ChathamCoBirdingSites

A Guide to Birding in Georgia

Chatham County
Birding Locations

Legend
Su = summer
F = fall
W = winter
Sp = spring
YR = year-round

[Sept 2009] = Most recently checked by Ken Blankenship (webmaster)
[N/A] = Not yet checked by Ken Blankenship

= Location is within +/- 10 miles of the indicated interstate highway. This is especially helpful for out-of-town birders who may be passing through Georgia while travelling and would like to get out in the field.

  = Location is a "Georgia Birding Hotspot." Though this designation is subjective, it generally means that the area should be given high priority when planning a birding trip to a region. Some Hotspots offer productive birding virtually year-round (Jekyll Island, Phinizy Swamp Nature Park), while the best birding of the year may be seasonal at others (Kennesaw Mountain National Battlefield Park).

= Habitat and/or access at location is subject to change according to mixed land use or changes in ownership, such as cattle operations, agricultural fields, pine plantations (logging), and so on. Always adhere to good birding ethics concerning private property, and if the habitat at a location has experienced major changes or is no longer accessible, please email the webmaster.

SBM = Shorebird Migration; this very generally refers to mid-March thru May in spring and mid-July thru mid-October in fall. Fall is the prime shorebird season. Baird's and Buff-breasted Sandpipers likely only in fall. Peak passage of specific species is quite variable.

PM = Passerine Migration; this very generally refers to April and May in spring and August thru mid-October in fall. This includes all songbirds - wood warblers, vireos, tanagers, thrushes, flycatchers, etc. Peak passage of specific species is quite variable. Spring migration is much more concentrated and birds are often in colorful breeding plumage and singing. Fall migration is more spread out; fall wood warblers can be notoriously difficult to identify (or impossible to determine sex), with numerous juveniles which do not exhibit the same obvious field marks as adults.

IBA = Important Bird Area; the aim of the IBA Program is to identify and conserve key breeding and feeding sites for birds. An Important Bird Area is a place that provides essential habitat for one or more species of bird, whether in breeding season, winter, or during migration. These sites are considered to be exceptionally important for bird conservation; see Georgia's IBA Webpage.

Chatham County
'width' is a duplicate attribute name. Line 1, position 37.1) Tybee Island and Fort Pulaski         [January 2010]
YR
See Beaton's Birding Georgia.
[DeLorme: p. 39, B-10]
Georgia's northern and eastern-most barrier island is easily accessed via paved roads, and lies just east of the historic city of Savannah. This being said, it is obviously quite popular with tourists and birders alike, but don't let this deter you from enjoying a wonderful birding destination! As you head east on Victory Dr (Hwy 80) from Savannah, before coming to the island you will see Fort Pulaski on your left; turn here and pay the $4.00 per vehicle fee. At high tide from late fall through early spring, park in an area to the right under some palms just before crossing the bridge (PHOTO 1), walking just a bit into the marsh and pishing for saltmarsh sparrows - Seaside Sparrow (year-round), Nelson's Sharp-tailed Sparrow, and Saltmarsh Sharp-tailed Sparrow. You may also find Marsh Wrens, and if you get good looks at any birds that are very drab and gray-looking overall you have found the Worthington's subspecies, which a permanent resident of coastal South Carolina and Georgia. Continue over the bridge and try the spartina grass just beyond for the same species (PHOTO 2). A pair of high boots or even waders is helpful in this very muddy area - but try to avoid crushing the spartina grass; there are usually well-trodden fisherman trails you might stick to. When you're done looking for salty sparrows, you can walk a series of dikes just beyond the bridge to get nice views of more marsh habitat along with scrubby palm, oak, and pine woods that are great for migrants in season. Be sure to check out the visitor's center and the fort itself, an interesting Civil War site. When you're finished, turn left back onto Hwy 80 to continue to the island. When you cross a bridge over Lazaretto Creek to access the island, note a wharf to your right where shrimp boats are docked; this is where Amick's Deep Sea Fishing company is based, which runs pelagic birding trips to offshore Georgia waters. Just a little further down the road you'll see signs for the Crab Shack on your right, needless to say there is some great seafood here along with live alligators in an artificial habitat and friendly stray cats looking for hand-outs. When you get onto the island itself, you'll come through an area of arts and crafts shops; slow down when you see a curve to the right coming up and turn left onto Polk Street (there is a sign just off the road reading "River's End Campground and RV Park"). Continue down the road through a marshy area (good for waders) and turn right into the RV Park. As you pass the RV's on your left, you'll also be going past a row of homes on your right that back up to the marsh. At about the 4th or 5th house down, you'll notice a very nice garden area and several feeders hanging from the deck. From fall through early spring you should always check here for a rare White-winged Dove to show up. Retrace back to Polk St and turn right; at the end of this road is a gate and a trail that accesses the north beach of Tybee Island but parking can be tricky; there is a sand area on the left before the gate but it is currently being developed (PHOTOS 3-4). A better idea is to go back to Hwy 80 and turn left, then left again at a light where there is a gas station on your left. Follow the signs to the famous Tybee Lighthouse (PHOTO 7), and just before you get to an old concrete artillery station, turn right and drive to the rear parking lot to access the beach. Pay for a few hours at one of the new digital pay stations and print your ticket, and you might also take advantage of the public restrooms and a little restaurant here. Several boardwalks will take you out to the beach (PHOTOS 5-6). Spending time out on Tybee's north beach is great birding and a wonderful experience any time of year - be sure to take your scope. It is perhaps most often visited in winter, for this is the only reliable spot in the state to find Purple Sandpiper (PHOTO 8). Pay attention to the tide (view Georgia Tide Charts), and show up just before the peak of high tide. At this time and throughout high tide, the foraging grounds of the Purple Sandpipers around the delta of the Savannah River (rocky jetties and rip-rap) are submerged and they will come in to roost on the northern tip of the island. They are usually found mixed with Ruddy Turnstones and other shorebirds. If you get there late, and the water has come down just enough, they will have dispersed all around the area; however, at other tides you can pay close attention to the rock jetty on Tybee and you may spot one foraging with Ruddy Turnstones and Sanderlings. Also in winter, always scan the waters off the beach for diving birds like Red-throated Loon, Red-breasted Merganser, Bufflehead, Common Loon, Double-crested Cormorant, and (more rarely) scoters such as Black, White-winged, or Surf. Northern Gannets can be seen doing spectacular dives further offshore in winter, and on rare occasions you may see a Parisitic or Pomarine Jaeger chasing gulls near shrimp boats. Other birds you may expect in various seasons on the north beach include Black Skimmer, Royal Tern, Caspian Tern, Sandwich Tern, Common Tern, Forster's Tern, Herring Gull, Ring-billed Gull, Great and Lesser Black-backed Gull, Sanderling, Dunlin, and more. Many rarities have shown up on Tybee over the years, such as Brant and Common Eider. It is a major longshot, but you should look carefully at all cormorants in winter for a possible Great Cormorant to show up. One of the threats to the birds of Tybee Island is people; though the northern tip of the island is not at all as busy as the beaches to its east and south, it only takes one careless person walking through a roosting flock of birds to disturb them and send them elsewhere to rest. Take a few moments if you like to visit the Tybee Island Lighthouse, with tours available. When you are done here, you can go back to Hwy 80 and head to east and south beach access points further down the island. These are areas that deserve a quick check even though they tend to be less birdy in general than the north beach due to larger crowds; a Black-headed Gull was found on the south beach in August 2005. Another quick stop is the west end of 6th Street, where there is a marsh and some good scrubby edge habitat that can harbor a few passerines; good birds found here recently in winter include Lark Sparrow (very rare), Prairie Warbler, Orange-crowned Warbler, Savannah Sparrow, Blue-gray Gnatcatcher, and American Goldfinch. Always look twice at doves on the wires on Tybee for a rare White-winged Dove to show up, usually fall through early spring.

PHOTO 1 PHOTO 2 PHOTO 3 PHOTO 4 PHOTO 5 PHOTO 6 PHOTO 7 PHOTO 8 (RC)
Text by KB; photos by KB and RC

'width' is a duplicate attribute name. Line 1, position 37.2) Savannah-Ogeechee Canal [October 2005]
PM, late May-June for breeding birds
See Beaton's Birding Georgia.
[DeLorme pg. 55, B-9]
As of fall 2005, the property was at risk of losing funding and no longer had a paid maintenance crew. A nice older gentleman there told me that a small volunteer workforce was trying to keep up the place, but it was quite overwhelming and the trails might eventually start reverting back to wild bottomlands. We saw some of this already happening, and I will honestly say I've birded fewer places with more mosquitoes, huge spiders, and snakes to top it off. Now, now - don't push each other over trying to go here based on my rave review. However, an interesting report to GABO-L in April 2007 made no reference to access problems and, in fact, some great birds were seen including Indigo Bunting, Orchard Oriole, Worm-eating Warbler, Prothonotary Warbler, Northern Parula, Yellow-throated Warbler, Scarlet and Summer Tanager, Bald Eagle, Great-crested Flycatcher, Blue-gray Gnatcatcher, Red-eyed Vireo, White-eyed Vireo, and Yellow-throated Vireo. At any rate, it makes a quick stop in some unique and pretty swamp habitat as part of a trip to the Savannah-Tybee Island area so go check it out!

Text by KB; Photos by Steve Barlow.