Birdwatching is a huge pastime in the USA, so 10Best teamed up with a panel of bird and wildlife experts who nominated their favorite places for the title of Best Place for Birding. After four weeks of reader voting, the results are in!
The top 10 winners in the category Best Place for Birding are as follows:
- Aransas National Wildlife Refuge - Texas
- Ottawa National Wildlife Refuge/Magee Marsh - Ohio
- Hawk Mountain Sanctuary - Pennsylvania
- Corkscrew Swamp Sanctuary - Florida
- Francis Beidler Forest - South Carolina
- Rowe Sanctuary - Nebraska
- Kilauea Point National Wildlife Refuge - Hawaii
- Cape May National Wildlife Refuge - New Jersey
- Sky Islands - Arizona
- Bosque del Apache National Wildlife Refuge - New Mexico
A panel of experts picked the initial 20 nominees, and the top 10 winners were determined by popular vote. Experts David Houghton (National Wildlife Refuge Association), Matt Johnson and Stephen W. Kress (National Audubon Society) and David Mizejewski (National Wildlife Federation) were chosen based on their extensive knowledge of American wildlife.
Additional nominees for this honor included Big Bend National Park in Texas, Big Cypress National Preserve in Florida, Eastern Egg Rock in Maine, Everglades National Park in Florida, Jamaica Bay Wildlife Refuge in New York, J.N. "Ding" Darling National Wildlife Refuge in Florida, Lower Rio Grande Valley National Wildlife Refuge in Texas, Monterey Bay in California, Nome in Alaska and Point Reyes National Seashore in California.
Congratulations to all our winning parks and refuges!
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The Experts
David Houghton
David Houghton is the President of the National... Read More
David Houghton is the President of the National Wildlife Refuge Association. The Refuge Association advocates for the 573 million acre National Wildlife Refuge System and Pacific Marine National Monuments. David has worked to add millions of acres to the Refuge System. David lives in Naples Florida and has been to more than 350 National Wildlife Refuges.
David Houghton

David Houghton is the President of the National Wildlife Refuge Association. The Refuge Association advocates for the 573 million acre National Wildlife Refuge System and Pacific Marine National Monuments. David has worked to add millions of acres to the Refuge System. David lives in Naples Florida and has been to more than 350 National Wildlife Refuges.
Matt Johnson
Matt Johnson is the Education Director with... Read More
Matt Johnson is the Education Director with Audubon South Carolina, the state office of the National Audubon Society. Prior to joining Audubon, Matt worked as a producer for an Emmy award-winning nature documentary entitled “Expeditions with Patrick McMillan” at Clemson University. Through work and recreationally, he has birded in half the U.S. states, as well as in Central America. As an educator with Audubon, his focus is to raise awareness for bird conservation through environmental education and outreach.
Matt Johnson

Matt Johnson is the Education Director with Audubon South Carolina, the state office of the National Audubon Society. Prior to joining Audubon, Matt worked as a producer for an Emmy award-winning nature documentary entitled “Expeditions with Patrick McMillan” at Clemson University. Through work and recreationally, he has birded in half the U.S. states, as well as in Central America. As an educator with Audubon, his focus is to raise awareness for bird conservation through environmental education and outreach.
Stephen W. Kress
Stephen W. Kress is the National Audubon Society’s... Read More
Stephen W. Kress is the National Audubon Society’s Vice President for Bird Conservation and director of the Audubon Seabird Restoration Program and Hog Island Audubon Camp in Maine. He is an associate of the Cornell Laboratory of Ornithology in Ithaca NY, where he developed and teaches a course in field ornithology. His work in seabird conservation and management and habitat restoration is world renowned; he is also known as “The Puffin Man” because of his role in establishing and leading Audubon’s Project Puffin in Maine, which celebrated its 40th anniversary in July 2013. Audubon started Project Puffin, led by Kress, in 1973 in an effort to learn how to restore puffins to historic nesting islands in the Gulf of Maine. This innovative restoration project is a model for seabird habitat restoration around the world. A widely-respected ornithologist, Kress has served on a multitude of committees and advisory groups, and has been selected for numerous conservation awards, and authored several books.
Stephen W. Kress

Stephen W. Kress is the National Audubon Society’s Vice President for Bird Conservation and director of the Audubon Seabird Restoration Program and Hog Island Audubon Camp in Maine. He is an associate of the Cornell Laboratory of Ornithology in Ithaca NY, where he developed and teaches a course in field ornithology. His work in seabird conservation and management and habitat restoration is world renowned; he is also known as “The Puffin Man” because of his role in establishing and leading Audubon’s Project Puffin in Maine, which celebrated its 40th anniversary in July 2013. Audubon started Project Puffin, led by Kress, in 1973 in an effort to learn how to restore puffins to historic nesting islands in the Gulf of Maine. This innovative restoration project is a model for seabird habitat restoration around the world. A widely-respected ornithologist, Kress has served on a multitude of committees and advisory groups, and has been selected for numerous conservation awards, and authored several books.
David Mizejewski
David Mizejewski has been fascinated by our... Read More
David Mizejewski has been fascinated by our natural world for as long as he can remember. A lifelong naturalist, he spent his youth exploring the woods, fields and wetlands, observing and learning about the surprising diversity of wildlife that inhabits them. David is a media personality, author, blogger and a naturalist with the National Wildlife Federation. He holds a degree in Human and Natural Ecology from Emory University and is an expert on wildlife and our environment. He’s dedicated to using his knowledge and his enthusiasm to help others understand and protect wildlife. David is co-host of NatGeo WILD’s new prime time television series Pet Talk. He helps viewers understand wildlife through their pets and how pets and wildlife interact and affect each other. He appears regularly as a wildlife expert on other NatGeo WILD series such as Are You Smarter Than, How Human Are You, and Unlikely Animal Friends.
David Mizejewski

David Mizejewski has been fascinated by our natural world for as long as he can remember. A lifelong naturalist, he spent his youth exploring the woods, fields and wetlands, observing and learning about the surprising diversity of wildlife that inhabits them. David is a media personality, author, blogger and a naturalist with the National Wildlife Federation. He holds a degree in Human and Natural Ecology from Emory University and is an expert on wildlife and our environment. He’s dedicated to using his knowledge and his enthusiasm to help others understand and protect wildlife. David is co-host of NatGeo WILD’s new prime time television series Pet Talk. He helps viewers understand wildlife through their pets and how pets and wildlife interact and affect each other. He appears regularly as a wildlife expert on other NatGeo WILD series such as Are You Smarter Than, How Human Are You, and Unlikely Animal Friends.