Birds have always been a touchstone in my life. They were an early bond with my mother. They made me think about esoteric things like habitat and migration. They led me to my profession. They were invoked in my wedding vows. They were subjects of my research.
Birding remains one of my main pastimes and passions, and as a recent retiree, I now have time to take my birding interests to a new level of enjoyment. One way I plan to ‘up my game’ is to start attending some of the hundreds of birding festivals celebrated across North America.
Look at this map! We have an embarrassment of riches when it comes to birding festivals!
- Festivals showcasing individual species, such as Cerulean Warbler, Lesser Prairie Chicken
- Festivals featuring bird guilds, such as raptors, hummingbirds, woodpeckers
- Festivals celebrating peak spring or fall bird migrations
- Festivals highlighting wintering concentrations of birds
- Festivals showcasing biodiverse regions, such as the Sky Islands of Arizona
Whether you’re new to birding or a pro, there are many reasons to attend a birding festival. One of the primary reasons is the opportunity to see new birds to add to your “life list.” Another top reason is to explore an entirely new habitat with all its natural wonders. Birding festivals brim with field trips, workshops, and presentations designed to educate and engage birders of all skill levels. Some also present trade shows where birders can test and purchase new optics and gear.
Importantly and perhaps underappreciated, birding festivals are key drivers of ecotourism, infusing significant dollars into local economies. Likewise, as the economic impact of bird watching and festivals grows, more communities, chambers of commerce, and governments will realize that protecting habitat for birds is a $mart thing to do.
When you’re making your travel plans for 2020, consider making a birding festival a travel destination – or tie one in while you’re at that family reunion in Florida this spring or your friend’s wedding in Maine this fall. Here are 4 excellent websites that list 2020 birding festivals and events across North America:
Bird Watcher’s Digest Festival Finder
U.S. Fish & Wildlife Service Bird Festival Planner
The Cornell Lab Birding Festivals & Events (w/interactive map)
American Birding Association Festivals & Events
It’s not enough to just leave you with links to explore. The following are overviews of a few 2020 birding festivals to give you an idea of the incredible variety of festival experiences available. These are listed chronologically starting in March 2020.
International Festivals of Owls – March 6-8, 2020, Houston, MN
The only full-weekend, all-owl festival in North America, providing lots of family-friendly activities. Events include live owl demonstrations, nest-box building, owl pellet dissection, and an ‘Owl Prowl’ nighttime field trip. Proceeds support the Houston Nature Center/International Owl Center.
Wings Over Water Northwest Birding Festival – March 20-22, 2020, Blaine, WA
This festival celebrates the diversity of migratory birds that flock to the coastal waters of Drayton Harbor, Birch Bay, and Semiahmoo Bay in NW Washington State. The region is designated as an Important Bird Area for its role as a major stopover on the Pacific Flyway between Seattle, WA and Vancouver, BC. The area is also the anchor for the North Cascades Loop of the Great Washington State Birding Trail. Festival offerings include guided field trips, workshops, presentations, birding cruises on the Salish Sea, kid’s activities, photography, and many other special events.
Mackinaw Raptor Fest – April 3-5, Mackinaw, MI
Each year thousands of hawks, eagles, vultures, and owls follow the contours of Lakes Michigan and Huron, ending up at the Straits of Mackinac where they must cross a 5-mile expanse of water. To conserve energy, the birds use rising air drafts to lift them high in the air to glide across the Straits.
Mackinac Straits Raptor Watch inventories raptors and waterfowl as they migrate and promotes their observation to the public. Interpreters are on hand to help spot and identify birds and superb educational programs (e.g., nighttime owl banding, Sharp-tailed Grouse lek trip) are offered by engaging presenters.
Galveston FeatherFest – April 16-19, 2020, Galveston Island, TX
Galveston Island is another “pinch point” in the arduous northward migration of birds from Central and South America across the Gulf of Mexico, and a prime location along the Great Texas Coastal Birding Trail. This festival is timed for peak spring migration and chance to see 300+ species over a fun 4 days of field trips and workshops.
Atlanta Bird Fest – April 18-May 17, 2020, Greater Atlanta, GA
Birds, y'all! Georgia's largest bird and nature festival features a full month of activities, including a spectacular list of field trips to Georgia's best birding hotspots, nature-based workshops, and guest speakers tailored to all levels of bird, nature, and outdoor enthusiasts. I mean, look at the list of field trips! Warbler Weekend in the North Georgia Mountains, May 2-3; uh oh, overlaps with Red-cockaded Woodpeckers at Piedmont NWR. OK, guess I’ll just spend the whole month in GA.
Red Cliffs Bird Fest at Greater Zion – April 23-25, 2020, St. George, UT
This festival showcases the stunning habitats and scenery of Greater Zion during spring migration. Southwest Utah has a rich diversity of habitats to explore, including micro-wetlands and low deserts, riparian habitats, and the aspen-fir belt. These habitats support 290+ bird species, including the Bird Fest’s 2020 Bird of the Year, the California Condor. Hot tip: book your Condors of Vermilion Cliffs field trip soon; it’s a guaranteed sell out.
The Birdiest Festival in America – April 22-26, 2020, Corpus Christi, TX
Corpus Christi is the heart of the Texas Coastal Bend, a region most birders have on their bucket list. Many birds native to South Texas are found nowhere else in North America: Couch's Kingbird, Great Kiskadee, Buff-bellied Hummingbird, White-tipped Dove, Groove-billed Ani, Green Jay. During spring migration, the diversity and abundance of birds is nothing short of spectacular. This Texas-sized festival offers dozens of talks and workshops, field trips, live raptor demonstrations, local arts and crafts vendors, activities for kids, and a real Texas barbeque. This year’s keynote speaker is ornithologist David Allen Sibley, author and illustrator of The Sibley Guide to Birds. Impressive.
Verde Valley Birding & Nature Festival – April 23-26, Cottonwood, AZ
“Bird the Verde” - Located in North Central Arizona’s Verde Valley, this festival gives participants the opportunity to experience birding during the peak spring migration season. With close proximity to the Verde, Oak Creek, Sycamore Creek, and other perennial waters, festival goers get to choose from over 80 field trips, hikes, and workshops in one of Arizona’s richest birding habitats. This year’s festival birds are the Yellow-billed Cuckoo and the Southwestern Willow Flycatcher, inhabitants of the area’s rare cottonwood/willow gallery forests. Check out the “MUST SEE BIRDS OF THE VERDE VALLEY” photos on the website’s front page.
Point Reyes Birding & Nature Festival – April 23-26, 2020, West Marin, CA
Point Reyes National Seashore provides the backdrop for this festival, where the Pacific Flyway, Pacific Ocean, and other influences provide an ideal location for spring bird migrations and bird and wildlife viewing. Festival attendees can choose from 50+ educational field outings and classroom-based events focused on birds, wildlife, plants, and marine life, plus hiking, kayaking, art, and field photography.
Copper River Delta Shorebird Festival – May 7-10, 2020, Cordova, AK
This year is the 30th year for Alaska’s oldest wildlife and birding festival. Birders can witness shimmering flocks of nearly 5 million shorebirds as they rest and refuel on the Copper River Delta tidal flats before migrating to northern breeding grounds. This is a “laid back weekend of birding, hiking, art and more in one of the most pristine natural places on earth.”
See a feature video of the festival here.
The Biggest Week in American Birding – May 8-17, 2020, Oak Harbor, OH
This 10-day festival in northwest Ohio (“The Warbler Capital of the World”) has been called the best birding event on the planet. Hyperbole? I think not. Just look at this schedule! Organized and hosted by Black Swamp Bird Observatory, The Biggest Week features some of the best spring birding North America has to offer. The southern edge of Lake Erie acts as a barrier that birds are reluctant to cross on their northward migration. Birds tend to “pile up” in the woodlots before leaf-out, so birds are highly visible, active, and vocal. Event offerings include bird identification workshops, keynote presentations, guided field trips, daily walks at world famous Magee Marsh boardwalk and other area birding hotspots, presentations on world birding, a Birder's Marketplace, and...wait for it...a Bird Tattoo Contest!
Acadia Birding Festival – May 29-31, 2020, Mount Desert Island, Bar Harbor, ME
Well, NW Ohio and Maine will just have to duke it out, because Roger Tory Peterson proclaimed Mount Desert Island "the warbler capital of the world." The area encompasses stunning Acadia National Park and includes diverse habitats, such as northern hardwood, boreal and spruce-fir forests, bogs, heath, fresh- and salt-water marshes, grassy/shrubby fields, streams, lakes and ponds, and the highest point on the Atlantic coast, Cadillac Mountain. The festival offers field trips, pelagic boat trips, paddling trips, talks, presentations, and social events to connect birders to Downeast Maine’s many bird species.
Southeast Arizona Birding Festival – August 5–9, 2020, Tucson, AZ
Monsoon season in SE Arizona’s Sonoran Desert means specialty birds found nowhere else in the U.S. and the chance to see “lifer” birds such as Elegant Trogon, Lucifer Hummingbird, Red-faced Warbler, Arizona Woodpecker, Montezuma Quail, Five-striped Sparrow, and much, much more. This coveted festival offers professionally led half- and full-day field trips, programs, and photography events. I just swoon thinking about these field trips:
- Sky Islands Birding Blitz – the Grand Loop
- Hummingbird Hotspots in the Huachucas
- California Gulch, Madera Canyon, and De Anza Trail, overnight trip
Hawai’i Island Festival of Birds (Ha’akula Manu) – October 15-19, 2020, Kona, HI
This young festival bills itself as “a celebration of Hawaii’s avian voyagers.” Festival events take in a 90-mile birding trail through offshore, shoreline, desert, and mountain-rainforest habitats where Hawaiian endemic species as well as other birds can be observed. Potential endemic birds include the Nēnē, Hawaii ‘Amakihi, ‘Ōmao, Hawai‘i ‘Elepaio, ‘Apapane, ‘I‘iwi, Hawaiian Hawk, Hawaiian Coot, and endemic sub-species of the Black-necked Stilt and Short-eared Owl (Pueo). The festival includes guided field trips and a Saturday Bird Fair with educational booths, guest speakers, local artists, and handmade crafts.
Rio Grande Valley Birding Festival – November 11 – 15, 2020, Harlingen, TX
In its 27th year, this festival celebrates the bounty of birds found only in the Rio Grande Valley. Over 120 field trips are offered during the 5-day festival! RGVBF field trips are well known for their low ratio of participants-to-guides and for the quality of its guides. The festival also includes evening and keynote speakers, afternoon presentations, a 4-day trade show full of optics and birding equipment, workshops, seminars, and terrific socials.
Festival of the Cranes – November 18-21, Bosque del Apache, NM
This festival celebrating the return of Sandhill Cranes to their winter home is rated among the top birding, wildlife, and photography events in North America. The event offers 130+ events over 4 days, including premiere photography and birding classes and guided tours and hikes. Sandhill Cranes congregate in the thousands, and Snow and Ross’s Geese occur in the 10’s of thousands in the backdrop of gorgeous Bosque del Apache National Wildlife Refuge.
Is there a birding festival on your bucket list?
Have you ever attended a birding festival?
The floor is now open for your birdy musings and observations.