Most Sought Species at This Site:

Swallow-tailed Kite, Mississippi Kite, Chuck-will’s-Widow, Acadian Flycatcher,Brown-headed Nuthatch, Prothonotary Warbler, Painted Bunting

The Nature Conservancy’s Charles Deaton preserve is located in northern George County where the Leaf and Chickasawhay Rivers converge to form the Pascagoula River, the largest unimpeded river system in the lower forty-eight states. This site is recognized by the National Audubon Society as an Important Bird Area (IBA). The preserve is surrounded by some 47,000 acres of protected land, including two additional TNC holdings (Herman Murrah and Robbie Fisher Preserves). A good portion of it is bottomland hardwood forrest and associated forested oxbow and is subject to seasonal flooding. There are also some higher areas of southern mixed hardwood forest and a relic sand dune with a heavy growth of prickly pear cactus. The Pascagoula River is probably the most important migratory corridor on the Gulf Coast east of the Mississippi River. Migration at this site can be outstanding. Summer residents include both Swallow-tailed Kite and Mississippi Kite (a good place to scan for them is from the nearby Merrill Bridge). Acadian Flycatcher, Prothonotary, Hooded and Kentucky Warblers are common. Wood Stork has also been reported. This site is not birded often at this season and a visitor may well make a new discovery (Like confirming nesting of Louisiana Waterthrush).  In winter, expect all the woodland permanent residents, a variety of sparrows and maybe a rarity or two (like coastal Mississippi’s first Long-eared Owl). Visitors should be aware that hunting is allowed in this area (click on the hunting icon below for hunting seasons). For your own safety, wear highly visible blaze orange hunting clothes during hunting seasons.