Birds

To protect the habitat and welfare of the birds that reside in and migrate to the park, Fort Pulaski asks to always keep dogs on leash. Dogs can frighten the birds and destroy their nests, and discourage them from returning to the park. Please respect these birds’ habitats and safety and keep dogs on their leashes and away from the birds and their nests at all times.

 
Birds along the shore with forest in the background
Shorebirds of Fort Pulaski

FOPU Photo

The diverse habitats found within Fort Pulaski National Monument, located along Georgia’s Colonial Coast Birding Trail, supports 200 species of birds, including songbirds, shorebirds, wading birds, and waterfowl. While visiting, you may catch a glimpse of one of the many protected species that have been identified at the park, including American oystercatcher, bald eagle, gull-billed tern, least tern, and woodstork. The park also provides nesting habitat for the painted bunting, a species of special concern due to loss of neotropical wintering grounds. A glimpse of this colorful and secretive bird is a treat you will not soon forget. Look for painted buntings from spring through summer along the edges of woodlands on Cockspur Island.
 
Birdwatchers gather at Fort Pulaski in search of the many birds that reside within the park
Birdwatchers at Fort Pulaski.

NPS Photo

The numbers and types of birds found within the park and along Georgia’s Colonial Coast Birding Trail change with the rising and falling of the tides and with the passage of the seasons. Large populations of both resident and migratory birds are present year-round, but the birds seen in the park depend greatly on the time of year. This is an excellent place to spot migratory songbirds in spring and late summer through fall, and waterfowl in the winter. Clapper rails, seaside sparrows and marsh wrens can be seen and/or heard in the marshes around the fort throughout the year. Shorebirds can best be seen along the shoreline at low tide.

Pictured below are just a few of the dozens of birds that can be seen at Fort Pulaski National Park.
 
Sanderling at the edge of the shoreline.
Sanderling (Calidris alba)

NPS/Jane Gamble

Single piping plover with dark gray back and white belly on a beach.
Piping Plover (Charadrius melodus)

NPS/Sleeping Bear Dunes National Lakeshore

A photo of a small light brown shorebird with a black band around its neck walking in shallow water.
Killdeer (Charadrius vociferus)

NPS/Point Reyes National Seashore

A black and white bird with a red-orange beak stands in some sand with grass.
American oystercatcher (Haematopus palliatus)

NPS/Assateague Island National Seashore

A dark and white bird sits on a branch.
Belted Kingfisher (Megaceryle alcyon)

NPS/Chris Contakos

A brown pelican stands on a pier.
Brown Pelican (Pelecanus occidentalis)

NPS/J. Nile

A grey bird sits on the edge of a stone wall, with water below.
Double-crested Cormorant (Phalacrocorax auritus)

NPS/K. Brunsmen

A gull sits on a bridge railing.
American Herring Gull (Larus smithsonianus)

NPS Photo

A bird with a white body and dark wings and head stands on a wall.
Laughing Gull (Leucophaeus atricilla)

NPS/Warren Bielenberg

A small white, black and grey bird calls from a white railing.
Snowy-crowned Tern (Sterna trudeaui)

NPS/J. Cadoff

A large white bird takes flight with its wings spread.
Great Egret (Egretta alba)

NPS/J. Cadoff

A large gray bird with a long neck stands on a floating branch in water.
Great Blue Heron (Ardea Herodias)

NPS Photo

A short stocky bird with a sharp beak stands next to water.
Green Heron (Butorides virescens)

NPS/Kent Sweigert

A white egret sits on a dead tree.
Snowy Egret (Egretta thula)

NPS Photo

A grey bird with a long beak walks through marsh water.
White Ibis (Eudocimus albus)

NPS/K. Brunsmen

A pink spoonbilled bird wades in water.
Roseate Spoonbill (Platalea ajaja)

NPS/J. Cadoff

A tan colored bird sitting on a dead branch on the ground.
Palm Warbler (Setophaga palmarum)

NPS Photo

A small barn swallow sits on an old nail embedded into a brick wall.
Barn Swallow (Hirundo rustica)

NPS Photo

A black bird sits on top of a wooden post.
Boat-tailed grackle (Quiscalus major)

NPS/J. Cadoff

A blue jay stands in grass.
Blue Jay (Cyanocitta cristata)

NPS/Rusty Wilson

A small brown sparrow sits in grass.
Savannah Sparrow (Passerculus sandwichensis)

NPS/J. Cadoff

A hawk stands on fresh kill.
Red-tailed Hawk (Buteo jamaicensis)

NPS Photo

A vulture stands on a bare tree branch.
Turkey Vulture (Cathartes Aura)

NPS/K. Brunsmen

A bald eagle sits on a branch in a pine tree.
Bald Eagle (Haliaeetus leucocephalus)

NPS Photo

A white bodied bird with brown wings sits in a tree holding a dead fish in its claws.
Osprey (Pandion haliaetus)

NPS/J. Cadoff

A woodpecker attached to tree bark.
Red-bellied Woodpecker (Melanerpes carolinus)

NPS Photo

A bird with a dark head and wings and a white body sits on a branch.
Eastern Kingbird (Tyrannus tyrannus)

NPS/Gabe Yellowhawk

A small red bird with a black face sitting on a branch.
Northern Cardinal (Cardinalis cardinalis)

NPS/G.Etter

Painted bunting, a brightly colored bird sits on a beauty berry bush.
Painted Bunting (Passerina ciris)

NPS/Roger Clark

A small bird with a bray back and wings, white belly and cheeks, and black head and chin.
Carolina Chickadee (Poecile carolinensis)

NPS/Rusty Wilson

A light brown bird sitting in a tree.
Brown thrasher (Toxostoma rufum)

NPS/Great Smoky Mountains National Park

A grey winged, tan bird sitting on the top of a sign.
Northern Mockingbird (Mimus polyglottos)

NPS Photo

 

Last updated: June 22, 2025

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41 Cockspur Island Road
Savannah, GA 31410

Phone:

(912) 219-4233

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