The Guide to
Austin-area Birding Sites
Good places to see birds in and around Austin
A Note About Golden-cheeked Warblers
More than one of the sites
mentioned in this guide
are likely to have nesting
Golden-cheeked Warblers.
Visitors to these areas
need to know some things
about this bird before setting
out to try to see it. Male
warblers are most easily
detected by song, and they
mostly sing between mid-March
and late May.
It is necessary to know
the song if you want to
have a good chance of finding
the bird. Females are comparatively
silent and are less obvious.
After May, singing rapidly
decreases and the warblers
become much more difficult
to locate (although their
rather quiet chirps continue
to reveal their presence).
By the end of July, essentially
all birds have left for
the wintering grounds in
Middle America. It is illegal
to harass an endangered
species like this warbler.
This includes playing tapes
of their songs in an attempt
to lure them into view.
Consult your bird song tapes
indoors, but please refrain
from using them in the field.
Several city parks and nature preserves are among the sites listed (they are marked with asterisks [*]). Resident birds typical of the urban and suburban areas of Central Texas – Great-tailed Grackle, White-winged Dove and House Finch, for example – are also typical of Austin’s parks. During spring and fall migration (April to early May and August to October) the parks sometimes host good numbers of migrants. As well, they often support wintering birds. Every park has some birding potential, but there is room in this leaflet to mention only a few locations. For information on all of Austin’s 170+ park areas, and on obtaining a parks map, call the Austin Parks and Recreation Department at (512) 499-6700; or write to 200 South Lamar Blvd., Austin, Texas 78704. Nature preserves, in contrast to parks, are undeveloped and usually rural. Access to most of them is restricted, though the preserve staff occasionally offers guided tours; for information, call the preserve system at (512) 480-3060.
Austin-area Birding Sites
Texas Parks and Wildlife Department
4200 Smith School Road
Austin, TX 78744
or send a message to: nature@tpwd.texas.gov