Birding - Where to Go

CRYSTAL RIVER

Ecowalk, Crystal River State Buffer Preserve
Along the 2.3-mile interpretive trail, look for yellow-breasted chats and Swainson's warblers this spring, and soras and bitterns in the ponds. Kestrels and red-shouldered hawks hunt in the open fields, and you'll see swallow-tailed kites in the summer. Off U.S. 19 at Curtis Tool Road and Tallahassee Road.

Crystal Cove Trail,
Crystal River State Buffer Preserve
Watch for Mississippi kites in the summer and fall, and shorebirds around the saltwater marshes off U.S. 19 and State Park Road on Sailboat Point Road.

Fort Island Trail,
Crystal River State Buffer Preserve
From Dixie Shores to Fort Island Beach, pulloffs along the Fort Island Trail Road through the vast Gulf estuary enable you to watch for wading birds; black skimmers often gather en masse on the beach.

Kings Bay
Hang out at Pete's Pier, off Kings Bay Drive, to watch wintering white pelicans and roosting yellow-crowned night herons.

Nature Coast Canoe and Kayak Trail
A 20-mile paddling route from Fort Island Trail Park to Chassahowitzka Campground, this immersion in the estuary takes you directly past nesting eagles and osprey.

Withlacoochee Bay Trail, Cross Florida Greenway
A paved trail on the south side of the Cross Florida Barge Canal off U.S. 19, this walk provides a sweeping view of salt marshes and spoil islands, great for spotting shore-birds in winter, especially flocks of oystercatchers.

Inglis Dam, Cross Florida Greenway
Barn swallows nest beneath the dam in spring, and migratory songbirds pass through the forests of Inglis Island.

Potts Preserve
This 8,400-acre preserve along the Withlacoochee River encompasses pine flatwoods, scrub and cypress swamps. Scrub-jays live on the edge of the meadow; sandhill cranes wander the campground, and owls frequent the river hammocks. Take C.R. 581 east from Inverness to the end of Hooty Point Road.

Upper Withlacoochee River
Stop along S.R. 44 at the boat ramp to watch for black-crowned night herons on the water's edge and swallow-tailed kits roosting atop the cypresses.


CHASSAHOWITZKA


Chassahowitzka River Trail
Paddle out of the county campground and into the Gulf hammocks to encounter islands entirely gone “to the birds.” At the end of Miss Maggie Drive.


CITRUS SPRINGS


Johnson Pond Trail
It's a pleasant 2.7 mile loop through sandhills and scrub, with an observation deck (perfect for bird watching) along vast Johnson Pond, and nesting boxes for bluebirds. On C.R. 39, 2 miles west of S.R. 200, Citrus Springs.


HOMOSASSA SPRINGS


Pepper Creek Trail
Follow the paved trail from the visitor's center to Homosassa Springs Wildlife Park to encounter sapsuckers and warblers. On U.S. 19.

Bluebird Springs
Migratory birds stop off at this small spring surrounded by a hydric hammock. At the end of Noontide Avenue off Yulee Drive.

Mason Creek Trail
Paddle through Chassahowitzka National Wildlife Refuge for up close looks at sandpipers, scaups, and ducks. Put in at the canoe launch at the end of Mason Creek Road.

Rook Trail, Homosassa Tract, Withlacoochee State Forest
Wild turkeys roam the sandhills along this 2.7 mile stroll through uplands, pasture, and floodplain forest; the air is filled with bird song. Off U.S. 19 at Burnt Bridge Road.

Chassahowitzka Salt Marsh Trails, old Homosassa This project, completed on approximately 10 acres of Refuge property formerly know as the Cary Property, is the only land accessible property in the Refuge System. Through the generosity of a grant from the Lastinger Family Foundation in St. Petersburg, we were able to construct an observation tower overlooking the salt marsh, a covered pavilion, several nature trails and a kayak and canoe launch.

INVERNESS


Citrus Tract, Withlacoochee State Forest
Scrub-jays frequent the sand pine scrub off TR 13 at the north end of the forest; you'll find red-cockaded woodpecker clusters (marked with white bands painted around the trees) west of the Holder Mine trailhead. Turkeys and bobwhites roam the sandhills at the south end of the forest, accessed by following the Citrus Hiking Trail north from C.R. 480 east of Tillis Hill.

Fort Cooper State Park
Walk the gentle trails around Lake Holathlikaha to glimpse sandhill cranes in the open areas, and head up along the Old Military Trail to see Bachman's sparrows. Off Old Floral City Road and Eden Drive.

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