Are you an avid birder, or interested in birding?  Birding is a fascinating hobby full of opportunities to view unique coastal birds in their natural habitats. Come prepared with hiking boots, rain gear, field guides and binoculars to experience some of the finest birding in Oregon!

Birding in Newport is fun and exciting during the winter months, if you don’t mind getting a bit muddy and wet. From the beaches to the dunes to the coastal forests, you’ll find scores of birds to observe and document. Yaquina Head Outstanding Natural Area and Yaquina Bay are both designated as Important Bird Areas (IBA) nationally and by the State of Oregon. In addition, there are three other IBAs nearby in the Salmon River Estuary, Siletz Bay, and Alsea Bay.

Feathered friends abound; here’s a guide to where to find them.

Great examples of shorebirds and other marine species can be observed at the expansive beach here (and at Newport’s other beaches as well). Look for Western and Hermann’s Gulls, Common Loons, and Brown Pelicans flying by, and sanderling, whimbrel, and Western Sandpiper on the sand. In the park and campground, you can find Pileated Woodpecker, Band-tailed Pigeon, Swainson’s Thrush, Pacific Slope Flycatchers, Brown Creepers, and Wilson’s Warbler.

Yaquina Bay Road, extending from Newport’s Historic Bayfront to Toledo, is a great place to spot a range of birds year-round. Stop at pullouts along the way to view loons, grebes, ducks and gulls. Other species that frequent the bay here include brandt, Great Blue Heron, Great Egret, Green Heron, and Snowy Egret. Winter Birds include Dunlin, Western and Least Sandpiper, and Black Turnstones. You may also see Bald Eagles and Belted Kingfishers.