BirdAnalyst
Bird Conservation Region 19

Central Mixed Grass Prairie

An ecological region spanning Kansas, Nebraska, Oklahoma, Texas, with 130 survey routes. BCRs are the natural unit for bird trends.

What Is Moving HereNotable signalsLong-arc shifts the engine flags automatically — sustained declines or increases large enough to stand out from year-to-year noise.Full methodology →

long arc declinecomputed indexTrend sourceWhether the figure is our own computed route-weighted index or an official USGS modeled estimate. The current build labels every trend as computed.Full methodology →

Black-billed Magpie has collapsed in Central Mixed Grass Prairie: down 98% on the route-weighted index since 1969.

long arc increasecomputed indexTrend sourceWhether the figure is our own computed route-weighted index or an official USGS modeled estimate. The current build labels every trend as computed.Full methodology →

Eurasian Collared-Dove has surged in Central Mixed Grass Prairie: up 44× on the route-weighted index since 2004.

long arc declinecomputed indexTrend sourceWhether the figure is our own computed route-weighted index or an official USGS modeled estimate. The current build labels every trend as computed.Full methodology →

Little Blue Heron has collapsed in Central Mixed Grass Prairie: down 97% on the route-weighted index since 1969.

long arc increasecomputed indexTrend sourceWhether the figure is our own computed route-weighted index or an official USGS modeled estimate. The current build labels every trend as computed.Full methodology →

Western Cattle-Egret has surged in Central Mixed Grass Prairie: up 33× on the route-weighted index since 1976.

long arc declinecomputed indexTrend sourceWhether the figure is our own computed route-weighted index or an official USGS modeled estimate. The current build labels every trend as computed.Full methodology →

Ring-billed Gull has collapsed in Central Mixed Grass Prairie: down 97% on the route-weighted index since 1970.

long arc increasecomputed indexTrend sourceWhether the figure is our own computed route-weighted index or an official USGS modeled estimate. The current build labels every trend as computed.Full methodology →

Carolina Wren has surged in Central Mixed Grass Prairie: up 20× on the route-weighted index since 1969.

How Guilds Are FaringGuild trendA mean-index aggregate across the species in this group — the structural direction of the guild, with individual-species noise smoothed out.Full methodology →

-43%

Generalists

15 species
-31%

Game birds

7 species
-27%

Grassland birds

14 species
-27%

Arid-land birds

7 species
-26%

Waterfowl

11 species
-12%

Wetland birds

26 species
-10%

Shorebirds

9 species
-5%

Aerial insectivores

22 species
+1%

Birds of prey

18 species
+40%

Forest birds

62 species

Survey Routes

Species By FamilyTrendPercent change in the route-weighted abundance index between a smoothed baseline window and the most recent one. It tracks direction, not absolute population.Full methodology →

Hawks, Eagles & Kites Accipitridae

Bald Eagle +384%Cooper's Hawk +200%Ferruginous Hawk -9%Mississippi Kite -40%Northern Harrier -96%Red-shouldered Hawk +271%Red-tailed Hawk +78%Sharp-shinned Hawk -10%Swainson's Hawk -65%

Larks Alaudidae

Horned Lark -5%

Kingfishers Alcedinidae

Belted Kingfisher -35%

Ducks, Geese & Waterfowl Anatidae

Blue-winged Teal -69%Canada Goose +63%Gadwall -79%Green-winged Teal -61%Mallard -20%Northern Pintail -55%Northern Shoveler -70%Redhead -79%Ruddy Duck -95%Trumpeter Swan -37%Wood Duck +843%

Swifts Apodidae

Chimney Swift -80%

Herons, Egrets & Bitterns Ardeidae

American Bittern +545%Black-crowned Night Heron -97%Great Blue Heron +191%Great Egret +37%Green Heron -9%Little Blue Heron -97%Snowy Egret -71%Western Cattle-Egret 33×Yellow-crowned Night Heron -77%

Waxwings Bombycillidae

Cedar Waxwing +111%

Nightjars & Nighthawks Caprimulgidae

Chuck-will's-widow +95%Common Nighthawk +127%Common Poorwill -33%

Cardinals & Grosbeaks Cardinalidae

Black-headed Grosbeak -7%Blue Grosbeak +151%Dickcissel +23%Indigo Bunting +209%Northern Cardinal +144%Painted Bunting +378%Pyrrhuloxia +347%Rose-breasted Grosbeak +376%Summer Tanager +511%

New World Vultures Cathartidae

Black Vulture +561%Turkey Vulture +251%

Plovers & Lapwings Charadriidae

Killdeer +29%Snowy Plover -79%

Pigeons & Doves Columbidae

Eurasian Collared-Dove 44×Inca Dove -63%Mourning Dove -12%Rock Pigeon -33%White-winged Dove +107%

Crows, Jays & Magpies Corvidae

American Crow -28%Black-billed Magpie -99%Blue Jay +13%Chihuahuan Raven +208%Common Raven -45%Woodhouse's Scrub-Jay +23%

Cuckoos, Roadrunners & Anis Cuculidae

Black-billed Cuckoo -92%Greater Roadrunner +26%Yellow-billed Cuckoo -19%

Falcons & Caracaras Falconidae

American Kestrel -64%Prairie Falcon -34%

Finches Fringillidae

American Goldfinch +35%House Finch 15×Lesser Goldfinch -27%

Swallows & Martins Hirundinidae

Bank Swallow -62%Barn Swallow -21%Cave Swallow -35%Cliff Swallow +166%Northern Rough-winged Swallow +144%Purple Martin -11%Tree Swallow 19×

Blackbirds & Orioles Icteridae

Baltimore Oriole -28%Bobolink +246%Brown-headed Cowbird -13%Bullock's Oriole -5%Common Grackle -23%Eastern Meadowlark +9%Great-tailed Grackle +109%Orchard Oriole -15%Red-winged Blackbird -1%Scott's Oriole -27%Western Meadowlark -53%Yellow-headed Blackbird -55%

Yellow-breasted Chat Icteriidae

Yellow-breasted Chat +561%

Shrikes Laniidae

Loggerhead Shrike -91%

Gulls, Terns & Skimmers Laridae

Black Tern -84%Forster's Tern -46%Least Tern -29%Ring-billed Gull -97%

Mockingbirds & Thrashers Mimidae

Brown Thrasher -42%Curve-billed Thrasher +40%Gray Catbird +93%Northern Mockingbird -41%

New World Quail Odontophoridae

Northern Bobwhite -36%Scaled Quail -97%

Chickadees & Titmice Paridae

Black-capped Chickadee -51%Black-crested Titmouse +402%Carolina Chickadee +134%Tufted Titmouse +240%

Wood-Warblers Parulidae

Black-and-white Warbler -7%Common Yellowthroat +145%Louisiana Waterthrush -12%Northern Parula +65%Ovenbird +12%Yellow Warbler +710%

New World Sparrows Passerellidae

Black-throated Sparrow -77%Canyon Towhee +171%Cassin's Sparrow +81%Chipping Sparrow +645%Eastern Towhee -37%Field Sparrow +14%Grasshopper Sparrow +19%Henslow's Sparrow -17%Lark Bunting -95%Lark Sparrow +18%Rufous-crowned Sparrow +368%Song Sparrow +426%Spotted Towhee +615%Vesper Sparrow +57%

Old World Sparrows Passeridae

House Sparrow -82%

Pelicans Pelecanidae

American White Pelican -78%

Cormorants Phalacrocoracidae

Double-crested Cormorant +981%

Pheasants, Grouse & Turkeys Phasianidae

Greater Prairie-Chicken +329%Lesser Prairie-Chicken -82%Ring-necked Pheasant -48%Sharp-tailed Grouse -35%Wild Turkey 12×

Woodpeckers Picidae

Downy Woodpecker +1%Golden-fronted Woodpecker +179%Hairy Woodpecker -25%Ladder-backed Woodpecker +366%Pileated Woodpecker +53%Red-bellied Woodpecker +234%Red-headed Woodpecker -20%

Grebes Podicipedidae

Eared Grebe -77%Pied-billed Grebe +69%Western Grebe +6%

Gnatcatchers Polioptilidae

Blue-gray Gnatcatcher +52%

Rails, Gallinules & Coots Rallidae

American Coot -90%Sora -45%Virginia Rail -30%

Avocets & Stilts Recurvirostridae

American Avocet -55%Black-necked Stilt +10%

Penduline Tits Remizidae

Verdin -65%

Sandpipers & Allies Scolopacidae

Long-billed Curlew -29%Spotted Sandpiper +114%Upland Sandpiper +204%Willet +77%Wilson's Phalarope +52%Wilson's Snipe 25×

Nuthatches Sittidae

White-breasted Nuthatch 12×

Owls Strigidae

Barred Owl +123%Burrowing Owl -40%Eastern Screech-Owl +29%Great Horned Owl +16%

Starlings & Mynas Sturnidae

European Starling +2%

Ibises & Spoonbills Threskiornithidae

White-faced Ibis +134%

Hummingbirds Trochilidae

Black-chinned Hummingbird +329%Ruby-throated Hummingbird -63%

Wrens Troglodytidae

Bewick's Wren +9%Cactus Wren -77%Canyon Wren +44%Carolina Wren 20×Marsh Wren +13%Northern House Wren +56%Rock Wren -55%Sedge Wren -17%

Thrushes Turdidae

American Robin +183%Eastern Bluebird +29%Wood Thrush +120%

Tyrant Flycatchers Tyrannidae

Ash-throated Flycatcher 15×Eastern Kingbird -32%Eastern Phoebe +217%Eastern Wood-Pewee +121%Great Crested Flycatcher +179%Say's Phoebe +52%Scissor-tailed Flycatcher -13%Vermilion Flycatcher +113%Western Kingbird -65%Western Wood-Pewee +817%Willow Flycatcher +349%

Barn-Owls Tytonidae

American Barn Owl -15%

Vireos Vireonidae

Bell's Vireo +201%Black-capped Vireo +440%Red-eyed Vireo +742%Warbling Vireo +162%White-eyed Vireo +568%

Source: USGS North American Breeding Bird Survey, retrieved 2026-05-22.