Alabama Coastal Birding Trail

Looping around delta bottomlands, Mobile Bay, and the sandy terrain bordering the Gulf of Mexico, this route includes several highlights from the separately published "Alabama Coastal Birding Trail" (ACBT) brochure, which lists a total of 50 birding sites. For a copy, call 1-800-745-SAND or 1-800-5-MOBILE. This trail includes road signs identifying each birding site, corresponding to the codes shown in parentheses.

Click here to view a full map showing the different trail locations across the state.

For a direct link to the Alabama Coastal Birding Trail Web site, click here: www.alabamacoastalbirdingtrail.com

Gulf State Park provides a rich variety of coastal habitat for shorebirds and wading birds. Check sand depressions near the dunes for snowy plover, and the canal around Lake Shelby for the rare groove-billed ani. Flocks of common loons can be spotted at wintertime in bay areas. The end of the park's fishing pier is a great vantage point for seabirds. The nearby Wade Ward Nature Park has boardwalks overlooking coastal salt marshes; watch for bitterns and rails.

20115 AL Hwy. 135, Gulf Shores
800-ALA-PARK or (251) 948-7275
www.alapark.com
(Signage: ACBT 1, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9)

If winter is cold enough to force them southward, there can be huge numbers of grebes, ducks, and mergansers at Bon Secour National Wildlife Refuge. This is also a vantage point for Northern gannet and other seabirds and shorebirds. Just beyond is Fort Morgan State Historic Site, an important stopover for spring and fall neotropical migrants. Hundreds of migrating hawks can be seen moving westward in the fall.

12295 AL Hwy. 180, Gulf Shores (refuge)
(251) 540-7720
http://bonsecour.fws.gov/
(Signage: ACBT 11, 12)

51 AL Hwy. 180, Gulf Shores (fort)
(251) 540-7125
(Signage: ACBT 15)

Weeks Bay National Estuarine Research Reserve is one of 25 national reserves protecting estuarine waters, marshes, shorelines, and adjacent uplands for research and education. A boardwalk leads to an observation platform overlooking the bay, and an interpretive center with bird cards is also on the site.

11300 U.S. Hwy. 98, Fairhope
(251) 928-9792
(Signage: ACBT 20)

Many wading birds can be seen from the boardwalk at Meaher State Park. This is a great place for terns, including gull-billed in summer. American white pelican finds this a preferred spot in winter. Just up U.S. Hwy. 90 at Chacaloochee Bay, American coot winters by the thousands.

5200 Battleship Pkwy., Spanish Fort
800-ALA-PARK or (251) 626-5529
www.alapark.com
(Signage: ACBT 26, 27)

The Mobile Tensaw Delta Wildlife Management Area is located along the Tensaw River. During the nesting season, common species include red-shouldered hawk, barred owl, red-eyed vireo, Northern parula, and prothonotary warbler. Swallow-tailed kite may be spotted along the riverbank.

5093 Battleship Pkwy., Spanish Fort
(251) 626-5474
www.dcnr.state.al.us/
(Signage: ACBT 37)

At USS Alabama Battleship Memorial Park, black-necked stilt may be around almost any time of year at low tide. Herons and egrets can also be seen. Yellow-crowned night heron in late summer and long-billed curlew in winter are among other avian visitors.

2703 Battleship Pkwy., Mobile
(251) 433-2703
www.ussalabama.com
(Signage: ACBT 29)

Bellingrath Gardens and Home lists 130 species of birds among those to be found within its floral paradise. The entire 900-acre complex is a bird sanctuary. There is an observation tower overlooking the Fowl River and salt marsh.

12401 Bellingrath Rd., Theodore
800-247-8420 or (251) 973-2217
www.bellingrath.org
(Signage: ACBT 48)

Dauphin Island is one of the most popular places for birding during the migration season. Its bird card lists 345 species, about 85 percent of the state list. As a classic migrant trap it can be an overwhelming experience during a spring fallout when a cold front moving southward brings rain and northerly winds, causing birds to literally fall from the sky. Birding can be equally good in the fall. The 164-acre Audubon Bird Sanctuary features trails and swamp walkways in a wilderness where pelicans, egrets, herons, and alligators abide.

Bienville Blvd. E., Dauphin Island
(251) 861-3607
www.coastalbirding.org
(Signage: ACBT 39, 40, 41, 42, 43, 44, 45)