Bird Watching

The open dunescapes of Cape Lookout National Seashore are excellent places to see a variety of birds, especially during spring and fall migrations. Cape Lookout has a bird-sighting list of 275 species (Cape Lookout Bird List) and, as the last uninhabited stretch of barrier island in North Carolina, is an important resting spot for birds during their spring and fall migrations. It is one of the most important areas in the state for the threatened piping plover.

Most of the birds in Cape Lookout National Seashore are seen on North and South Core Banks…Shackleford Banks has a low diversity of birds. Migrating waterbirds are the predominant species encountered.

There is a great variety of birdlife at Cape Lookout National Seashore and coming to Cape Lookout National Seashore for birding has two potential advantages: you might be the only one doing it and, of course, this is your chance to see one of the few last remaining stretches of undeveloped oceanfront left in the United States.