Birds of Pascagoula River Audubon Center

The Pascagoula River is the largest undammed river in the continental United States, flowing freely across its 80-mile length. The Pascagoula River Basin is home to a vast number of organisms because of its unique, healthy state. Habitats within the basin include longleaf pine forests, southern mixed hardwood forests, bottomland hardwood forests, and tidal marshes within the estuary. These habitats support more than 300 species of birds, including migratory species and those that call Mississippi home year-round.

The Pascagoula River Audubon Center sits on Rhodes Bayou, a tributary of the Pascagoula River within the estuary system. The bayou supports large wading birds such as herons and egrets, as well as those that depend on open water and fishing access, such as anhingas, cormorants, pelicans, kingfishers, and osprey. Smaller birds like blackbirds thrive in trees along the shoreline. Seasonal visitors like the Ruby-Throated Hummingbird are common in spring and fall as they stop near the center to “refuel” during their long migratory flights.

Here are some of the species you may find while visiting the center: