10 Great Birds to Peep in Austin

Texas is the country’s most bird diverse state, and Austin is its fitting capital, given its geographical uniqueness, high amount of greenspace, and the number of naturalists that call our city home.

A birding destination in its own right, there are always spectacular birds to check out here, any time of year, at sites like the Greenbelt, Commons Ford, Bull Creek, McKinney Falls, or even just along Lady Bird Lake in the middle of the city. Wherever you go, here are some cool birds to be on the lookout for.

Cedar waxwing

The elegant, cardinal-sized cedar waxwing is easy to identify with its black mask, smooth crest, milk chocolate coloration, yellow-dipped tail feathers, and the bright red accents on its wings. These specks of red are where the bird gets its name – it’s actually a wax the bird excretes, but no one’s quite sure why.

Though relatively common, waxwings winter in Austin, so keep your eyes peeled for them when the weather cools down. You’ll know when they’re in the area by their colorful, seedy excretions that stain surfaces across the city.

Purple martin

Named for the males’ glossy indigo plumage, purple martins sit about eight inches and can be seen in large flocks just north of Austin in Round Rock. Though the birds fly south for warmer weather during the winter, purple martins have been sighted in Texas as early as January.

The Travis Audubon Society hosts free purple martin parties every July, where hundreds gather to watch more than 400,000 martins vortex into their roosting site in Round Rock.

Golden-cheeked warbler

Notable for its bright yellow cheek, this very distinctive – and endangered – bird spends its warmer months in Central Texas.

Though uncommon to rare, you might glimpse the golden-cheeked warbler at the Greenbelt or Bull Creek. Naturalists travel from all over the country to see one, and crossing a golden-cheeked warbler off your checklist is a prize for any Central Texas birder.

Monk parakeet

About the size of bulkier cardinals, these cute green birds are beloved Austin aviary icons, despite the fact that they’re non-native. Legend has it that a family of domesticated monk parakeets were either released or escaped their home in the Zilker area in the Seventies. This alligator-in-the-sewers backstory has endeared them to many locals, and it’s always a thrill when you spot a monk parakeet around Lady Bird Lake or in Hyde Park, their regular stomping grounds. It’s a small population, but their flamboyant coloration, unique to this area, makes them an easy ID. Because the population is so small, these normally migratory birds can be seen in Austin any time of year.

American coots

When most people see these they think they’re evil-looking ducks. Nope, they’re coots, and they’re actually more closely related to egrets.

Be on the lookout for an all-black body with blood red-eyes and a pointy white break. They’re common, year-round birds that can be found on many major bodies of water in the city. But that doesn’t mean they aren’t an interesting sight – in the winters especially flock sizes can balloon into the thousands. It’s less common to see them out of water, but their feet are fleshy and wild-looking.

Black- and yellow-crowned night herons

These night-feeding waterbirds are actually different species, but fairly similar in appearance and behavior. They’re both stocky, standing about two feet tall, and are distinguishable from one another by the color of their crowns. They may occasionally sport long plumes, which are very pretty.

The black-crowns can be found year-round, while the yellow-crowns mostly come to the area during the summer to breed. Though they can be seen in many bodies of water throughout the city, they make especially nice companions on night swims around Barton Springs or Deep Eddy.

Great blue herons

Really much more gray than they are blue, great blue herons stand around 4.5 feet tall and some boast wingspans nearing 7 feet. They’re solitary birds but have been known to be more social when mating.

Though they are also commonly found throughout the U.S., these graceful creatures can be spotted year-round in creeks around Austin, including the Greenbelt.

Egyptian geese

A few years back, Central Texans made a lot of fuss over these invasive geese moving their way into Central Texas. Though certain areas in the region have been overtaken by geese, Austin is home to only a few small families, with notable ones living in Mueller Lake Park and Barton Springs. As the geese coexist peacefully with people in these lovely outdoor spaces, it’s a prime example of what makes Austin a special nature city, and Barton Springs visitors have been able to watch the family there grow over the past few years.

About the size of a duck, they tend to vary pretty significantly in plumage but are often distinguishable by some pattern of whites, grays, and browns with brown circles around their eyes. These birds are solely ornamental, “walking the grounds”-type animals. The Ancient Egyptians believed them to be sacred messengers between heaven and earth.

Downy woodpecker

The continent’s smallest woodpecker, the adorable downy woodpecker stands about 6-8 inches tall, weighs under an ounce, and can be identified easily by its tiny beak, which is in fact smaller than its head. Otherwise, the downy woodpecker displays a zebra-like plumage common to many woodpeckers and the male boasts a patch of bright red feathers on the backs of his heads.

Want to find a woodpecker? Follow the sound. You may be tipped off that one is in the area by the sound of it boring into a tree. Look for the downy woodpecker in more wooded areas of the city such as the Greenbelt or Pease Park.

Tower Girl

Tower Girl is the name given to the peregrine falcon living at the top of the University of Texas Tower. Unlike most peregrine falcons, Tower Girl doesn’t migrate and instead spends her whole year at the tower and Downtown, feeding on grackles and other more common Austin birds. She is visited during the winter by male peregrines who attempt to court her and, barring this year, she has laid eggs every year since 2016.

Peregrine falcons are the fastest animal on earth, reaching 200 miles per hour when dropping down on their prey. If you were to see Tower Girl it would be in flight, or in her nest box via the UT falcon cam.

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Find more activities in Austin to enjoy in the Austin Chronicle’s Visitors Guide.