Birdwatching at Quill Lakes
As you head west up Highway 16, you’ll come across one of the best birding spots in the world, with over 300 species and a daily count of over 300,000 birds. It’s no surprise that the Quill Lakes area is nationally and internationally recognized. Over a million shorebirds, ducks, geese, cranes and songbirds stop here as they travel the mid-North American flyway in the tens of thousands. Endangered species include the piping plover, peregrine falcon and whooping crane. The lakes are designated a Ramsar wetland: a convention on wetlands of global importance as waterfowl habitat. The Quill Lakes are a series of three large salt lakes in a mixed-grass prairie ecosystem. Wind action on these shallow lakes creates large areas of freshwater mudflats that are used by shorebirds for feeding. Large open marsh complexes are located adjacent to the lakes and are used by shorebirds and other waterfowl. Spring migration begins about the second week of May and ends about the second week of June. Fall migration begins the second week of July and extends into September in most years.