Tennessee Valley Authority Reservation
Site #8 Northwest Loop Description: The TVA Reservation hosts a number of walking trails that meander through woodlands, fields, and along the Tennessee River. This is one of the few reliable areas in northern Alabama for Swainson’s Warblers, which nest near the end of the 2.6-mile bicycle/jogging trail. Other species to look and listen for [...]
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Leighton Ponds
Site #5 Northwest Loop Description: The Leighton ponds sites are a series of sinkholes and semi-flooded agricultural fields that are excellent for wading and shorebirds. Scan the muddier areas for resident Killdeer alongside migrants such as Semipalmated Plovers and Least Sandpipers. In larger sinkholes, search for Green Herons, American Coots, and perhaps a Common Gallinule. [...]
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Town Creek Marsh
Site #4 Northwest Loop Description: This site is a small marsh in the bend of Fosters Mill Road overlooking Town Creek. It is an excellent place to see rails feeding on the mudflats during appropriate times of year. The marsh also supports a variety of wading birds and waterfowl, especially during the winter months. From [...]
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Wilson Dam Visitor Center
Site #6 Northwest Loop Description: This site is where the TVA’s hydroelectric dam impounds the 15,500-acre Wilson Reservoir. This was the first dam constructed on the Tennessee River in Alabama. Construction began on the dam in 1918 and was completed in 1924. The dam was acquired by the TVA in 1933. Together with Pickwick and [...]
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Freedom Hills Wildlife Management Area Walking Trail
Site #13 Northwest Loop Description: This walking trail is one of numerous gravel and dirt hunter access roads on the WMA, which leads visitors into a variety of productive habitats ranging from old fields to mature hardwood forest. These habitats are interspersed with wildlife openings planted for deer, turkey, and other game species. Search the [...]
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Natchez Trace Parkway – Colbert Ferry
Site #12 Northwest Loop Description: Colbert Ferry provides access to a number of wooded habitats, including a beaver pond with lots of standing dead timber. Check this area for Red-headed and other woodpeckers. Closer to the shore, search the trees for White-breasted Nuthatches year-round and Orchard Orioles and Eastern Kingbirds in the summer. The park [...]
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