Alabama Audubon Events

Join us for our monthly Nature @ Noon event with our friends at Ruffner Mountain! April’s walk will be led by Program Coordinator, Andrew Lydeard and Alabama Audubon Ambassador, Carter Bauman! Jefferson County Greenways Conservation Director, Jamie Nobles, will also be joining to point out spring native plants around the habitat gardens, and some of the early ephemeral plants that should be growing as spring sun warms the forest floor—specifically those that benefit birds and other wildlife! The gardens that hug the parking lot add a diverse layer of habitat that provides cover and food for dozens of bird species, and the surrounding mature woodlands can be excellent places to see a variety of winter and early spring woodland birds. The group will search for migrating birds and discuss the importance of native plants in the ecosystem, many of which can be purchased at Jefferson County Greenways Spring Native Plant Sale starting on April 4, 2026!
While the group plans to stay in the parking lot around the nature center, some participants may have the option to join Jamie on a short, dirt trail adjacent to the parking lot.
Meeting Time & Place: We will meet in the main parking lot of Ruffner (at the Nature Center) at 12:00pm and work slowly through the parking lot and adjacent trails in search of birds and spring ephemeral plants.

Address For Event: 1214 81st Street S, Birmingham, AL 35206, United States

Target Bird Species: Hairy Woodpecker, Eastern Phoebe, Northern Parula, Yellow-throated Warblers, White-breasted Nuthatch, White-eyed Vireo, Yellow-throated Vireo

Registration is free but required for this event. The event will only be canceled in the event of hazardous conditions. If you need to cancel at the last minute, please email your trip leaders.
REGISTER

Field Trip Leader: Andrew Lydeard //  1 (703) 606-8956 andrew@alaudubon.org

Accessibility: This event will cover up to 0.5 miles on pavement, hard-packed dirt and muddy surfaces. Expect moderate up-and-down changes along the path. There will be restrooms and benches on site.

Celebrate the beauty of spring with Alabama Audubon at Shoal Creek Park during the 2026 Great Spring Bird Count! This exciting event welcomes birders of every skill level to join the fun and see how many feathered friends we can add to the park’s list in one unforgettable morning. Shoal Creek Park offers one of the Birmingham metro area’s most unique landscapes, where open grasslands and scrublands blend seamlessly with forested areas—creating the perfect haven for a wide variety of bird species. Participants will team up in one of three or four small groups, each guided by seasoned birders and naturalists, to explore the park for a couple of hours before regrouping at the pavilion to tally up our total species count. *All proceeds will directly support Alabama Audubon and Shoal Creek Park, helping fund conservation efforts and habitat management that keep this remarkable park thriving for years to come.

Meeting Location & Time : We will meet promptly in the parking lot of Shoal Creek Park at 7:00 am before splitting up our groups to explore the park. We will meet back at the pavilion around 9:30 am for a tally of the species and wrap-up the morning!

Shoal Creek Park Address: 2781 Hwy 119, Montevallo, Alabama 35115, United States
Target Bird Species: Indigo Buntings // Blue Grosbeaks // White-eyed, Red-eyed, Yellow-throated, and Blue-headed Vireos // Prairie, Blue-winged, and Black-and-white Warblers // Louisiana Waterthrushes // Eastern Bluebirds // Red-headed and Red-bellied Woodpeckers

Field Trip Leader Name: Andrew Lydeard // andrew@alaudubon.org // (703) 606-8956 REGISTER

Accessibility: This event will cover up to 2 miles on pavement, grass, and muddy surfaces. There will be slight uphill and downhill changes. This event would be suitable for cane or pole users. Restrooms and benches are on site.

Under the watchful eye of Alabama’s most famous statue, we’ll head down the Vulcan trail, a stretch of wooded area running through the hillside, enjoying great views of the city and Vulcan himself, all while searching for migrants in this hidden gem of a birding area.
Meeting Place & Time : We’ll assemble at the trailhead for the Vulcan Trail, just below the statue / museum, at 7:00AM.
Parking is available by the trailhead and at the museum. Then we’ll take a leisurely out-and-back trip down the trail.
Location Address For Event: Vulcan Park , 1701 Valley View Dr, Birmingham, AL 35209, United States
Target Bird Species: Spring migration should be well under way, so we’ll be on the lookout for vireos, warblers, tanagers, and orioles along with year round residents.Field

Trip Leaders: Paul Franklin //  205-542-7647  phfranklin36@gmail.comField Trip Co-Leader: Jonah Cohen // 860-202-9259  mrsciencetheater3000@gmail.comPlease contact your field trip leaders day of the event with questions.

REGISTER

This event is free but registration is required.
Accessibility: This event will cover up to 2 miles on mostly flat pavement. There are no restrooms and benches on site.

It's time for spring migration in North Alabama! Tag along with Alabama Audubon this spring at one of North Alabama's best songbird migration hotspots at Chapman Mountain Nature Preserve near Huntsville. During migration, songbirds seek water, food, and shelter on their journies to their breeding grounds, and Chapman Mountain is one of the best locations for hosting these birds on their trips north. Alabama Ambassador Greg Harber and Tim Gels, the Director of Education for the Land Trust of North Alabama, will lead participants in search of songbirds on some of the short trails on the property and around the legendary water features. See Alabama Birding Trails for more details about the mountain preserve. Meeting Time & Place: We will meet at the pavilion in the main parking lot promptly at 8am at the preserve. From there, we will quietly travel to the water feature to wait for our friends to arrive. Address: 1263 U.S Hwy 72 East, Huntsville, AL 35811 Directions: Coming from Huntsville, cross Chapman Mountain and u-turn at Moores Mill Road. When safe, get into the merge lane on the right (plenty of time). When the silver guard rail ends, be ready to turn right onto the paved entrance. Drive through the gate and down the gravel road to the parking area at the bottom of the hill. Target Bird Species: Target Species: Cerulean Warblers Hooded Warblers Eastern Screech-Owl Northern Parulas Summer and Scarlet Tanagers Yellow-billed Cuckoos, American Redstarts Note: While this event is free, registration is still required. Due to limited space at the water feature, participants will be limited to 25; a waiting list will automatically open after this point, and participants will be notified prior to the event if a spot has opened up. Please reach out to your trip leader if you cannot make the event, so that participants that may be on the waiting list can replace your spot. REGISTER Field Trip Leaders: Greg Harber // gharber@mindspring.com & Tim Gels // timg@landtrustnal.org ACCESSIBILITY: This event will be up to .05 miles on pavement, gravel, or dirt. Be mostly prepared to wait and see the birds! There will be benches and restrooms on site.

Tannehill State Historical Park encompasses more than 1,500 acres and is home to iron furnaces dating to the 1830s. During the Civil War, these furnaces were used by the Confederate States and were located along the banks of Roupes Creek. Today, the park’s expansive woodland habitat provides an ideal environment for observing both migratory birds and year-round resident species.

TRAVEL INFORMATION : 12632 Confederate Parkway, McCalla, Alabama, GPS: 33.2544, -87.0661. From I-59/20 south of Bessemer, take Exit 100 and turn southeast on Alabama Highway 216. In 0.2 miles, follow Bucksville Road, then in 0.4 miles, turn right onto Tannehill Parkway. In 1.4 miles, turn right, the left for 1.3 miles to arrive at the parking lot. Parking is available on both sides of the entrance road at the end. Look for a historical marker that is close to both lots. We will meet between the parking area and the store.

Location Address For Event: 12632 Confederate Parkway, McCalla, AL 35111, United States
Target Bird Species: We expect early migrants, including Northern Parula and Yellow-throated Warblers, Louisiana Waterthrushes, Yellow-throated and Red-eyed Vireos, Hooded and Kentucky warblers, and Wood Thrushes.This event is free, but registration is required.

REGISTER

Field Trip Leader: Matt Hunter (205) 460-9546 // Marj Young (205) 515-8394                                                                                  Please contact your field trip leader day of the event for questions or concerns. ACCESSIBILITY: Be prepared to walk over 2 miles on pavement and gravel on mostly flat terrain. There are restrooms and benches on site. Please contact us at info@alaudubon.org for questions.

PUBLIC BANDING STATION AT FORT MORGAN
Alabama Audubon is pleased to announce the return of our popular Coastal Bird Banding event on April 20–25th at the Fort Morgan State Historic Site on the Alabama Gulf Coast. We are proud to partner with Mississippi State University, the Alabama Department of Conservation and Natural Resources, and Fort Morgan on this incredible event.Our banding station is one of the few in the US open to the public. Join us to see migrant birds up close after their journey across the Gulf of Mexico. We’ll also offer bird and nature walks, tabling by allied organizations, and more. Bring your cameras and enjoy unparalleled access to the researchers and their work, with up-close-and-personal views of some amazing birds!
DATES & TIMES

• APRIL 20 7AM–3PM
• APRIL 21 7AM–3PM
• APRIL 22 7AM–3PM
• APRIL 23 7AM–3PM
• APRIL 24 7AM–3PM
• APRIL 25 7AM–12PM

PARKINGVisitors are encouraged to park in the lot at Fort Morgan. The gatekeeper can direct you to the entrance of the banding station from there. The fee to enter Fort Morgan is: Adults: $8Children (6-18), Seniors, College Students: $5Family of Four (2 adults, 2 children): $20Military (Active, Reserve, or Retired): Free with ID

Thank you to our sponsorsThank you to our 2025 bird banding sponsors! You generous support helps to ensure the success of our research, conservation, and outreach work on the coast.Alabama Tourism DepartmentGulf Shores and Orange Beach TourismThe Curtis & Edith Munson Foundation

YOU CAN HELPThere is no admission fee to visit our banding station, but you can help protect our birds and support our data-gathering efforts by contributing today. Your gift helps Alabama Audubon to continue offering this very special and unique experience. GIVE TODAYBe sure to designate your gift  in the Donor Note on the form: COASTAL STEWARDSHIP

Join us for our Spring Bird Count, as we work to tally as many birds as we can in Jefferson, Shelby and St. Clair counties. This will be our 62nd year conducting this count, and to ensure good coverage and results we need your help! If you know the name of a county party leader, feel free to contact them directly to join their party - or, you may contact our compiler (Greg Harber, gharber@mindspring.com) for the party leader of the area where you'd like to count birds. It's also acceptable to count birds in your yard or nearby park and submit your results to Greg. We need the total number of birds for each species you observed/heard, plus a summary of. your efforts: time spent counting, distance covered (car and foot miles), and whether you made any effort to look for owls in the nighttime hours. Many of our local "birding hotspots" are already covered by the various parties, so please check with Greg before submitting data from those areas. Local neighborhood parks can be great for finding birds, and those are areas where we can really use your help! This is an ALL DAY EVENT, count as much as you can. Please email Greg with your results: Greg Harber - Contact Email / Phone: gharber@mindspring.com (205) 807-8055 TRAVEL INFORMATION: Various birding sites within the three-county area. Bird in your local area or backyard.