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Wildlife Watching Sites in Click
on the map markers or the names in the list below to learn about
Wildlife Watching in Kansas Site Index
Travelers to Hillsdale Lake should stop at the visitor center at the northeast end of the dam. Many interpretive displays explain the lake's history, recreational opportunities, and natural resources. (If you are planning to visit the western parts of the lake, be sure to pick up a map because the roads can be confusing.) Behind the center, bird feeders attract resident sparrows, juncos, woodpeckers, and chickadees. The 1.5-mile Hidden Spring Nature Trail, which begins at the visitor center, takes hikers through an oak-hickory forest. Look for fox squirrels, white-tailed deer, woodland birds, and a couple of the most respected reptiles in eastern Kansas: the venomous timber rattlesnake and the copperhead. Flocks of ducks, geese, pelicans, and gulls are seen on the lake during migrations. Late November may bring large flocks of snow geese. At the bridge over Little Bull Creek, scan the flooded timber for wintering bald eagles. Throughout the year, look for cormorants, gulls, grebes, and ducks. A great blue heron nesting colony is visible to the west from the Rock Creek bridge. With binoculars and a spotting scope, approximately 50 large stick nests can be seen in the tallest sycamores growing from the creek bottom about 0.5 miles away. Both equestrians and hikers can enjoy the 24 mile horse trail east of the lake. (Caution: This is in a hunting area, so wear bright colors during hunting seasons).
Ownership: The entities responsible for management of Hillsdale are below. Contact them if you have specific questions about use or management of the area. US Army Corps of
Engineers (913) 783-4366; 13,100 acres Kansas Department of Wildlife and Parks (913)
783-4507
Baker Wetlands, which has been designated by the National Park Service as a National Natural Landmark, is important habitat for the northern crawfish frog. Located just south of Lawrence, Baker Wetlands is part of the Wakarusa River bottomlands. The north half of the site is wetland. The south part consists of riparian woodland, old cropland, and two plots of native prairie totaling 45 acres. The prairie areas contain prairie cordgrass, eastern gamagrass, switchgrass, Indiangrass, big bluestem, swamp milkweed, compass plant, Jerusalem artichoke, and Maximilian sunflower. Smallmouth salamanders breed here in March. Other amphibians include western chorus frogs and leopard frogs. Many times the area is dry, but when water is plentiful, so are the rails, ducks, shorebirds, and herons. Songbirds include marsh wrens, sedge wrens, swamp sparrows, LeConte's sparrows, and common yellowthroats. While in Lawrence, be sure to visit the Prairie Park Nature Center, a 72 acre preserve located near the Baker Wetlands. A new (1999) education center has fascinating dioramas and displays of native wildlife, complementing the nature trails in the park. Click here to visit their web site.
Ownership: Baker University. Contact them if you have specific questions about use or management of the area. (785) 594-3172 573 acres
When you are in Lawrence, you should visit the Kansas Museum of Natural History located in Dyche Hall on the campus of the University of Kansas. The museum offers a number of interesting educational displays about natural sites in Kansas, as well as a gift shop. A highlight is the North American panorama on the first floor - a wraparound diorama depicting the habitats of North America from the arctic to the tropics. It was constructed for the Columbian Exposition in Chicago in 1893 and is a landmark of interpretive display design.
Ownership: University of
Kansas (785) 864-4180
Home of the bald eagle! In 1989 Clinton Lake generated statewide headlines when a pair of bald eagles nested in the Deer Creek arm of the reservoir. This was the first nesting in Kansas since pioneer days. The birds have returned annually to the highly protected aerie. High limestone bluffs, clear water, wooded shorelines, tallgrass prairie, croplands, and miles of hiking and camping trails make this one of the most remarkable recreation and wildlife-viewing sites in Kansas. Start your visit at the Corps of Engineers Information Center. A walk on the Backwoods Nature Trail will give you the opportunity to learn about the natural history of this area. Visit the dam and its overlook on the north end, drive through the Clinton Wildlife Area in the upper reaches of the reservoir, and walk the various hiking trails. The prairie blooms from spring to fall with prairie violets, Missouri evening primrose, lead plant, butterfly milkweed, Baldwin's ironweed, and dozens of other wildflowers. Bullfrogs and painted turtles are found in the wetlands in summer. Look for slender glass lizards along the bluebird trail. Squirrels, foxes, coyotes, white-tailed deer, bobcats, beaver, and mink are sighted year-round. Nesting birds include Canada geese, wood ducks, red-bellied woodpeckers, rose-breasted grosbeaks, mourning doves, eastern bluebirds, red-tailed hawks, and American kestrels. Eight trails in the vicinity of the lake can be experienced by avid hikers and naturalists.
Ownership: The entities responsible for management of Clinton are below. Contact them if you have specific questions about use or management of the area. US Army Corps
of Engineers (785) 843-7665; 18,856 acres Kansas Department of Wildlife and Parks (785)
842-8562
Looking for eagles? A visit to the Lawrence Riverfront from November through March offers a chance to see wintering bald eagles. The Massachusetts street bridge over the Kansas River in downtown Lawrence lies above the Bowersock Dam, the only dam on the Kaw River. The waterfall created by the dam makes the river below it free of ice, even in the coldest winters. When area reservoirs freeze in January and February, the site below the dam is often the only open water in the region and frequently attracts as many as 40 bald eagles, hungrily watching for fish stunned by their passage over the dam. There are usually a half dozen or more eagles along that stretch of the river during the winter. The best time to view them is early in the day.
Ownership: City of Lawrence (785) 832-3540
Perry Lake is in the beautiful Delaware River valley of the Glaciated Region. The rolling bluestem prairie and hillsides of oak and hickory yield a large variety of wildlife. The reservoir, meadows, old fields, and riparian woodlands, as well as the marshes and mudflats, furnish living space for additional species. Hike on the Perry Lake National Recreation Trail (30 mile loop) through the shoreline and hillside communities. Visit Perry Wildlife Area to view the shallow-water habitats of the upper reservoir. In spring and early summer, search the mudflats for shorebirds. Among the cattails and sedges of the marsh you may find nesting sedge wrens, ducks, herons, muskrats, beaver, and mink. Watch for wild turkeys, pileated woodpeckers, rose-breasted grosbeaks, and white-tailed deer in the riparian woodlands. American kestrels, eastern meadowlarks, horned larks, and coyotes can be observed in the old fields and meadows. The oak-hickory ridges attract buntings, vireos, tanagers, thrushes, and warblers. Gulls, pelicans, ducks, and flocks of snow geese are common on the open waters during the fall migration. In winter bald eagles perch in tall trees at the water's edge.
Ownership: The entities responsible for management of Perry are below. Contact them if you have specific questions about use or management of the area. US Army Corps of
Engineers (785) 597-5144; 22,134 acres Kansas Department of Wildlife and Parks (785)
246-3449
Questions or comments about Natural Kansas may be directed to Jim Mason
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Hidden Spring Nature Trail (1.5 mile
loop); Horse Trail (24 miles).
