Plumas County offers rewarding bird-watching opportunities for both the novice and experienced birder. The best birding in the county is during the spring and fall, but interesting species can be found any month of the year.
Nearly 300 different bird species live in the surrounding national forest, which offers great habitat with its many lakes, meadows, marshes, streams and trees. The spots have easy access for those who wish to bird by vehicle as well as many developed hiking trails for more adventurous birders.
For the latest bird sightings, visit the Plumas Audubon Society website
Sierra
Valley, east of Portola, is an Audubon
Society nationally designated Important Bird
Area. This 130,000 acre valley, the largest in
the Sierra Nevada, is home to over 260 bird
species alone. Although most of the land in the
valley is privately owned, county roads such as
Marble Hot Springs Road, between County Roads
A23 and A24, will take you through the
heart of the valley past wet meadows and remnant
wetlands.
In the fall, Sierra Valley is well known for its
large population of raptors. A drive through the
valley can provide close-up views of bald
eagles, golden eagles, red-tailed hawks,
rough-legged hawks, prairie falcons, kestrels
and long-eared owls. Migrating flocks of
waterfowl and songbirds are also a common sight
during the fall.
Spring birders can spot
white faced ibis, sandhill cranes, American
bitterns, black crowned night herons, Canada
geese and a variety of ducks and songbirds.
For a birding loop tour, travel on Highway 70 to the Nervino Airport just east of the community of Beckwourth. At the east end of the runway, turn south on County Road A-24. The road crosses several riparian areas where waterfowl can be spotted. Follow the paved road about four miles until it reaches a ranch, and take the right fork, which is Marble Hot Springs Road. The road makes a right turn and then becomes gravel. Marble Hot Springs Road has very little traffic and several marshy areas containing reeds, water and waterfowl. There are natural hot springs along the road and a historic steel bridge which serves as an excellent lookout. Marble Hot Springs Road eventually intersects County Road A-23. Turn right (north) and you'll return to Highway 70 just east of Beckwourth. Look for bald eagles on the bridge just before you reach the highway. If you're starting from Highway 89 south of Graeagle, take County Road A-23 at Sattley and travel 9.5 miles until you reach a dirt road (Marble Hot Springs Road) leading off to the right. There is an electrical transformer set up just beyond the intersection. Spring birders can spot white faced ibis, sandhill cranes, American bitterns, black-crowned night herons, Canada geese and a variety of ducks and songbirds.
Plumas-Eureka State Park near Graeagle is worth checking for a variety of alpine birds and willow flycatchers.
Nesting osprey and bald eagle can be found at
nearly all the county's major reservoirs,
including the largest, Lake Almanor. The
causeway, east of Chester on Hwy. 36, is the
best place to see large numbers of waterfowl
including tundra swan, double-crested
cormorants, great blue heron, and American white
pelicans. Another good viewing spot is along the
west shore, near the campgrounds and along the
recreation trail, where birders can enjoy both
shorebirds and forest-dwellers such as pileated
and white-headed woodpeckers, flycatchers,
mountain bluebirds and white-breasted
nuthatches.
Other lakes to visit are Antelope Lake, Bucks Lake, Little Grass Valley
Reservoir, Frenchman Lake and Lake Davis,
which all provide a diversity of bird species
and habitats.
Snake Lake, a short drive from Quincy off of Bucks Lake Road, is a popular picnic spot and a good place to view wood ducks, American white pelicans, osprey, grebes and great blue heron. A walk along the forested edge of the lake can turn up a number of forest bird species: hairy woodpeckers, brown creepers, red-breasted nuthatches, warbling vireos and many others.
Osprey and bald eagle, hunting for fish, may
be seen on a drive through the Feather River
Canyon along the North Fork Feather River.
The reservoirs in the canyon are also home to
migrating bufflehead, goldeneye, ruddy ducks,
and nesting common mergansers.
Plumas
County's many rivers and streams also host
populations of other riparian bird species: wood
ducks, yellow warblers, lazuli buntings,
American dippers, downey, Nuttall's and Lewis'
woodpeckers and others can be found during a
pleasant stroll along the waterways.
Click the
image to the right for a copy of the 8 x 14 Plumas County bird list produced by the Plumas Audubon
Society.
If you are interested in joining the area's Annual Christmas Bird Counts or
attending a field trip,
email
or call
(530) 283-2939