Field Trip: Perry Lakes Park and Spencer Farm

March brings early-spring migrants back to Alabama, and we’ll be there to meet them at two of the best birding locations on the southern coastal plains.

First, we’ll visit the moss-draped cypress trees of Perry Lakes Park, located along a series of oxbow lakes created by the meandering Cahaba River. Breeding Northern Parulas, Purple Martins, and Louisiana Waterthrushes are all likely spots, and we might even manage a Barred Owl or two. For the botanists among us, we’ll also have a chance to see atamasco lilies in the boggy soil below, as well as red buckeye on the forest floor.

Following lunch at the Perry Lakes Park pavilion—a striking creation of the architects at Auburn’s Rural Studio—we’ll head south to Marion Junction to visit the Spencer Farm, a renowned organic farm working toward happier and healthier food production in Alabama’s Black Belt.

Meetup directions:

Meetup is at 7 a.m. at the McDonald’s on US 31 in Hoover, located at 1731 Montgomery Highway, across from the Galleria. From there, we’ll caravan south, with a brief stop around 8 a.m. at the Wendy’s off Highway 5 in Brent. Be sure to wear good walking shoes, and to bring along sunscreen and a strategy for repelling insects. You’ll also need to pack a lunch, as we’ll be dining al fresco at Perry Lakes Park around noon. 

Trip leader:

Greg Harber (205-807-8055)