Indian Roller - The Indian Roller , also called the Blue Jay in former times is a member of the roller family of birds. They are found in southern Asia from Iraq to Thailand and are best known for the aerobatic displays of the male during the breeding season. They are very commonly seen perched along roadside trees and wires and are commonly seen in open grassland and scrub forest habitats. It is not migratory, but undertakes some seasonal movements. Several states in India have chosen it as their symbol.

Indian Scops-Owl - This species is a part of the larger grouping of owls known as typical owls, Strigidae, which contains most species of owl. The other grouping is the barn owls, Tytonidae.

Indian Skimmer - The Indian Skimmer is a one of the three species that belong to the skimmer family. They are somewhat tern like but like other skimmers, have a short upper mandible and the longer lower mandible that is ploughed along the surface of water as the bird flies over the water to pick aquatic prey. It is found in southern Asia where it is patchily-distributed and declining in numbers. They are mainly found in rivers or estuaries. They are very brightly marked in black, white and orange making them difficult to miss.

Indian tree-pipit - The scientific name of this bird commemorates the British ornithologist Brian Houghton Hodgson.

Indian Vulture - The Indian Vulture is an Old World vulture and is closely related to the Griffon Vulture, G. fulvus. It breeds mainly on crags in the hills of Sind in Pakistan, central and peninsular India. The birds in the northern part of its range once considered a subspecies are now considered a separate species, the Slender-billed Vulture Gyps tenuirostris. These were lumped together under the name Long-billed Vulture.

Indian White-backed Vulture - The Indian White-rumped Vulture is an Old World vulture in the family Accipitridae. It is closely related to the European Griffon Vulture . At one time it was believed to be closer to the White-backed Vulture of Africa and was known as the Oriental White-backed Vulture. The species was present in large numbers, in Southern and Southeastern Asia until the 1990s.

Indian Yellow-nosed Albatross - The Indian Yellow-nosed Albatross, Thalassarche carteri, in the albatross family, and is a smallest of the mollymawks. In 2004, BirdLife International

Indigo Bunting - The Indigo Bunting, Passerina cyanea, is a small seed-eating bird in the family Cardinalidae. It is migratory, ranging from southern Canada to northern Florida during the breeding season, and from southern Florida to northern South America during the winter. The Indigo Bunting is closely related to the Lazuli Bunting, and will interbreed with the latter species where their ranges overlap.

Indigo-banded Kingfisher - The Indigo-banded Kingfisher is a species of bird in the Alcedinidae family. It is endemic to the Philippines, where it is a generally uncommon but locally common resident of the northern and central islands. There are two subspecies, the nominate race, which occurs on Luzon, Polillo, Mindoro, Sibuyan and Ticao, and A. c. nigriostris, which is found in Panay, Negros and Cebu. It forms a superspecies with the Silvery Kingfisher of the southern Philippines.

Indigo-capped Hummingbird - The Indigo-capped Hummingbird , sometimes placed in the genus Saucerottia, is a species of hummingbird in the Trochilidae family.

Indigo-winged Parrot - The Fuertes's Parrot , also known as Indigo-winged Parrot, is a critically endangered parrot which has a highly restricted range on the west slope of the Central Andes of Colombia.

Indochinese Cuckooshrike - The Indochinese Cuckoo-shrike is a species of bird in the Campephagidae family. It is found in Cambodia, Laos, Myanmar, Thailand, and Vietnam. Its natural habitats are subtropical or tropical moist lowland forests and subtropical or tropical moist montanes.

Inquisivi Spinetail - Its natural habitats are subtropical or tropical dry forests and plantations . It is threatened by habitat loss.

Intermediate Egret - The Intermediate Egret, Median Egret, or Yellow-billed Egret is a medium-sized heron. It is a resident breeder from east Africa across tropical southern Asia to Australia. It often nests in colonies with other herons, usually on platforms of sticks in trees or shrubs. Two to five eggs are laid, the clutch size varying with region. This species, as its scientific name implies, is intermediate in size between the Great Egret and smaller white egrets like the Little Egret and Cattle Egret, though nearer to Little than Great. It is about 90 cm tall with all-white plumage, generally dark legs and a thickish yellow bill. Breeding birds may have a reddish or black bill, greenish yellow gape skin, loose filamentous plumes on their breast and back, and dull yellow or pink on their upper legs . The sexes are similar.

Invisible Rail - An Indonesian endemic, the Invisible Rail is confined to swamp forests and wetlands of Halmahera, north Maluku. The diet consists mainly of plant shoots, vegetation matters and insects. The call is drum-like sound with loud scream.

Irena cyanogastra - Its natural habitats are subtropical or tropical moist lowland forests and subtropical or tropical moist montane forests.

Iringa Akalat - Its natural habitat is subtropical or tropical moist montanes. It is threatened by habitat loss.

Iris Glossy-Starling - The Iris Glossy-starling, Coccycolius iris, is also known as the Emerald Starling. It is a small starling with a metallic green crown, upper body, wings and tail. The ear-coverts and underparts are metallic purple. Both sexes are similar. Its placement in a monotypic genus Coccycolius is disputed; some unite it with many other glossy-starlings in Lamprotornis.

Iris Lorikeet - The Iris Lorikeet is distributed in the forests and woodlands on the islands of Wetar and Timor in the Lesser Sundas. It is found from sea level to altitude of 1,500m. The Iris Lorikeet is usually found in small flocks.

Isabella Oriole - The Isabela Oriole is an endemic species of the Oriole family found on Luzon, the Philippines. The bird that was presumed extinct for many years until it rediscovery in December 1993 near Diffun, Quirino, and in Mansarong, Baggao, Cagayan in September 1994. Additional sightings were made in 2004 near San Mariano, Isabela.

Isabelline Waterhen - The Isabelline Waterhen, Amaurornis isabellina also known as Sulawesi Waterhen or Isabelline Bush-hen is a large, up to 40cm long, rufous and brown rail. The term isabelline refers to the colouration. It is the largest member of the genus Amaurornis. Both sexes are similar with olive brown plumage, pale green bill, greenish brown legs and rufous below.

Isabelline Wheatear - It is a migratory insectivorous bird. It breeds in southern Russia and central Asia to Northern Pakistan, wintering in Africa and India.

Island Canary - This bird is the natural symbol of the Canary Islands, together with the Canary Island Date Palm.

Island Imperial-Pigeon - Its natural habitat is subtropical or tropical moist lowland forests.

Island Leaf Warbler - The Island Leaf-Warbler is a species of Old World warbler in the Sylviidae family. It is found in Indonesia, Papua New Guinea, and Solomon Islands. It has 19 subspecies.

Island Monarch - The Island Monarch is a species of bird in the Monarchidae family. It is found in Indonesia, Papua New Guinea, and Solomon Islands. Its natural habitats are subtropical or tropical moist lowland forests and subtropical or tropical moist montanes.

Island Thrush - The Island Thrush is a member of the cosmopolitan genus Turdus , one of the most widely distributed bird genera in the world. The taxonomy of the Island Thrush is complex, and has defied attempts to split the group based on the four suspected morphological types. The subspecies Turdus poliocephalus niveiceps from Taiwan represents the most distinct taxon and may be a separate species. This subspecies lives at the northerly range of the species, and is the only one in which the males and females differ in colour. There are also thought to be at least two further subspecies not yet described scientifically, both from the Indonesian island of Sulawesi.

Ituri Owlet - The Chestnut Owlet is a species of owl in the Strigidae family. It is found in Cameroon, Democratic Republic of the Congo, Ivory Coast, Liberia, and Uganda.

Ivory gull - It migrates only short distances south in autumn, most of the population wintering in northern latitudes at the edge of the pack ice, although some birds reach more temperate areas.

Ivory-backed Woodswallow - Its natural habitats are subtropical or tropical moist lowland forests and subtropical or tropical moist montanes.

Ivory-billed Woodpecker - Picus principalis Linnaeus, 1758

Ivory-breasted Pitta - Its natural habitat is subtropical or tropical moist lowland forests.