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birding...
Louisianna
Birders visiting Louisiana are often astounded by the contrasts in birding opportunities afforded by the hilly pine woods in the northern half of the state and the open coastal prairies, forested wetlands, and marshlands in the southern half of the state. Over 450 species of birds have been recorded in Louisiana. Birders with average birding skills can expect to locate 50-70 species over most weekends and their numbers will surely exceed 100 species along the coast during spring and fall migrations. The public can access all manner of habitats on game management areas operated by the Louisiana Department of Wildlife and Fisheries, parks and recreation areas operated by the Louisiana Office of Culture, Recreation, and Tourism, and national forests and national wildlife refuges and recreation areas operated by the US Department of Agriculture and US Fish and Wildlife Service as well as non-governmental agencies including The Nature Conservancy of Louisiana and the Audubon Society. Furthermore, municipalities and parish (county) governments operate parks and recreation areas that are often excellent sites to bird especially during migration periods. The Louisiana Ornithological Society (LOS) sponsors quarterly meetings with those in fall and spring always scheduled for the last full weekends in October and April in Cameron, Louisiana - check out the webpage losbird.org for specific dates. [There is a winter meeting in January that moves around the state]. Located in Cameron Parish in the extreme southwestern corner of the state, Cameron is the ideal location for such events. Migrants including passerines and shorebirds either stage in the area`s wetlands and wooded oak chenier ridges preparing to fly south across the Gulf of Mexico for the winter or stop in the area to rest and feed upon return from points south during their northward migrations during the spring. Visitors can find loons, grebes, pelicans, cormorants, wading birds, vultures, waterfowl, raptors, shorebirds, gulls, terns, doves, nightjars, woodpeckers, flycatchers, vireos, crows, swallows, wrens, thrushes, warblers, tanagers, sparrows, grosbeaks and buntings, blackbirds and orioles, and finches in the Cameron area during these migration periods. And, regardless of the time of year, visitors to wetlands associated with reservoirs, the Red River, the Atchafalaya River, the Mississippi River and the coastal fringe south of I-10 are often astounded by the large numbers of magnificent wading birds that frequent these locations. Local birding clubs, some affiliated with the Audubon Society, others not, are found in most metropolitan areas and offer members and visitors monthly weekend birding trips. State and US Government facilities often offer nature programs on weekends. |
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top sites |
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Lake Martin - Cypress Island Preserve
Lake Martin is a natural wooded wetland. Lake Martin - Cypress Island is open to anyone.Sherburne Wildlife Complex
The Sherburne Wildlife Complex in the center of the Atchafalaya Basin half way between Baton Rouge and Lafayette is surely one of the best places for birding off the coast in Louisiana with full public access although people MUST have a Wild Louisiana Stamp or a valid hunting or fishing license to access the state`s properties in this system. [Dr. Remsen recently published a wonderful article on this area in Birder`s World]. The US Fish & Wildlife Service has just published a seasonal checklist for one unit of the SWC - the Atchafalaya National Wildlife Refuge. The checklist is good for the entire 45,000 acre tract that includes state and federal ownership.contributor |
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Jay Huner
Fellow, Center for Cultural and Eco-Tourism, University of Louisiana, Lafayette.
(Lafayette, Louisiana)
jhuner@louisiana.edu
http://ccet.louisiana.edu/
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useful reading |
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Louisiana Breeding Bird Atlas
David A Wiedenfeld and M Mark Swan 80 pages, col illus, maps. Louisiana Sea Grant College 2000ISBN: 145755
Buy this book from NHBS.com
useful information |
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State Bird
Eastern Brown Pelican Pelecanus occidentalis
clubs |
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Acadiana Audubon Society
http://www.jjaudubon.net/acadia.htmWe are reorganizing our chapter. We are filing for a 501c3. Please come back again...
Audubon Society in Louisiana
http://www.jjaudubon.net/We connect Louisiana citizens with nature through education and experience on the land. We help children, families, and adults from all walks of life develop an understanding of and appreciation for the environment. We inspire them and give them the tools to act on behalf of the environment - in their own homes and communities, as well as on the national level and beyond...
Barataria-Terrebonne National Estuary Program
http://www.btnep.org/home.aspOn September 13, 1990, the EPA and the State of Louisiana entered a cooperative agreement under the National Estuary Program to form the Barataria - Terrebonne National Estuary Program (BTNEP). The program`s charter was to develop a coalition of government, private, and commercial interests...
Baton Rouge Audubon Society
http://www.braudubon.org/The Baton Rouge Audubon Society is dedicated to protecting the unique biological treasures of Louisiana, with special concern for birds, wildlife and their habitats. Our chapter contributes to our community by offering opportunities to learn about and appreciate our natural environment...
Crescent Bird Club
http://hometown.aol.com/crescentbrdclub/myhomepage/club.htmlThe Crescent Bird Club has more than 200 members. The Club holds free field trips for members throughout the year, except in summer, to such places as the Jean Lafitte National Park and Dauphin Island, AL. The Club also holds annual dinners at which excellent lectures and slide shows are presented.
Loose Alliance of Keen and/or Casual Birdwatchers of Central Louisiana
http://gocenla.thetowntalk.com/145/In cooperation with national, state and regional organizations, promote and support interest in birds and other small animals,their habitat and other enviornmental needs, nesting practices, migration, general survival and well being by providing educational and training opportunities including field trips to all interested persons.
Louisiana Bird Records Committee
http://www.losbird.org/instruct_lbrc.htmHow do you decide which bird records are worth reporting? How should they be documented, and when, where, and to whom should they be sent?
Louisiana Ornithological Society
http://www.losbird.orgThe Louisiana Ornithological Society (LOS) was organized in 1947 to gather and disseminate accurate information concerning the bird life of the western hemisphere and of Louisiana; to promote interest in and appreciation of the value of birds, both aesthetic and economic, which will ensure wiser conservation of our bird life; to promote opportunity for acquaintance and fellowship among those interested in nature; and to issue, at such times as possible or practicable, publications as a means of furthering these ends.
Nature Conservancy in Lousiana
http://nature.org/wherewework/northamerica/states/louisiana/Not the ususal NC site this, but none the worse for that, still a first class presentation and full of very useful info on preserves etc.
Northshore Bird Club
http://www.minilogic.com/nsbirders/index.htmlWe are a small group of passionate birders, living in Slidell, Louisiana (across Lake Pontchartrain and a little to the east of New Orleans) and throughout the Northshore. It all began in early 1994 when Peggy Siegert was approached by several other enthusiasts, following one of her canoe-trip group- learning experiences, and they all shared one of those we ought to form a club conversations. Since then, it has grown in size to about 60 members, including singles and couples, retired and working (or at least claiming to be) people, seniors and teenagers and interested people of every kind -- everyone from recognized experts to beginners just realizing the wonders of their own backyards. All the while, the Club has continued its close-knit family atmosphere, something you notice, right away, if you attend one of our meetings.
Orleans Audubon Society
http://www.jjaudubon.net/ppdoas.htmAs yet a quite basic site with contact details etc.
Shreveport Society for Nature Study
http://www.birdstudygroup.orgThe Bird Study Group is a northwest Louisiana organization of bird-watchers based in Shreveport. The Bird Study Group offers field trips, bird discussions, a bird sighting database, and other programs for people with an interest in birds...
Sierra Club
http://www.sierraclub.org/la/You can`t live here and not feel outraged by what some people have to live with, says Barbara Vincent, whose passion is working on environmental justice issues...
Sierra Club - Delta Chapter
http://louisiana.sierraclub.org/The Delta Chapter is the Sierra Club organization for the State of Louisiana. We advance the cause of protecting Louisiana`s environment in a variety of ways, including lobbying the state legislature in Baton Rouge, sponsoring a Mercury Public Education Campaign; and working to keep the Atchafalaya Basin, America`s greatest river swamp, wet and wild...
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Great Louisiana BirdFest - April 11-13, 2008
http://www.northlakenature.orgAn Event of the Northlake Nature Center - The Great Louisiana BirdFest is an annual event of the Northlake Nature Center. It is held each year in the spring when many species are migrating north through Louisiana from Mexico and South America. (See http://losbird.org/checklist.htm for a birding checklist.) Our location in southern Louisiana makes this an excellent time of year for birding. The weather is typically warm but not yet hot and the trees are usually leafing out, but still thin enough for improved visibility. BirdFest trips will visit varied habitat including swamps, wetlands, pine savanna, and hardwoods of southeast Louisiana. Among the many excellent birding locations scheduled for this year's BirdFest is Pine Island, a rookery located in a private preserve...
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Gulf Coast Bird Observatory
http://www.gcbo.org/Historically, the GCBO was founded as a partnership to accomplish conservation through avian research and the protection of coastal habitat utilized as stopover by migratory songbirds. In 1992, to obtain funding for land acquisitions along the Chenier Plain of Texas, Houston Audubon Society (HAS) approached Phillips Petroleum Company for support. Phillips responded enthusiastically with a $60,000 challenge grant. About the same time, The Nature Conservancies of Texas and Louisiana (TNC); were also working to protect the important habitat of the Chenier region. Amoco Production Company had pledged $200,000 and land valued at over $700,000 in support of that effort. In 1993, the conservation organizations (HAS and TNC) merged the two complementary initiatives, forming the framework for what is now the Gulf Coast Bird Observatory - a long-range effort to protect birds and improve and protect their habitat along the entire Gulf Coast.
reserves |
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Acadiana Park Nature Station
http://www.naturestation.orgLocated in a wooded section of Acadiana Park, a 110 acre facility in the northeastern corner of Lafayette, Louisiana (south-central Louisiana); the Nature Station and its accompanying 3+mile trail system is owned and operated by the Division of Arts & Culture, in the Department of Community Development, Lafayette Consolidated Government.
Audubon Nature Institute Nature Center
http://www.auduboninstitute.orgCelebrate interactive wonders in 85-acre hardwood forest, and experience the hands-on fun of the Interpretive Center`s teaching greenhouse, the Butterfly Garden, or the Astronomy Center...
Cameron Prairie National Wildlife Refuge
http://gorp.com/gorp/resource/us_nwr/la_camer.htmAlthough established in 1988 and in existence only 6 years as a national wildlife refuge, Cameron Prairie NWR is a rapidly growing attraction for local residents and visitors alike. In fact, the Gulf Coast Bird Club has already adopted Cameron Prairie NWR as one of its favorite birding sites and committed itself to compiling the refuge bird list...
Cypress Island Preserve
http://nature.org/wherewework/northamerica/states/louisiana/preserves/art6856.htmlThe Nature Conservancy of Louisiana`s goal is to restore natural bottomland hardwood forest, in order to support a large rookery of birds. The Conservancy also wants to minimize disturbance to the rookery while accommodating human visitation.,,
Great Louisiana Coastal Birding Trail
http://www.fermatainc.com/laWelcome to America`s Wetland Birding Trail! With landscapes ranging from coastal wetlands to rolling hills and prairies, Louisiana is a nature lover`s paradise. Whether you are an avid birder or a casual nature enthusiast, visitors can explore Louisiana`s wild spaces through the numerous State Parks, State Historic Sites, State Preservation Areas, National Wildlife Refuges, Wildlife Management Areas, and other natural spots throughout the state.
Jean Lafitte National Historical Park and Preserve
http://www.nps.gov/jela/The Barataria Preserve is one of six sites comprising Jean Lafitte National Historical Park and Preserve. The Barataria Preserve interprets the culture of people, past and present, who settled the delta and the unique ecosystem which sustained them. It preserves a representative example of the delta`s environment, containing natural levee forests, bayous, swamps, and marshes. Though wild, and teeming with wildlife, this is not a pristine wilderness. Evidence of prehistoric human settlement, colonial farming, plantation agriculture, logging, commercial trapping, fishing, hunting, and oil and gas exploration overlay much of this former wilderness.
Lacassine National Wildlife Refuge
http://gorp.com/gorp/resource/us_nwr/la_lacas.htmAlthough established in 1937 to provide wintering habitat for waterfowl, Lacassine NWR supports many communities of land and water wildlife. Located at the edge of Grand Lake and 15 miles from the Gulf of Mexico, the refuge covers 32,625 acres, nearly half of which is Lacassine Pool. This huge fresh-water impoundment was built for waterfowl after the refuge was established and was later subdivided for better control of water levels...
Northlake Nature Center
http://www.northlakenature.org/Located on 400 acres of ancient pines and hardwood forest, bounded on the west by Bayou Castine, crossed by a marsh and active beaver pond - teeming with native animal and plant life - the Northlake Nature Center is St. Tammany`s Secret Garden. The subtle splendor of Louisiana`s wetlands is complemented by graceful structures, aged and new. A recent archaeological survey revealed the Center site as home to ancient peoples more than 500 years ago...
Sabine National Wildlife Refuge
http://areas.wildernet.com/pages/area.cfm?areaID=LANWRSA&CU_ID=1Sabine NWR is considered one of southwest Louisiana`s most popular attractions. Most of the 200,000 people who visit the refuge each year walk the 1.5-mile Wetland Walkway, where they can get close-up views of the birds and other marsh animals. The walkway has an observation tower, offering panoramic views of miles of the level marsh terrain...
trip reports |
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Travelling Birder
http://www.travellingbirder.com
The Travellingbirder.com birding trip report search engine guides you to 7,000+ birding trip reports on the Internet. You can search for trip reports from a specific country and time of year. Not all these reports are in English. So, if you can’t find the trip report you want on this Fatbirder page… give them a try!
1998 [May] - Luciano Ruggieri - Day Trip around New orleans
http://www3.ns.sympatico.ca/maybank/USA/LA-05-98.htmBordering the Gulf of Mexico and characterized by more than 15% of wetlands, Louisiana offers many opportunities for European birders interested in seeing not only American species but also neotropical migrants. The influence of the Tropics on the avifauna of the area is so strong that the Louisiana check list includes 442 species...
2000 [March] - Tom and D`Ann Brownrigg - Cameron Parish
http://www3.ns.sympatico.ca/maybank/USA/LA-03-2000.htmI did notice the Yellow-rumped Warbler population in Jackson Square was much smaller than last time we were there. The timing of the trip was based on business rather than bird timing. We saw lots of birds but most of the ducks have departed and most of the migrants have not yet arrived...
2003 [March] - Paul Varney
http://www.surfbirds.com/mb/trips/new-orleans-pv-0403.htmlI was lucky enough to visit New Orleans between March 24th and March 31st 2003 for a meeting and luckily I managed to get some birding in either side of the meeting. I was lucky enough to enlist the help of Nancy Newfield and Lehman Ellis - 2 local birders I contacted through the internet. They were very helpful and actually took me out on a couple of occasions...
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Birding Pal
http://birdingpal.org/la.htmLocal birders willing to show visiting birders around their area...
Seabirds & Whales of Louisiana
http://webusers.xula.edu/jsevenai/offshore.htmlThe Louisiana Ornithological Society (LOS) no longer offers pelagic trips. This is a good site but only as reference to offshore birding.
places to stay |
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Desert Plantation B&B
http://www.desertplantation.comDesert Plantation Bed and Breakfast is a National Register Antebellum home located near St. Francisville, Louisiana on a one-thousand acre plantation in the beautiful, rolling countryside along the edge of the Tunica Hills...
Woodridge B&B
http://www.woodridgebb.com/Nestled between 100 year old live oak trees, the Woodridge began its history as a private school. Recently converted to a lovely bed & breakfast with amenities found in the best hotels and friendliness and comfort only found in a comfy Southern family home. Innkeepers Debbi and Tim Fotsch are sure to fill your visit with memories that will stay with you for a lifetime...
mailing lists |
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LABIRD-L
http://www.museum.lsu.edu/~Remsen/LABIRDintro.htmlTo post to list:listserv@listserv.LSU.edu
List contact:listserv@listserv.lsu.edu
To subscribe to list:listserv@listserv.lsu.edu
subscribe LABIRD-L Your Name
Discussion of birds in Louisiana
other links |
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Birding Louisiana
http://www.birdingamerica.com/Louisiana/louisian.htmLouisiana has some wonderfully wild places - and I`m not talking about New Orleans! (Although I will confess to a weakness for beignets and bread pudding soufflés and gumbo and fried pickles and... oh well.) I own a little tiny bit of Louisiana, in St. Tammany Parish. It`s on the West Pearl River marsh, very close to the expeditions for the Ivory-billed Woodpecker taking place in February of 2000.
Birding Trail of Louisiana
http://www.birdlouisiana.com/birdtrail/trailpage.htmlThis page is under construction - we will be adding information periodically. Please come back to visit often. If you have information to submitted, please send to Kay Radlauer....
Birds of Southeastern Louisiana
http://pulse.tcs.tulane.edu/~danny/sela.htmlAn annotated list.
Covington Wild Bird Center
http://www.wildbird.com/stores/cov/mapThe Wild Bird Center is a specialty retail shop that offers a complete line of products to help you enjoy wild birds, have a thriving lawn and garden, and foster a healthy backyard habitat...
Loisiana Ornithological Society
http://losbird.org./The Louisiana Ornithological Society (LOS) was organized in 1947 to gather and disseminate accurate information concerning the bird life of the western hemisphere and of Louisiana; to promote interest in and appreciation of the value of birds, both aesthetic and economic, which will ensure wiser conservation of our bird life; to promote opportunity for acquaintance and fellowship among those interested in nature; and to issue, at such times as possible or practicable, publications as a means of furthering these ends...
Louisiana Birds
http://homeport.tcs.tulane.edu/~danny/labirds.htmlThis list is not complete and in a constant state of revision. Comments and additional data are welcomed.
Louisiana Breeding Bird Survey Data
http://sdms.cr.usgs.gov/data/metadata/labbs.htmlThis data set consists of vector data for breeding bird habitat locations throughout the State of Louisiana. The data contains information about the presence or absence of species and its breeding status...
South Louisiana Bird Guide
http://www.jjaudubon.net/guide.htmE.G. New Orleans` City Park is one of the largest urban parks in the U.S., with 1500 acres of stately old live oaks, formal gardens, mixed hardwoods, brush, and field habitats. The park also contains many lagoons, and Bayou St. John borders the eastern edge of the park.
artists |
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Photographer - Brian K Miller
http://www.briankmiller.com/Wildlife photographs including birds from the excellent master of the art from Louisianna
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