Lists

10 More Cute Birds

November 6, 2025 by Kai Pflug No Comments

After the great success (well, a few more readers than usual) of the post on 10 Cute Birds, we decided to shamelessly pander to our audience’s interest in the topic. Maybe we will even have a third post on this. But before that, here are ten more cute birds.

Snow Bunting

I don’t know if there are snowglobes with a Snow Bunting in them, but if not, somebody should produce them. I asked ChatGPT for a prototype:

Spotted Owlet

Whenever I send a message to a friend and then immediately delete it, he sends me back an illustration saying “Jesus saw that post you deleted”. The look of the owl seems to indicate a similar sentiment – though expressed in a much cuter way than an older male could.

Black-throated Tit

Not sure why this one did not make the first list – maybe because I felt it was too similar to the Long-tailed Tit. If God or Evolution has a side job as a cartoonist, it is not surprising we have birds looking like this one.

African Penguin

Talking about tuxedos is a bit too obvious here, particularly as most African Penguins have never ever been to an opera ball. In any case, they wear their attire more like Groucho Marx than some famous conductor.

Grey-bellied Tesia

Anyone who thinks Labubus are cute cannot have seen this tailless bird bounce around.

Little Ringed Plover

The eyerings alone are worth a place in this list, but the bobbing walk seals the deal.

European Robin

If you can see this bird and, for one moment, avoid thinking of tasteless Christmas cards, you will agree that this bird is very cute (not withstanding the fact that it is also very territorial – think of Hitler wearing a Santa hat)

Barred Buttonquail

A fight between two female Barred Buttonquails – while dead serious for them – looks very much like a match between Hello Kitty and her twin sister.

Common Waxbill

The half-red beak!

African Pygmy Goose

Any bird wearing what looks like absurdly big headphones in a similarly absurd color, along with a funny black cap, deserves a place on this list.

More to come, if this post finds enough readers … otherwise, we can’t be bothered, I am afraid.

Written by Kai Pflug
Kai has lived in Shanghai for more than 21 years. He only started birding after moving to China, so he is far more familiar with Chinese birds than the ones back in his native Germany. As a birder, he considers himself strictly average and tries to make up for it with photography, which he shares on a separate website. Alas, most of the photos are pretty average as well. He hopes that few clients of his consulting firm—focused on China’s chemical industry—ever find this blog, as it might raise questions about his professional priorities. Much of his time is spent either editing posts for 10,000 Birds or cleaning the litter boxes of his numerous indoor cats. He occasionally considers writing a piece comparing the two activities.