As far as hobbies go, birdwatching is inexpensive, easy to get into and requires very little in the way of equipment. Outside of a guidebook, all you need to get started are binoculars and the right location! Here are four locations within our country that are sure to please!
-Cape May, New Jersey – The Audubon Society’s Fall Festival (held this year October 16-19) is tailored for birders. October is astounding; birds migrating along the Atlantic Coast all seem to make a stop in this South Jersey beach location. You should too! Keep your eyes peeled for the magnificent Peregrine Falcons!
-Everglades National Park, Florida – With over 300 species of birds, this is especially interesting to those in search of wading birds. Winter is the best time to visit for maximum diversity and avian saturation! In February, the swallow-tailed kites return to Florida from Central and South America. Rent a canoe and paddle up the Nine Mile Pond. Take insect repellent-even in winter you will need it!
-Point Reyes National Seashore, California – 30 miles north of San Francisco, it is a well-known area for bird aficionados. Located on 70,000 acres of protected land, there are around 500 species of birds including snipes, egrets, sandpipers and the occasional bald eagle. Its combination of coastlines and forests also have numerous land animals as well as sea mammals such as seals and sea lions. Best time to visit is April/May or September/October
-Tucson, Arizona – The area in and around Tucson brims with wildlife of all sorts. Saguaro National Park, 20 miles from Tucson, has bird species that are found nowhere else in the US. Tucson’s Sweetwater Wetlands Park is a good place to view songbirds, ducks and wading birds. Spring is a good time to visit Tucson but also consider July, when there are up to 11 or 12 different species of Mexican hummingbirds, not seen at other times of the year.
Where do you go to watch birds? I would love to hear about your favorite locations!
Good choices. Coastal areas, swamps, wetlands and rivers are all good places to bird watch. Mattamuskeet National Wildlife Refuge should be on everybody’s bucket list.
Although I live in Northern Jersey, my family used to go “down the shore” every summer. Cape May is pretty close to Wildwood, where there is a big boardwalk with rides and stands aplenty. It does seem like a great area to go birdwatching….especially if the real birds aren’t outnumbered by the seagulls that are a constant presence along the shore at Wildwood!
Ive been to three of the places you mentioned and they were all worthwhile. I have not been to Point Reyes but hope to on my next trip to California. As a native of North Carolina, I would like to mention that the Outer Banks has some good places to view birds.