State of Arkansas
Arkansas is a landlocked state in the West South Central region of the Southern United States. It borders Missouri to the north, Tennessee and Mississippi to the east, Louisiana to the south, Texas to the southwest, and Oklahoma to the west. Its name derives from the Osage language, and refers to their relatives, the Quapaw people. The state’s diverse geography ranges from the mountainous regions of the Ozark and Ouachita Mountains, which make up the US Interior Highlands, to the densely forested land in the south known as the Arkansas Timberlands, to the eastern lowlands along the Mississippi River and the Arkansas Delta. It is the 29th largest by area covering nearly 138,000 km2 (53,000 square miles)
and the 34th most populous state, with a population of just over three million people. The capital and most populous city with around 200,000 people is Little Rock, in the central part of the state, a hub for transportation, business, culture, and government.
Arkansas can generally be split into two halves, the highlands in the northwest and the lowlands of the southeast. The highlands are part of the Southern Interior Highlands, including The Ozarks and the Ouachita Mountains. The southern lowlands include the Gulf Coastal Plain and the Arkansas Delta. It has seven distinct natural regions: the Ozark Mountains, Ouachita Mountains, Arkansas River Valley, Gulf Coastal Plain, Crowley’s Ridge, and the Arkansas Delta, with Central Arkansas sometimes included as a blend of multiple regions.
The southeastern part of Arkansas along the Mississippi Alluvial Plain is sometimes called the Arkansas Delta. This region is a flat landscape of rich alluvial soils formed by repeated flooding of the adjacent Mississippi. Farther from the river, in the southeastern part of the state, the Grand Prairie has a more undulating landscape. Both are fertile agricultural areas. The Delta region is bisected by a geological formation known as Crowley’s Ridge. A narrow band of rolling hills, which rise above the surrounding alluvial plain and underlies many of eastern Arkansas’s major towns. Northwest Arkansas is part of the Ozark Plateau including the Ozark Mountains, to the south are the Ouachita Mountains, and these regions are divided by the Arkansas River; the southern and eastern parts of Arkansas are called the Lowlands.
Ouachita Mountains – ©Tammo2011 CC0 via Wikimedia Commons
Arkansas has many rivers, lakes, and reservoirs within or along its borders. Major tributaries to the Mississippi River include the Arkansas River, the White River, and the St. Francis River. The Arkansas is fed by the Mulberry and Fourche LaFave Rivers in the Arkansas River Valley, which is also home to Lake Dardanelle. The Buffalo, Little Red, Black and Cache Rivers are all tributaries to the White River, which also empties into the Mississippi. Bayou Bartholomew and the Saline, Little Missouri, and Caddo Rivers are all tributaries to the Ouachita River in south Arkansas, which empties into the Mississippi in Louisiana. The Red River briefly forms the state’s boundary with Texas. Arkansas has few natural lakes and many reservoirs, such as Bull Shoals Lake, Lake Ouachita, Greers Ferry Lake, Millwood Lake, Beaver Lake, Norfork Lake, DeGray Lake, and Lake Conway.
56% of the state’s total area is forested; dominant species include oak, hickory, shortleaf pine and loblolly pine.
Lake Ouachita National Forest – US Forest Service, Public domain, via Wikimedia Commons
Arkansas generally has a humid subtropical climate. While not bordering the Gulf of Mexico, Arkansas, is still close enough to the warm, large body of water for it to influence the weather in the state. Generally, Arkansas, has hot, humid summers and slightly drier, mild to cool winters. Snowfall is infrequent but most common in the northern half of the state.
Birding Arkansas
Arkansas is ideally situated for birds and birdwatchers alike. Its mild southern climate consists of long, warm summers and short, cool winters. Geographically, the Great Plains approach Arkansas’ western border in Texas and Oklahoma while the Mississippi River forms the eastern border along Tennessee and Mississippi. Many distinct habitats are contained with these borders, including patches of remnant prairie, upland and bottomland forests, lowland marshes, and many open lakes and rivers. This diversity, along with Arkansas’ prime position along the Mississippi flyway and its proximity to typically western and gulf coast birds, yields an impressive state list of around 400 species.
Many of the Natural State’s prime birding spots are accessible in the form of State or National Parks, Wildlife Refuges, Forests, and the Buffalo National River. And although the birding community in Arkansas is fairly active, there are still exciting discoveries to be made. For example, breeding populations of Chestnut-sided and Black-throated Green Warblers were discovered hundreds of miles from their previously known breeding grounds as recently as 1993.
Bayou Bartholomew near Pine Bluff – ©Keith Yahl CC BY 2.0 via Wikimedia Commons
Drawing a line from the northeast to the southwest corner of the state creates the easiest physio-graphic division of Arkansas: above the line are the highlands; below the line are the lowlands. The highlands can be further divided into the Ozark Plateau and the Ouachita (pronounced WASH-ih-taw) Mountains, which consist of mostly oak-hickory or oak-hickory-pine forest. The lowlands are made up of the Gulf Coastal Plain, which runs along the southern border with Louisiana, and the Mississippi Alluvial Plain in the east. The Gulf Coastal Plain is characterized by rolling hills and predominantly pine forest while the Mississippi Alluvial Plain is primarily farming country that has lost most of its trees.
The birds are as varied as the habitats that attract them. As Mel White wrote in the Introduction to his A Birder’s Guide to Arkansas (1995, ABA); Everyplace in Arkansas is great the first week of May. Seeing 100 species in a day is almost easy during the full swing of migration. In addition, breeding Red-cockaded Woodpecker, Bachman’s Sparrow, and Brown-headed Nuthatch are found in the Ouachitas and southern pine forests. Swainson’s Hawk is an annual migrant in the west. Western Kingbirds have been found breeding in the southwest, Harris’s Sparrow and Western Meadowlark winter in the northwest. Central Arkansas yields wintering flocks of Horned Lark and Lapland Longspur with Smith’s Longspur present in a few locations. In some winters Sprague’s Pipit is found with these species. The low wetland areas provide habitat for millions of wintering waterfowl, and Tricolored Heron, White Ibis, Wood Stork, Roseate Spoonbill, Anhinga, have all been found along the Gulf Coastal and the Mississippi Plains. Add these possibilities to the expected eastern birds and you have an incredible species assemblage!
-
Bald Knob NWR
InformationSatellite ViewBald Knob NWR encompasses approximately 15,000 acres of forested wetlands and croplands. Lying along the Little Red River and adjacent to the Henry Gray/ Hurricane Lake State Wildlife Management Area this refuge is an important link in protecting wildlife and its habitat… -
Charlie Craig State Fish Hatchery
InformationSatellite ViewCharlie Craig State Fish Hatchery, outside Centerton, AR, consists of a series of shallow fish ponds surrounded by pasture and suburban development. It is relatively treeless, and except for a low hill to the west, the terrain is flat. It is owned by Arkansas Game & Fish Commission… -
Craighead Forest Park
InformationSatellite ViewCraighead Forest Park is located at 4910 South Culberhouse Road in Jonesboro Arkansas. The park offers a variety of outdoor activities including: basketball, softball, horseshoes, volleyball, disc golf, camping, fishing, bike/running trails, bird watching and playgrounds, so there is some disturbance… -
Holla Bend NWR
InformationSatellite ViewThe refuge is situated on a bend of the Arkansas River which was cut off when the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers straightened the river in 1954 for flood control. Refuge lands include over 7,000 acres of agricultural fields, bottomland forest, and open water… -
Stuttgart Airport
Satellite ViewThe 2680 acre Stuttgart Airport has 254 acres of unfarmed old fields and 1250 acres in cultivation, primarily rice and soybeans. The City of Stuttgart uses the revenue generated from the farming activities to fund the airport operations. The Stuttgart Airport is very popular with birdwatchers who flock to the airport to look for Smith’s longspurs and Sprague’s pipits in the three-awn grass near the airport runways. The City and its Airport welcome the birdwatchers and promote birding at the Airport.
-
Number of bird species: 428
(As at November 2024)State Bird: Northern Mockingbird Mimus polyglottos
-
Arkansas Audubon Society
PDF ChecklistThis publication provides information on 415 species of birds currently documented for Arkansas. It is based primarily on bird records maintained by the Arkansas Audubon Society, and secondarily on other sources, including Arkansas Birds- Their Distribution and Abundance (James and Neal, UA Press, 1986), Breeding Bird Surveys, Christmas Bird Counts, eBird, and published literature on Arkansas birds. Since the information that follows is generalized due to space constraints, it may not seem appropriate for a given species in some locales. Taxonomy and nomenclature follow the Checklist of North American Birds, Seventh Edition, AOU, 1998, as amended through the Fifty-sixth supplement, July 2015. -
Avibasr
PDF ChecklistThis checklist includes all bird species found in Arkansas , based on the best information available at this time. It is based on a wide variety of sources that I collated over many years. I am pleased to offer these checklists as a service to birdwatchers. If you find any error, please do not hesitate to report them. -
Wikipedia
Annotated LiastThis list of birds of Arkansas includes species documented in the U.S. state of Arkansas and accepted by the Arkansas Audubon Society (AAS). As of January 2022, there were 424 species included in the official list. -
eBird
PDF ChecklistThis checklist is generated with data from eBird (ebird.org), a global database of bird sightings from birders like you. If you enjoy this checklist, please consider contributing your sightings to eBird. It is 100% free to take part, and your observations will help support birders, researchers, and conservationists worldwide.
-
A Birder's Guide to Arkansas
| By Mel White | American Birding Association | 1995 | Spiralbound | 259 pages, B/w photos, line illustrations, maps | Out of Print | ISBN: 9781878788092 Buy this book from NHBS.com -
Arkansas Birds : Their Distribution and Abundance
| By Douglas A James & Joseph C Neal | University of Arkansas Press | 2001 | Hardback | 416 pages, Illustrations | Out of Print | ISBN: 9780938626381 Buy this book from NHBS.com -
Arkansas Birds: A Folding Pocket Guide to Familiar Species
| By James Kavanagh | Waterford Press | 2002 | Unbound | colour illustrations | ISBN: 9781583551844 Buy this book from NHBS.com -
Birds of Arkansas Field Guide
| By Stan Tekiela | Adventure Publications | Edition 2 | 2024 | Paperback | 344 pages, colour illustrations & Distribution Maps| ISBN: 9781647554354 Buy this book from NHBS.com
-
Arkansas Audubon Society
WebsiteOne of the objectives of the Arkansas Audubon Society has been to contribute to the knowledge of birds in Arkansas through the permanent maintenance of bird records for the state… -
Arkansas Valley Audubon Society
WebsiteDue to its unusually large geographic expanse which encompasses several altitudinal life zones and a great variety of habitats, the AVAS chapter area offers outstanding birding opportunities. An example would be the grouse species which range from the high altitude White-tailed Ptarmigan to the Lesser Prairie Chicken of the southeastern plains. Our checklist for the Pueblo area alone contains over 400 species, over a fourth of which may be seen at any time during the year. -
Audubon Arkansas
WebsiteAudubon Arkansas will inspire and lead environmental education, resource management, habitat restoration, bird conservation and enlightened advocacy… -
Audubon Society of Central Arkansas
WebsiteThe mission of the Audubon Society of Central Arkansas is to encourage programs and activities supporting all things natural, wild, and free, especially birds, bird habitat stability and improvement, as well as to promote fellowship among members, educate and inspire the public, and champion the highest standards of ethical outdoor conduct. -
Garland County Audubon Society
WebsiteRegular meetings are held at 7:00 P.M. on the second Thursday of each month, except July and August, in Hot Springs, AR. They are held at Westminster Presbyterian Church, 3819 Central Avenue (between Chili's and IHOP restaurants). -
Hot Springs Village Audubon Society
WebsiteWe enjoy and protect birds through advocacy, education, and conservation. Some of our greatest bird populations are threatened by development, competition for nesting sites, attacks from predators, environmental changes. Become a part of the greater effort to protect birds and other wildlife and share the joy of Arkansas's natural resources. Join our 260+ members. -
Little Red River Audubon Society
Facebook PageMembers enjoy birds and nature, host programs and field trips, sell birdseed, and give scholarships to 5th and 6th graders to attend Halberg Ecology Camp. -
Nature Conservancy in Arkansas
WebpageThe Nature Conservancy in Arkansas has been working cooperatively with private landowners, businesses, public agencies and other organizations to conserve and restore the lands and waters of the Natural State for people to enjoy since 1982. -
North West Arkansas Audubon Society
WebsiteNorthwest Arkansas Audubon Society originated during a period of expanding environmental awareness. Most of those involved were students at the University of Arkansas-Fayetteville, who found a home in northwest Arkansas and were interested in a way to advocate for the environment. -
Tex-Ark Audubon
Facebook PageJoin the Tex-Ark Audubon Society for its monthly meeting, tonight at 7 p.m. at Texarkana College – Biology 119 in Texarkana. For more information, contact Don Kyle, President, Tex-Ark Audubon Society at (870) 774-9985. -
Three Rivers Audubon Society
Facebook PageThe Three Rivers Arkansas Audubon promotes environmental awareness by educating youth, others in the community, and ourselves about the benefits of conservation.
-
*Protected areas of Arkansas
InformationSatellite ViewInteractive list of Arkansas's NWR's, parks, nature reserves etc. -
Arkansas Acres for Wildlife Program
WebpageSatellite ViewAlmost 90 percent of Arkansas’s land is privately owned. Many landowners and managers who are concerned about the environment and wildlife often forget to consider it in their management activities. Many more don’t know where to start. Acres for Wildlife is a free environmental action program of the Arkansas Game and Fish Commission which targets all wildlife species and gives special emphasis on species of greatest conservation concern. It improves habitat and encourages landowners to consider wildlife needs in conjunction with good farming, livestock production and forestry practices. -
Arkansas State Parks
WebsiteSatellite ViewClickable map & links about events in Arkansas State Parks… -
FP Craighead
Facebook PageSatellite ViewCraighead Forest Park opened when the Young Men's Civic Club began work on the lake in 1937. Today the park comprises 692 acres in the scenic beauty of Crowley's Ridge and features a fishing lake, camping facilities, hiking/biking trails, bird watching opportunities, picnic sites, and recreational fields. -
IBA Charlie Craig State Fish Hatchery
InformationSatellite ViewCharlie Craig State Fish Hatchery, outside Centerton, AR, consists of a series of shallow fish ponds surrounded by pasture and suburban development. It is relatively treeless, and except for a low hill to the west, the terrain is flat. It is owned by Arkansas Game & Fish Commission. -
IBA Fort Chaffee
InformationSatellite ViewFort Chaffee is a GLOBAL IBA and an active military training facility of the Arkansas National Guard. Fort Chaffee contains extensive amounts of shrub-scrub, prairie and oak savanna habitat. It is the largest landscape-size conservation area in the Arkansas River Valley and may support the largest shrub-scrub habitat in the state. Site regularly supports significant densities of one or more of the bird species considered by Audubon as vulnerable in Arkansas: Likely supports the largest population of Bell's Vireo in the state along with several other important breeding populations such as Painted Bunting, Prairie Warbler, Northern Bobwhite, Red-headed Woodpecker, Bachman's Sparrow, and Grasshopper Sparrow and a regularly occurring population of wintering Smith's Longspur. -
NF Ouachita
WebpageSatellite ViewThis is the land of True Grit, the novel by Charles Portis later made into a movie starring John Wayne. Wild outlaws and hard-working hill country people are a real part of the history and traditions of these mountains, as much as craggy forests and plentiful wildlife… -
NF Ozark
InformationSatellite ViewOzark National Forest is located in northwest Arkansas within the Ozark-Ouachita Physiographic Province and the Central Hardwoods Bird Conservation Region. The southernmost portion runs along the Arkansas River Valley south to the Ouachita Mountains. The northern boundary extends beyond Lone Rock to Matney Mountain in Stone County. On the west the forest patchwork touches Oklahoma. The Main Division of Ozark National Forest is a significant source site for a wide variety of interior forest birds from Yellow-billed Cuckoos to Worm-eating Warblers. The forest supports more than 1% of the state?s population of 14 species including Acadian Flycatcher, Wood Thrush, Cerulean Warbler, Black-throated Green Warbler, and Chestnut-sided Warbler. Future forest management will provide habitat for woodland and savannah species such as Brown-headed Nuthatch, Bachman?s Sparrow and Painted Bunting. -
NWR Bald Knob
InformationSatellite ViewBald Knob National Wildlife Refuge (NWR) was established in 1993 to protect and provide feeding and resting areas for migrating waterfowl. Acquired as part of the North American Waterfowl Management Plan, this refuge provides a winter home for large concentrations of a number of species of ducks and geese. Located south of the town of Bald Knob in White County, Arkansas, Bald Knob NWR encompasses approximately 15,000 acres of forested wetlands and croplands. Lying along the Little Red River and adjacent to the Henry Gray/ Hurricane Lake State Wildlife Management Area this refuge is an important link in protecting wildlife and its habitat. -
NWR Big Lake
InformationSatellite ViewOver 227 species of birds have been observed by refuge personnel and visiting ornithologists since 1915. Copies of the refuge bird checklist are available at the headquarters and portions of the refuge are open to birding year-round… -
NWR Cache River
InformationSatellite View…famed for the recent very dubious 're-discovery' of the Ivory-billed Woodpecker… As one of the few remaining areas in the Lower Mississippi River Valley not drastically altered by channelization and drainage, the Cache River basin contains a variety of wetland communities including some of the most intact and least disturbed bottomland hardwood forests in the Mississippi Valley region. These unique and valuable wetlands have been protected by the RAMSAR Convention as “Wetlands of International Importance”. -
NWR Holla Bend
InformationSatellite ViewHolla Bend NWR, established in 1957, is located 8 miles down river from Dardanelle, Arkansas. The refuge is situated on a bend of the Arkansas River which was cut off when the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers straightened the river in 1954 for flood control. Refuge lands include over 7,000 acres of agricultural fields, bottomland forest, and open water… -
NWR White River
InformationSatellite ViewPossible Ivory-billed Woodpecker place… -
SP Lake Chicot
WebpageSatellite ViewThe park interpreter provides a variety of programs including guided walks, barge tours through cypress swamps, nature talks, films, demonstrations, and living history from the pioneer and Civil War periods… -
SP Lake Frierson
WebpageSatellite ViewOn the eastern shores of the lake is 135-acre Lake Frierson State Park. Added to the Arkansas State Parks System in 1973, the park is fast becoming a popular recreation area where visitors can relax and enjoy the beauty of the forest-covered land… -
WMA Rex Hancock-Black Swamp
InformationSatellite View...Areas such as Cache River Natural Area represent the last remaining fragments of these once extensive forested wetlands. This natural area lies within the Rex Hancock/Black Swamp Wildlife Management Area and is co-managed with the Arkansas Game and Fish Commission (AGFC)...
-
ARBIRD-L
Mailing ListNeed to subscribe to take part -
eBird
SightingseBirding This Month
-
Arkansas State Parks
Local Tour OperatorBird Island Tour -
Reefs to Rockies
Tour OperatorNestled in the heart of the Ozarks is a hidden gem of a region that is part southern and part midwestern. Scenic river valleys, peaceful oak forests, and charming small towns offer the perfect setting for a full weekend of birding and exploring the northwest corner of Arkansas.
-
2016 [05 May] - Bruce Wedderburn - Southeast USA
ReportThis was a two-month trip to southeast USA for Yvonne and myself, from late March through to late May, with a focus on the Spring migration, in particular the highly varied and colourful warblers. The trip commenced in Dallas in early Spring and involved touring through Texas along the Mexican border, following the Gulf of Mexico around to Florida as far south as Key West, then heading north up the east coast of the USA, then inland to the Appalachian Ranges in North Carolina, before heading west for our return trip to Dallas... -
2019 [05 May] - Steve Hilty - Ozarks & Tallgrass Praires
PDF ReportThis was a trip of superlatives—some good, some of questionable merit—but we found all of our target birds, and each of them provided exceptional viewing opportunities, often for extended periods of time. Also, spring flowers and botanizing generally were excellent, and tallgrass prairie flowers were absolutely glorious, especially at the Sheldon L. Cook Memorial prairie. And who will forget the feisty little Prairie Crayfish that got caught exposed above ground for all to see.
-
Arkansas Birding & Watchable Wildlife
WebpageExciting opportunities for birding and wildlife observation are found within easy reach of every Arkansas community, including the state's largest cities. The success of habitat preservation efforts in The Natural State is evident in several populations of Arkansas wildlife and birds, including the endangered Red-cockaded Woodpecker, the growing herd of elk reintroduced along the Buffalo National River, and in the increasing numbers of American black bears across the state. -
Arkansas Breeding Bird Atlas
WebsiteThe Arkansas Audobon Society initiated the Arkansas Breeding Bird Atlas (ABBA) Project in 1994 for the purpose of developing a series of distributional maps for all species of birds that breed within the state. Initial funding of the project came from the Arkansas Game and fish commission, the University of Arkansas, and the National Fish and Wildlife Foundation in Washington, D.C. Data collection began in 1994. Success of this project is dependant upon volunteers for data collection among the 875 total blocks within the state. -
Wings Over Arkansas
InformationWings Over Arkansas is an award-based program recognizing bird watchers’ contributions to Arkansas’ outdoors. Start a checklist of birds you've seen and receive a decorative pin and certificate identifying your level of birding experience…
-
Photographer - Steve Creek
GalleryHere I will introduce you to my wildlife and nature photography. All of my photos are unique and bring a touch of the outdoors, in. I hope that you find my work artistically inspiring; and through my photos, it is my hope that you find the same passion and admiration for the wild as I enjoy each day throughout my nature walks. There truly are not enough hours in the day to capture all the beauty that nature and wildlife has to offer.