CHICAGO — August 14, 2025 — The 66th Supplement to the American Ornithological Society's (AOS's) Check-list of North American Birds , published today in Ornithology, includes several significant updates to the classification of bird species found in North America, Central America, and the Caribbean.
A few highlights from the supplement, detailed below, include species splits for Myiarchus nuttingi, Vireo gilvus, and Larus argentatus; the addition of subfamilies in the Laridae for white-terns and noddies; and a merging of three families of Caribbean nine-primaried oscines.
The Check-list, published since 1886, is updated in annual supplements from the AOS's North American Classification Committee (NACC). The Check-list and its supplements provide the taxonomic and nomenclatural foundation for bird research, conservation, management, and education throughout the region, and are relied on as the authority on avian biodiversity by government agencies, NGOs, scientists, and birders, among others. The NACC reviews proposals submitted annually for taxonomic and distributional updates to the Check-list of North American Birds.
