Domestic Travel
FEbRuary 13th-15th 2025
Travel with Alabama Audubon!
Mississippi River Flyway & Reelfoot Lake (TN)
Join Alabama Audubon for a self-driven, self-catered long weekend along the Mississippi River in northwestern Tennessee and southeastern Missouri as we explore one of North America’s most important migratory flyways!
Program Coordinator Andrew Lydeard will guide participants around parts of Reelfoot Lake and adjacent wildlife management areas in Tennessee and in nearby Missouri in search of sparrows, hawks, owls, longspurs, and the thousands of waterfowl that spend winter in this region. As the arrival of spring nears, this area serves as a critical staging and stopover ground for hundreds of thousands of waterfowl that rely on Reelfoot Lake and the fertile floodplains of the river. Local experts in the area may join and help guide the group to specialty birds uncovered during the weeks prior to our arrival.
Reelfoot Lake covers nearly 15,000 acres and was formed by powerful earthquakes along the New Madrid Fault line in 1811-1812. These earthquakes, the largest in the eastern U.S., temporarily caused the Mississippi River to flow backward and led to land subsidence, flooding the surrounding forested area and creating the lake. The lake is a vital wintering and stopover ground for thousands of gulls, ducks, cormorants, geese, and American White Pelicans. Rarities such as Red-necked and Eared Grebes, Long-tailed Ducks, Pacific and Red-throated Loons, and other regionally unique species show up due to its proximity to the river.
The region also offers miles of open grassland and agricultural areas that are wintering grounds to multiple raptor species, including eagles in the dozens! Wildlife management areas (WMAs) and vast stretches along the river in both Tennessee and Missouri are known for their waterfowl numbers and are especially great for dabbling ducks and geese. Little River Conservation Area near Kennett, MO is known for flocks of Snow Geese that can reach up to 100,000 birds!
Other highlights and target birds in these areas are Short-eared and Barn Owls, Lapland Longspurs, Leconte’s Sparrows, Rough-legged Hawks, Western Meadowlarks, and American Tree Sparrows.
