A Unified Global Checklist of the World’s Birds
Created by experts in taxonomy, nomenclature, and biodiversity informatics from around the world, AviList provides the most current and authoritative taxonomy of the world's birds.
Learn MoreAviList Partners
AviList is a collaborative global effort to produce a single current consensus taxonomy for the birds of the world, along with key information on taxonomy and nomenclature. The checklist is free for download by anyone, and we encourage its use by ornithologists, birders, biologists, conservation practitioners, administrators, legislators, and any other stakeholders in bird classification. Our hope is that a consistent standard for avian taxonomy will reduce confusion arising from incongruent taxonomic sources, make information easier to exchange and aggregate, and clarify species limits for professional and amateur students of birds alike. AviList provides a rationale for the adoption of specific arrangements in the case of controversial taxonomic complexes and points to species groups in which additional research is required, with the hope to assist taxonomists in prioritizing issues. AviList is a living document that is continually updated according to the most recent evidence. The first version was published in June 2025 and future revisions are planned once a year.
AviList Paper Published
Our paper “AviList: a Unified Global Bird Checklist” was published by Biodiversity and Conservation on 5 July. This paper describes why AviList was needed, what the process and governance of the list entails, and formally introduces AviList as the Global Bird Checklist. During July and August 2025, you may freely access the full paper.
Summary Statistics for the AviList Checklist v2025
| Species | 11,131 |
| Subspecies | 19,879 |
| Orders | 46 |
| Families | 252 |
| Genera | 2,376 |
The AviList Checklist
The AviList checklist is free for anyone to use and available open access in several formats.
About AviList
History, committees, team members, and other information to understand the process and teams that helped create the list.
AviList Terms of Reference
Review the AviList Terms of Reference to understand its governance and structure.