Battlefield Birds

Monday July 13, 2009

The guns may be silent at the Civil War battlefield at Pea Ridge National Military Park in Arkansas, but the birds are singing. According to a story from NWAOnline.com, monthly birding walks turn up a wide variety of species, including summer tanagers, scissor-tailed flycatchers, ovenbirds, eastern towhees, hairy woodpeckers and many more.

The park’s varied habitat, including forests, ponds, streams and meadows, make it ideal for a wide range of birds, and the undisturbed isolation of the national park offer birds a safe haven on what was once a brutal battlefield. Birders can spot many species right from the park’s tour road, or they can venture along the hiking trails for a closer look, whether they are participating in one of the regular bird walks or not.

For more information about birding at Pea Ridge, visit the National Park Service.

Pea Ridge National Military Park
Photo © Nic McPhee