USA TODAY 10Best
Magee Marsh Wins Reader Vote for Best Birdwatching
Best Birdwatching (2014)
The battle to be named 'Best Birdwatching' was intense and hard fought, but after four weeks of voting, Magee Marsh in Ohio took home top honors. This winning spot on the banks of Lake Erie attracts large numbers of North American songbirds — and the birdwatchers who come to spot them.
Finishing strong in second place was Pennsylvania's Hawk Mountain Sanctuary, one of the nation's best spots to watch the sky during the annual raptor migration. It also won over readers with its rich history of raptor conservation.
Both Bosque del Apache in New Mexico and Platte River Valley in Nebraska finished in the top five, and both are famous for sunrise and sunset viewings of tens of thousands of birds (snow geese and sandhill cranes respectively). Rounding out the top five was the Aransas National Wildlife Refuge in Texas.
The full list of winners in the 'Best Birdwatching' contest category for 10Best Readers' Choice is as follows:
- Southeastern Ariz.
- Lower Rio Grande Valley, Texas
- Cape May, N.J.
- Dauphin Island, Alabama
- Sanibel Island, Fla.
- Aransas National Wildlife Refuge, Texas
- Platte River Valley, Neb.
- Bosque del Apache, N.M.
- Hawk Mountain Sanctuary, Penn.
- Magee Marsh, Ohio
Photo courtesy of Dennis Donohue/iStock
No. 10:
The "Sky Islands" of southeastern Arizona are a magnet for birds. The most famous residents are the 15 species of hummingbirds - the highest diversity north of Mexico - visible from April to September and earning the region the name "Hummingbird Capital of the U.S."
No. 9:
The McAllen area of Texas in the Lower Rio Grande Valley is home to several top-notch birdwatching spots in Laguna Atascosa and Santa Ana National Wildlife Refuges and Bensten-Rio Grande Valley State Park. The unique birding here includes several "specialty" breeders as well as vagrant species from Mexico. Visiting birders might spot green jays, plain chachalacas, Altamira orioles and olive sparrows among others.
Photo courtesy of Don Freiday/USFWS
No. 8:
Cape May is all about migration, and it has a reputation as one of the best migration observation spots on the east coast for good reason. In autumn, Cape May Point becomes a prime hawk migration site where the birds are nearly always visible. Fall is also a great time to spot migrating songbirds, while the focus shifts to shorebirds in spring.
Photo courtesy of MeliaMuse/iStock
No. 7:
During spring, exhausted neotropical birds who've just crossed the Gulf of Mexico "fall out" on the coastal island of Dauphin in Alabama to find food and shelter. Before the fall migration, shore birds gather on the island in preparation for the return flight. A total of 347 species have been spotted at this top Southeastern birdwatching destination.
Photo courtesy of Robert Blanchard/iStock
No. 6:
During the winter, J.N. "Ding" Darling National Wildlife Refuge becomes a paradise for birdwatchers and photographers who come to see roseate spoonbills, herons, bald eagles, American white pelicans and countless shorebirds, often at amazingly close range.
Photo courtesy of Larry Johnson
No. 5:
From November to March, a truly wild population of whooping cranes winter at the Aransas National Wildlife Refuge on the gulf coast of Texas. Intertidal marsh birds and other coastal migrants, along with huge numbers of ruby-throated hummingbirds in the nearby Rockport-Fulton area, make it a must-see birding location.
Photo courtesy of Larry Crist / USFWS
No. 4:
As an important stopover in the spring migration, Nebraska's Platte River Valley is the place for witnessing hundreds of thousands of sandhill cranes on their way from the southern U.S. to Canada. Blinds at the Audubon Rowe Sanctuary make ideal spots for sunrise and sunset viewings, and lucky birders might even catch a glimpse of a whooping crane.
No. 3:
Where there's something to see at New Mexico's Bosque del Apache during any season, the estuary is most famous among birders for its wintering sandhill cranes and snow geese. The morning flyout, when tens of thousands of birds take to the sky in unison right around sunrise, is well worth waking up before the sunrise.
Photo courtesy of Holly Cybelle Merker
No. 2:
The Hawk Mountain Sanctuary in Pennsylvania has a history of raptor conservation dating back to 1934, making it the world's oldest birds of prey sanctuary. Today, birdwatchers show up in autumn for the spectacular airshow during the annual hawk migration.
Photo courtesy of Paul Hurtado
No. 1:
Magee Marsh on the southern shore of Lake Erie sits at the epicenter of the spring warbler migration, when large concentrations of North American songbirds head to their northern breeding grounds. During May, the peak month for warbler watching, as many as 30 species have been spotted.
Congratulations to all our winners.
About 10Best Readers' Choice Awards
Nominees are submitted by a panel of experts. 10Best editors narrow the field to select the final set of nominees for the Readers’ Choice Awards. Readers can vote once per category, per day. For any questions or comments, please read the FAQ or email USA TODAY 10Best.
The Experts
Don and Lillian Stokes
Don and Lillian Stokes newest book, The Stokes... Read More
Don and Lillian Stokes newest book, The Stokes Essential Pocket Guide to the Birds of North America has just hit the market. Lillian and Don are widely recognized as some of America’s leading bird authors, having written 34 books and sold over 5 million copies. Their books include the best-selling, complete, photographic guide, The Stokes Field Guide to the Birds of North America, the new regional versions The New Stokes Field Guide to Birds: Eastern and Western Regions, Stokes Beginner’s Guides, and Stokes Backyard Nature Books. The Stokeses have been the go-to experts for bird information for over 35 years. They were hosts and producers of a popular national PBS television show, Stokes Birds at Home. They live with their two corgis on Bobolink Farm, their 48 acre NH property were they have attracted over 200 species of birds. Don and Lillian winter on Sanibel Island, FL. You can view their Stokes Birding Blog, which features quality bird information and Lillian’s beautiful bird photos.
Don and Lillian Stokes
Don and Lillian Stokes newest book, The Stokes Essential Pocket Guide to the Birds of North America has just hit the market. Lillian and Don are widely recognized as some of America’s leading bird authors, having written 34 books and sold over 5 million copies. Their books include the best-selling, complete, photographic guide, The Stokes Field Guide to the Birds of North America, the new regional versions The New Stokes Field Guide to Birds: Eastern and Western Regions, Stokes Beginner’s Guides, and Stokes Backyard Nature Books. The Stokeses have been the go-to experts for bird information for over 35 years. They were hosts and producers of a popular national PBS television show, Stokes Birds at Home. They live with their two corgis on Bobolink Farm, their 48 acre NH property were they have attracted over 200 species of birds. Don and Lillian winter on Sanibel Island, FL. You can view their Stokes Birding Blog, which features quality bird information and Lillian’s beautiful bird photos.
Geoff LeBaron
Geoff LeBaron has served as Christmas Bird Count... Read More
Geoff LeBaron has served as Christmas Bird Count Director at the National Audubon Society since 1987. In this position he coordinates citizen science efforts for the annual Christmas Bird Count, the world's longest running database in ornithology, as well as Audubon's signature program. An experienced field ornithologist and marine biologist, Geoff is also involved with many aspects of Audubon's Science and Ornithology efforts including development of the 2007 WatchList, the Great Backyard Bird Count, eBird, and the Important Bird Areas (IBA) program, where he is serving on the Massachusetts IBA Technical Committee. LeBaron also serves as a consultant to AUDUBON magazine for natural history accuracy, as a guide for Audubon Nature Odysseys, Audubon's global history travel program, and has conducted ornithological field work for the Audubon Society of New Hampshire and the Audubon Society of Rhode Island.
Geoff LeBaron
Geoff LeBaron has served as Christmas Bird Count Director at the National Audubon Society since 1987. In this position he coordinates citizen science efforts for the annual Christmas Bird Count, the world's longest running database in ornithology, as well as Audubon's signature program. An experienced field ornithologist and marine biologist, Geoff is also involved with many aspects of Audubon's Science and Ornithology efforts including development of the 2007 WatchList, the Great Backyard Bird Count, eBird, and the Important Bird Areas (IBA) program, where he is serving on the Massachusetts IBA Technical Committee. LeBaron also serves as a consultant to AUDUBON magazine for natural history accuracy, as a guide for Audubon Nature Odysseys, Audubon's global history travel program, and has conducted ornithological field work for the Audubon Society of New Hampshire and the Audubon Society of Rhode Island.
Laura Erickson
Laura Erickson, recipient of the 2014 Roger Tory... Read More
Laura Erickson, recipient of the 2014 Roger Tory Peterson Award from the American Birding Association, is author of several books about birds and their conservation. She's been producing a radio feature and podcast, "For the Birds," since 1986.
Laura Erickson
Laura Erickson, recipient of the 2014 Roger Tory Peterson Award from the American Birding Association, is author of several books about birds and their conservation. She's been producing a radio feature and podcast, "For the Birds," since 1986.
