Birds of Ohio – The Bird Guide (2024)

Ohio is home to an unusually diverse array of habitats that range from wetlands and prairies to agricultural land and forests. This wide variety of terrain provides a great opportunity for birdwatchers from all over the world to come and see the many different species of birds that live in Ohio.

Ohio has been called the “Crossroads of America” because it is located at an intersection of three different geographic regions: the Great Lakes region, the Eastern Woodlands region, and the Central Plain region. This makes Ohio home to a variety of forests, grasslands, wetlands, lakes and rivers. There are also many cities and towns that have their own unique bird populations.

Even if you have no previous birdwatching experience, all you need is a pair of binoculars and an interest in our feathered friends! Come explore Ohio with us and find out what’s waiting for you here.

Table of Contents

What Are the Most Common Birds in Ohio?

The Ohio list of birds is quite extensive. According to the Ohio Division of Wildlife, over 400 species of birds have been identified in the state. That this a lot of bird watching! Some of these birds are rare and endangered and are found in very specific environments. Still other birds are much more common. They include:

Rock Wren
Western Tanager
Kirtland’s Warbler
Tundra Swan
Summer Tanager
Rufous Hummingbird
Eurasian Collared-Dove
Long-tailed Duck
Townsend’s Solitaire
Brewer’s Sparrow
Northern Wheatear
Hoary Redpoll
Black-bellied Whistling-Duck
Redhead
Black-headed Grosbeak
Rusty Blackbird
Brown Pelican
Neotropic Cormorant
Anhinga
Red-winged Blackbird
Ruff
Whimbrel
Painted Bunting
Great Cormorant
Swainson’s Warbler

What Are the Most Common Backyard Birds in Ohio?

Ohio is home to a diverse range of back yard birds, from the Titmouse to the mourning dove. The most common backyard bird in Ohio, though, is likely the American robin, but there are many other curious birds that come into our gardens like:

Downy Woodpecker
White-breasted Nuthatch
House Sparrow
Tufted Titmouse
Northern Cardinal
American Goldfinch
European Starling
Mourning Dove
Song Sparrow
Red-bellied Woodpecker
American Crow
Blue Jay
Common Grackle

What Are the Ohio Birds of Prey?

What exactly is a bird of prey? It’s a type of raptor, which includes eagles, hawks, owls, and vultures. Birds of prey are perfect hunters because they have incredible eyesight and can practically hover at any height in the air.

But here’s the real question: how many birds of prey live in Ohio? No matter what area you’re talking about in Ohio– whether it’s Akron or Lancaster– there are plenty. They include:

Eastern screech owls
Northern saw-whet owl
Osprey
Northern harrier
Golden eagle
Rough-legged hawk
Snowy owl
Red-shouldered hawk
Cooper’s hawk
Sharp-shinned hawk
Great horned owl
Peregrine falcon
Merlin
Barn owl
American kestrel
Barred owl
Broad-winged hawk
Long-eared owl
Red-tailed hawk
Bald eagle

What Kind of Blackbirds live in Ohio?

Blackbirds are plentiful in Ohio and some of the species you can expect to see are:

Red-winged Blackbird
Common Grackle
Yellow-headed Blackbird
Rusty Blackbird
Brewer’s Blackbird
European Starling

What Are the Ohio Winter Birds?

Every year when the leaves fall and the snow begins to fly, you might be wondering what’s in store for your backyard bird feeder.

With the start of a new season comes a fresh wealth of sightings right outside your window. Here are 7 types of birds you can watch this winter-

American tree sparrow
Pine siskin
Dark-eyed junco
Eastern bluebird
American robin
Red-breasted nuthatch
Cedar waxwing

Ohio is home to many wonderful birds that make our state their home for a reason. Learn about Ohio’s most popular bird species, and their lives in the wild-

Cardinals

Cardinals are also state birds of Ohio. One of the most popular birds at backyard feeding stations, the Cardinal’s diet consists primarily of seeds, fruit, and some insects. They visit feeders for sunflower seeds and raisins, also eating wild grapes and berries throughout their range, including dogwood fruit, holly berries, black berries, and raspberries. Even those putting out seed for the first time could be rewarded with the appearance of this dazzling, bright red, crested bird.

Both genders are prolific songbirds, with the male’s calls being more frequently interpreted as practical calls for food, danger, and mating, while the female may answer, and often sing longer and more complex songs than the male.

Some claim that Cardinal songs are learned rather than uttered instinctively and support their theories with evidence of regional differences in the species. Others suggest that males may sing similar songs as the females and that different songs between the sexes are actually due to hormones rather than learning.

Adults make short, chipping calls when they approach their nests or other familiar territory like feeders. These calls become very loud and agitated if there is an intruder nearby. Their clear whistle-songs are strong and variable, from loud early morning calls to afternoon woodland medleys of “me an’ you, me an’ you”.

Cardinals normally nest relatively low to the ground like Robins, in thick shrubs and conifers, and generally close to their feeding areas. If near residential feeding stations, this may put their young at risk of local cats. Cardinals like open lawn areas and swamps, and areas bordering woodlands and forests.

Ferociously territorial regarding other males, feeders near sliding glass doors or large windows can prove dangerous for Cardinals, which have been known to fly at and attack their own reflections, hurting or killing themselves. For this reason, naturalists suggest that residents protect Cardinals visiting their feeders by using thin metallic tape strips on their large glass windows and doors.

Coot

Normally the Coots lives within the boundaries of the United States including Ohio, but birders observe them in Alaska and South America. They are migratory, and migrate as a flock. Their migration though, is based on the weather and therefore highly irregular. People also have seen the Coot in man made ponds of parks or golf courses.

Both in the summer and winter months the Coots always live along the edge of the water. The American Coot is a social bird that lives in flocks. Coots swim in open water, often in large groups.

It is a chubby water bird and has a problem taking flight. American Coots run lightly splashing across the water for some distance, beating their wings vigorously to become airborne. It’s flight seems labored, and it’s big feet trail beyond its short tail.

They can make a wide variety of noises, from yapping to clucking.

The osprey or fish hawk is the main predator of the American Coot.

Coots often nest on golf courses or public parks. Because they nest on these places they leave their excrement around that could carry disease. Hunters usually do not target the Coot as a game bird. The American Coot is not endangered, nor is it threatened. The average life of this bird is about nine years.

The common moorhen is similar in size and shape but has a reddish bill with a yellowish tip.

Loons

A key feature of the loon, plus its striking plumage, is its voice and eerie wail. Despite the effect the calls may have on human listeners, the calls function in proclaiming the loon’s region, reinforcing pair bonds, communicating with chicks, and establishing contact between neighboring pairs and intruders.

Loons wail in an attempt to establish contact over long distances. Loons also croak, either singly or in duet; this call is probably synonymous with the tremolo of the Common Loon in its role as a signal of commotion or in reinforcing pair bonds. Male Common Loons have individually distinctive yodels.

Green Heron

During spring and summer the best sites for spotting this bird are: Point Pelee National Park along Lake Erie in Ohio, and Long Point Provincial Park in Rowan and along the Trent Canal in Canada. Green Herons usually winter in northern areas as far as southern Alaska. They have also been known to winter over in regions of central United States and the Galapagos Islands.

The nesting habits of the Green Heron are usually solo, but they have been known to nest in small groups. The nest, a small platform of twigs, is built by the male in a small tree or shrub and is usually close to water. Three to five pale-blue green to green eggs are then laid and incubated by the pair for a period of 19-21 days. Once hatched the young are fed by regurgitation.

An interesting habit of the Green Heron is one dealing with their feeding. As mentioned, like other herons they will stalk their prey before striking. But, before the Green Heron attacks its prey it is common for it to make a few elaborately cautious steps toward its prey which are quite defined from its normal step. It is assumed this allows them to close some distance between their prey and themselves without the prey noticing, allowing them to have greater accuracy with their bill.

Purple Martins

Legend has it that this species feeds abundantly on mosquitoes; however, these unpopular insects tend to fly near the ground in the evening hours, while Purple Martins hunt high in the air during the day.

Purple martins that nest in various locations in Ohio and North America share the same South American roost in winter. This was proven when birds from roosts in Brazil were tagged with a fluorescent dye. Using ultraviolet light, researchers in the eastern US identified the tagged birds in various nesting areas the following summer.

Once birds have paired off (males may pair with more than one female) the birds spend nights together in the nest hole before nest building. Females lay three to eight eggs. Young are fed by both parents and fledge after about a month.

During nest building males perform “dawn-song” in the early morning, flying above the colony. This is thought to attract other Purple Martins to the colony.During laying, green leaves are added to the nest (mostly by the male), possibly to raise humidity or to deter pests.

At a fall migration roost on a bridge in New Orleans, so many birds were being killed in traffic that a citizens group successfully spearheaded the installation of protective fencing.

Because they migrate by day, roost where food is plentiful, and hunt while in flight, migrating Purple Martins feed as they go; therefore, they don’t need to store large amounts of fat like and many other migrating birds.

Northern Flickers

Unusual for woodpeckers, Flickers are primarily ground feeders, but also feed in trees. When they visit backyard bird feeders, their brown and black scalloped coloring may be mistaken for the ubiquitous Mourning Dove. But the head shape and coloring sets them apart. They are most often seen alone, where doves routinely feed in pairs.

Single Flickers are usually spotted in open areas bordered by woods, occasionally lunching on berries and fruit, but primarily eating beetles or emptying lawns of ant nests. The insect diet of Flickers is crucial to the control of many insect pests, especially ants, wood borers, beetles, grasshoppers, and aphids that plague humans as well as their favored hardwoods. Ants make up nearly half of their diets and their “ant acid” is used in preening to kill and prevent bird mites.

A Flicker’s call sounds almost like a horse whinnying, a cackle in fast succession of loud eey, eey, eey, eey. In humid weather, they also blurt out loud screeches periodically, sounding like “klee-yer”, and may drum on trees to declare their territory.

Flickers compete for nesting areas, and may excavate dead tree cavities up to 100 feet in the air. Their populations are dwindling due to loss of habitat and because they are often driven out of their newly made nests by the aggressive European starlings. Starlings bear considerable responsibility for the decline in Flicker populations, and that of many other woodpeckers in the U.S.

If able to successfully nest, Flickers lay 3 to 12 white eggs. Both parents incubate and raise the young, which hatch in about 10-12 days. They develop quickly and fledge in about 26 days. In late summer, a nest may sometimes be pinpointed by the incessant squawking of the hungry nestlings.

One of the few woodpeckers that migrate, Northern Flickers are native to most of North America, some areas of Central America, Cuba, and the Cayman Islands. Both varieties may migrate from Canada to the lower 48 states in the winter, while some remain as year-round residents in southern areas. It is the state bird of Alabama under one of its many other names, the Yellowhammer. Banding research indicates this species lives up to 12 years in the wild.

American Woodstock

The woodco*ck begin their annual exodus at the same time of year. Frosts followed by Southerly winds will carry the Woodco*ck from Ohio and the Northern US and Southern Canada southerly, integrating along the way with resident woodco*ck. You can practically mark your calendars for the annual arrival of Woodco*ck.

Reports that the earliest Woodco*ck arrival is the week of February 21st. This migration is usually complete by December with woodco*ck concentrations being found in the Southeastern U.S., particularly in Louisiana where biologists estimate that 70% of all woodco*ck find their winter destination.

Autumn in the uplands brings two phenomenons in the woodco*ck’s life patterns. This is also when these birds will perform some rather unusual and sometimes lethal actions, like flying into or through plate glass windows or impaling themselves on broken branches. Native Americans called this “crazy flight” and were correct in their observations.

It’s extraordinary, and apparently the female Woodco*ck’s agree, too, since the males do all this to get their attention. Often, multiple birds display simultaneously, and such displays can continue for an hour or more at dawn and again at dusk. On a good night, the action increases as contending males aggressively chase each other around the display grounds.

After the Crazy Flight ends and a pair mate the female lays four eggs in a depression of leaves with no lining, usually near water. The adult birds incubate the eggs for about 21 days and the female has one brood each year. The young birds fledge in about 14 days.

Red Winged Blackbird

The Red Winged Black Birds do move but only for short distance according to the season. The redwing is bountiful as a summer resident but in the north country it is rare in winter. During migration, birders see the redwings in all habitats, including cities. The largest population still nest in bogs where there are broad stands of vegetation like cattails.

In Indiana and other midwestern states the spring migration is quite visible. Some males arrive as early as late January and soon begin to mark their territories where they will nest. Birders see male redwings singing on their chosen turf in late February or early March, when ice still covers the ponds and ditches. The main body of birds begin their northward movement during late February through March.

Its breeding habitat is near wetlands with open water swamps, wet and dry meadows and in pastures.

The redwings construct their cup shaped nest of marsh grass or reeds. The birds attach the nests to growing marsh vegetation or build them in a bush in a marsh. The birds build their nests from five to thirteen feet off the ground.

Red Winged Blackbirds also nest in many dry sites, at distances from any water like hayfields, weedy pastures, fallow fields, roadside ditches, and other upland sites. Its ability to adapt to these drier situations has been one reason for its success as a species. The Red Winged Blackbird is one of the most noticeable birds during the breeding season.

Their voice is very musical in sound and once you’ve heard one sing you’ll never forget their song.

The male Redwing will fly up to greet intruders into his territory. Birders watched the redwing chase crows, herons, white-tailed deer, other birds, and have struck humans on the head that intrude on the nesting areas.

American tit*

The tit family of birds, Paridae, has twelve species in two genera that are found in different parts of the United States. Often considered tit*, two other birds, the Verdin and the Bushtit, are closely related to the twelve true tit*. All fourteen birds are non-migratory. Following are descriptions of these birds, separated by their genera and family.

They are found everywhere in the United States including Ohio and can be seen anywhere from Northern Alaska, to the arid Southwest. The Black-capped, Boreal, Carolina, Chestnut-backed, Gray-headed, Mexican, and Mountain Chickadees are scattered across North America, but they all have similar habits and morphology. All chickadees have dark caps and bibs (throat areas), all measure between 4.75 and 5.5 inches, all have similar calls, all nest in cavities, and all of them feed mainly on seeds and small insects.

More southerly than chickadees, but also fairly widespread, the of the genus Baeolophus are all native to the United States and Mexico. The Black-crested, Bridled, Juniper, Oak, and Tufted Titmice can be distinguished from other birds, but they are all fairly similar in appearance themselves. All of them are mainly gray in color, have noticeable crests, measure between 5.25 and 6.5 inches in length, feed on insects, seeds, and berries, and nest in cavities.

The Bushtit, also only 4.5 inches in length, is a small, grayish bird that is found from Southern British Columbia to Guatemala, occupying much of the West and Southwest, and the of Mexico. It varies in plumage, depending on location, as it is a year round resident throughout its entire range, and does not migrate. This bird has a very short bill, and males have dark eyes, while females have light-colored eyes. Bushtit* feed mainly on insects, and they build hanging nests..

Short Eared Owl

The Short Eared Owl is an exceptional mouse catcher, but in the western states the owl may also eat ground squirrels. Usually the owl is an early morning or early evening hunter. The owls will hunt during the day in foggy and misty weather. It depends on its excellent sense of hearing for hunting so they use their ears more than their eyes. When hunting the owl flies close to the ground seeking prey.

The Short Eared Owl builds its nest on the ground. The nest material consists of rough grasses and weed stalks. Once completed the birds line their nest with little pieces of new grass and small feathers tangled together purposely for softness. Occasionally the bird will hide the nest under a bush in an open field. When the owl builds its nest in a hay field it doesn’t bother hiding the nest.

After mating and nest building the female owl lays four or more dull, ivory colored eggs around the middle of May. The oval shaped eggs measure about 1 1/2 inch by 1 1/4 inches.

One peculiarity of the owl is sometimes during the winter months it will sometimes gather in colonies or flocks of one hundred or more birds.

Cowbirds

Cowbird chicks hatch out a day or two before the host chicks. By being fed a day or more before the host chicks hatch, the baby cowbird has grown considerably before its nestmates appear. This head start ensures the cowbird can squawk louder and present a wider-open mouth than its foster siblings each time the parents arrive with food.

One “flaw” in bird behavior is that the louder a chick squawks, the more food it gets. It makes little sense to feed a sickly chick (the chick might not survive), and squawking is a signal to the parents that the bird is both hungry and in good health. Sometimes all host nestlings starve to death while the cowbird chick receives most of the food.

When young cowbird chicks come in contact with other objects in the nest, they attempt to push them up over the edge of the nest cup. This behavior reduces competition from host chicks and ensures more food for the cowbird chick.

All is not lost if a cowbird dumps her egg in a bird’s nest. Many species normally have large clutches (sets of eggs) and can feed up to a dozen offspring. In this case, a few of the host babies often survive.

In some instances, having a cowbird chick reduces the incidence of nest predation and total nest failure is unlikely. If a few babies survive, that is better than losing the whole clutch. This is often the case with our Eastern and mountain bluebirds, Sialia sialis and S. corrucoides.

Nest predators tend to take the largest, most active chicks (cowbirds) from the nest first. If a nest predator is interrupted while feeding, as is often the case, host chicks would remain.

Cowbirds originally inhabited the prairies of the west and Midwest. Opening the forests of the east increased available habitat and exposed many new species to cowbird parasitism. Female cowbirds lay about 40 eggs a year for two years. Presently, in most areas, an average of about 2.4 of a cowbird’s 80 eggs survive and many populations are doubling in size in about eight years.

The species most seriously affected by cowbird activity are those that only recently came in contact with cowbirds because of human activity. These species have few or no cowbird defenses and their numbers have recently plummeted. Some will be driven to extinction, others will survive.

Being dependent on other species for reproduction is not necessarily an evolutionarily stable strategy. Those bird species driven to extinction by cowbird and human activities will no longer provide nesting opportunities for cowbirds. As many birds have already done, some surviving species will eventually evolve anti-cowbird behaviors that reduce the effectiveness of cowbird reproduction. Although it will not happen soon, the tide will eventually turn, and cowbird numbers will drop again.

The photo of the cowbird egg in a house finch nest was used by permission of the freelance photographer, Suzanne Guida.

Black Tern

Often you will see Black Terns follow a tractor as the farmer plows his fields. The birds eat the insects the tractor stirred up. The Black Tern frequently feeds while flying, snatching insects from the air, or picking minnows from the surface of the water. Black Terns are very sociable, and in the summer months you can see both the adults and young birds flitting about over the water or wetlands.

The Black Tern has two common calls. One is a brassy clucking that they frequently repeat.

The Black Tern produces offspring across Ohio. They prefer to nest in wetlands not to far from open water. In the very cold and wintry months of their territory they fly south into Central and South America. The Black Tern is a sometime summer inhabitant of the Great Lakes Region and as the other birds fly south for the winter.

At birth the young black terns are able to run about and covered with down. Their down is long and soft. The color of the top parts of their body, craw, and the lower jaw parts is buff, dappled with black. Their chest is dusty white and their stomach is tawny in color. The front of their head, the lower part of the bill and a strip around their eyes is white. The young birds’ legs are dark salmon in color.

Courtship of the male Black Tern includes lofty corkscrew moves, rising to about 40 to 50 feet, then fashioning a bold downward swoop. Once a male attained his lofty height a curious female tern may accompany him on the downward effortless glide. The prospective male terns regularly bring little fish to the female, promised as a favor for their future union. The Black Tern is monogamous, and breeds at 2 years of age. In the breeding season, this tern has a black head, neck and stomach with generally dark plumage.

During the mating season, the black terns eat insects like damselflies and dragonflies, grubs and larvae, small fresh water fish, snails, mussels and other soft bodied animals.

The remainder of the time, they generally eat small fish like anchovies, silver sides and plankton. The average fish taken during breeding season is about 1 1/4 inches long and weighs about 1/2 ounce.

When producing young, Black Terns may associate with Forster’s Terns (Sterna forsteri), whose noisy, forceful stand of nest protection is useful to Black Terns that are not as big and less assertive towards predators. When protecting their terrain or nests the Black Tern takes flight, making noisy calls.

Frequently many Black terns will join in this loud and noisy activity to protect the nest sites. Some birds might try to dive-bomb an invader. People nearing the nest site of the tern may suffer a headache because these birds attack humans that stray to close to the nests.

When building their nest the tern seeks dense vegetation, water nearby and protective cover. The most successful nests were built on higher ground and had more protective cover to protect the young from predators robbing the nest and protection from inclement weather. Birds will return to the same breeding areas year after year, often very close to where they were born. Some bird watcher discovered nests placed on hard ground or a muskrat house.

Golden Eagles

The golden eagle is largely silent, but it does have a buzzard-like mewing call and a shrill barking yelp.

Golden eagles are faithful both to their partners (often for life) and their nesting sites. However, they may build several nests (or “eyries”) within a limited area and move between them in successive breeding seasons.

The nest, built or repaired in March or April, is usually sited on a ledge on a mountainside crag, although trees are occasionally used. It is a large affair, resembling a basket of sticks and branches.

The clutch of two eggs is incubated mostly by the female, with occasional relief being offered by her partner. The chicks hatch after about 45 days and are fed by the female from food hunted and passed to her by the male. The male golden eagle will usually feed the chicks directly when they get older.

The young fledge at around 75 days but stay close to their parents for some time after, only leaving the territory when they are fully grown.

Golden eagles prey mainly on small mammals and birds, although they will also attack and kill animals as large as lambs and kids (young goats). They also feed on carrion, and younger golden eagles eat amphibians and reptiles.

Barn Owls

The barn owl’s preferred ha

bitat is open countryside with trees and buildings. It can often be seen flying along field margins, riverbanks and roadside verges. In recent years, barn owls have moved into towns, especially where open parks and cemeteries provide nesting and feeding opportunities.

The barn owl is one of the most distinctive birds, with its heart-shaped face and pure white underparts. It is around 35 centimetres (13.5 inches) in length with a wingspan of some 80 centimetres (31.5 inches). The plumage is orange-buff above with grey mottling. The white underparts are sometimes tinged with buff and marked with dark spots. The spots and mottling are more frequent with female barn owls, although, generally speaking, males and females look alike.

The barn owl’s eyes are small and black, forming a contrast with the white face. The wings taper and the tail is short. The legs are quite long for an owl.

The barn owl is mainly nocturnal, often being seen at dusk as it starts to hunt. However, it will also hunt during the daytime when feeding its young and during the winter. Its flight is wavering and mainly silent, with the wingtips almost meeting on the downbeat.

When agitated it will lower its head, moving it to and fro as it perches.

Turkey Vulture

The Turkey Vulture (Cathartes aura) is found in most of the Southern U.S. year round, and in the northern parts of the lower 48 states, to Southern Canada, in summer. Commonly and incorrectly referred to as “Turkey Buzzard,” this bird is found throughout Central and South America as well.

Turkey vultures have reddish-pink, feather-less heads, light colored bills, and dark bodies, They typically have wingspans of about 70 inches, and body lengths around 28 inches, and they generally weigh between 2 and 5 lbs. These birds can be seen soaring, utilizing thermals and favorable winds, trying to spot carrion. Turkey vultures, unlike the other two species listed below, can also search for food by their senses of smell. They often feed on roadkill, and typically, they will eat smaller dead animals than will the other two birds below, and at times, these birds will take live prey, such as rodents and fledgelings.

Black Vulture

The Black Vulture (Coragyps atratus) is the smallest of the three scavenger birds from the Cathartidae family that is found in the United States. It is more commonly found in the southern parts, from east to west, of the country, and through Central America and Amazonia as well as Western South America, to the lower parts of that continent. It has a wingspan of about 5 feet, and a body length of around 2 feet. It weighs about the same weight as the Turkey Vulture.

Black Vultures also cruise thermals, and try to visually locate prey while doing so. They have shorter wings than do Turkey Vultures, and they flap quickly when necessary. They also have noticeably lighter areas at the tips of their wings, and gray, feather-less heads. Black Vultures typically prey upon large animal carcasses, but they will also take small live prey and human trash, and they have been seen harassing calves and other small live animals on occasion.

Wood Duck

No other North American duck has such a mix of bold bright colors as the male Wood Duck, Aix sponsa, in his breeding plumage. This unmistakable bird breeds near quiet, shady bodies of water in southeastern North America as far north as the Great Lakes and the Canadian Maritime provinces. In the west, the species nests in southern Manitoba, southern British Columbia, through the northern United States and down the California coast. Outside the breeding season, Wood Ducks form small flocks and overwinter in the southern United States, along the West Coast, and in Mexico.

Because of its bright and unusual plumage, many consider the Wood Duck to be the most beautiful of North American ducks. Historically, hunters took it for food, but also for mounting and to harvest feathers for fishing flies. Still a popular game bird today, Wood Ducks are probably still around after decades of exploitation mainly because of the Migratory Bird Convention of 1916, which protected them from being hunted to extinction.

Most ducks don’t perch in trees, but the Wood Duck does. In fact, throughout most of its range, it is the only duck that does, frequently sitting high up in trees where it is difficult to see. Like the , the species nests in trees as well, choosing old woodpecker holes and hollowed out dead trees, often high above the ground.

Wood Ducks typically nest in wooded areas close to fresh water, where they have access to seeds, acorns, wild fruit, and small invertebrates of both land and water. Although natural nesting sites have dwindled, the birds readily use a nesting box placed near a pond or even on a post standing in the water. Females return to the same nest, bringing a new mate with them, year after year.

The female Wood Duck lines her nest with down and typically lays between six and fifteen eggs. If there is another female nesting nearby, she may lay eggs in the other nest, and some nests have been found to contain up to forty eggs!

The downy chicks leave the nest shortly after hatching, using their strong sharp toenails and a temporary hook on the bill to climb up to the entrance hole. Then, even if the nest is high in the trees, the flightless young birds must jump, flutter to the ground, and walk to water on their own.

The Wood Duck is the only North American duck that regularly raises two broods in one breeding season, where the summers are long enough-a feature that has probably also contributed to their survival.