The last seven days on iNaturalist, checked against five years

Rare Birds in South Dakota This Week

Q: What rare birds are in South Dakota this week?

The lists above, read live from iNaturalist: first the birds within 25 miles of Sioux Falls, then the whole state. Each species is checked against five years of confirmed sightings, and the most unusual come first.

Q: How many bird species are seen in South Dakota?

366 bird species in 27,303 confirmed iNaturalist sightings between 2021-10-09 and 2026-10-01. 64 of those species have 3 or fewer confirmed sightings in the state, so a new one of them is news.

Q: What counts as rare in South Dakota?

Near Sioux Falls or your own ZIP, a species with 3 or fewer confirmed sightings within 25 miles in five years, or one that is seen there but almost never in these weeks of the year. On the statewide list, a species with 3 or fewer confirmed sightings anywhere in South Dakota.

Q: Who confirms rare bird records in South Dakota?

The South Dakota Rare Bird Records Committee. From its page: “The RBRC maintains a review list of rare and vagrant birds for which reports are solicited.”

Q: How do I see rare birds near me in South Dakota?

Enter your ZIP on the rare bird alert for a list around your own spot, and check it each week in spring and fall migration, when most strays turn up. Each bird links to its iNaturalist species page with photographs and a range map.

Q: Are needs ID sightings included?

Yes, for this week only, because confirmation takes days and a rare bird may be gone by then. The five year record the week is checked against counts research grade sightings only.

South Dakota logged 27,303 confirmed bird sightings across 366 species on iNaturalist in five years, and 64 of those species have 3 or fewer confirmed sightings. The live list near Sioux Falls covers 25 miles around the city. The South Dakota Rare Bird Records Committee reviews rare bird records here.

Near Sioux Falls

Rare birds near Sioux Falls this week

Every bird posted within 25 miles of Sioux Falls in the last seven days, with the ones that are rare there, out of season or uncommon first and the reason for each.

Reading this week's bird sightings within 25 miles of Sioux Falls from iNaturalist.

Somewhere else in South Dakota? Enter your ZIP for the circle around it.

South Dakota birds on the record

iNaturalist, research grade

27,303

Confirmed bird sightings

research grade iNaturalist records, five years

366

Bird species on record

seen and confirmed in South Dakota

Species seen 3 times or fewer

17 percent of the state list, the birds that make news

25 mi

Live circle

around Sioux Falls, or any ZIP you enter

Counted from iNaturalist’s research grade bird records in South Dakota from October 9, 2021 to October 1, 2026, read October 9, 2026.

Across South Dakota

The whole state this week

Every bird reported anywhere in South Dakota in the last seven days, checked against the state’s own five year record: Rare here means 3 or fewer confirmed sightings in the whole state.

Reading this week's bird sightings across South Dakota from iNaturalist.

What turns up here

Who confirms a rare bird in South Dakota

366 bird species have confirmed iNaturalist records in South Dakota over five years, and 64 of them were confirmed 3 times or fewer. A sighting of one of those is the kind a state records committee reviews before it joins the official list. The South Dakota Rare Bird Records Committee names 2 birds on its own page, below.

South Dakota Rare Bird Records Committee

The committee reviews rare bird records in South Dakota.

“The RBRC maintains a review list of rare and vagrant birds for which reports are solicited.”

South Dakota Rare Bird Records Committee, read October 9, 2026.

Birds the committee names

The committee gives Yellow-throated Vireo and Eastern Wood-Pewee, from its 2014 report, as examples of birds far enough out of their usual South Dakota range to need a rare bird report.

“substantially out of range”

Yellow-throated Vireo
Eastern Wood-Pewee

Nine birders and photographers on a wooden boardwalk over a marsh, with long lenses, a spotting scope and binoculars all pointed to the left, under spring trees — Birders and photographers setting up on an overlook. Word of an unusual bird travels this way: one person posts a photograph, and the people nearby go and look. “Birdwatchers stop to set up equipment at overlook”, Steve Hillebrand, U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, Public domain

South Dakota rare bird questions

What rare birds are in South Dakota this week?

How many bird species are seen in South Dakota?

What counts as rare in South Dakota?

Who confirms rare bird records in South Dakota?

Which rare birds has the South Dakota committee named?

How do I see rare birds near me in South Dakota?

Are needs ID sightings included?

More for South Dakota birders

Rare birds near any ZIPEnter a ZIP for this week’s unusual birds around it.South Dakota fall migrationWhen the big flights pass over.South Dakota hummingbird migrationWhen they arrive and when they leave.South Dakota snowy owlsWhere the winter irruptions reach.South Dakota sandhill crane migrationWhere the cranes stage and when.South Dakota winter birdsWhat comes to the feeder when it snows.

Rare birds in other states

Sightings and records from iNaturalist, read live for this week. The lists are built from counts per species, and each bird links to its species page. For your own spot, enter a ZIP on the rare bird alert.