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Grandfather Mountain is Bird Watcher's Paradise
by Ida Lynch

The first time I saw a rose-breasted grosbeak, I was hiking the Tanawha Trail that skirts the lower elevations of Grandfather. I guess you could say I was a fledgling birder at the time, but when our leader pointed out this dapper bird with its fancy red, white, and black markings, I started paying a little more attention to the sky.

With its great diversity of habitats and dozen miles of hiking trails, Grandfather Mountain offers a unique opportunity for birders, both novice and seasoned. Grandfather is blessed with "one of the richest avifauna of any comparably sized area in the southern Blue Ridge," according to Marcus B. Simpson, Jr., author of Birds of the Blue Ridge Mountains. At least one hundred bird species are known to nest at Grandfather Mountain. Fourteen species of warblers probably nest in the area. Twenty species out of the 27 that nest in the southeastern United States have been observed at Grandfather Mountain.

Grandfather is a wonderful place to visit year-round, but you will have the most birding opportunities from the spring through the fall. Spring is a good time to observe breeding birds, like warblers, while fall is an excellent time to watch hawks migrating.

Where To Look

Hiking the Tanawha Trail during the spring and summer is an excellent introduction to the birds that breed at Grandfather. One of the most popular portions of the trail for birders is the 1.4-mile section between the Rough Ridge parking lot and the Wilson Creek parking lot. This section of the trail passes through northern hardwood forests and over an open heath area and offers the chance to see pileated woodpeckers, chestnut-sided and black-and-white warblers, and one of my favorites, the rose-breasted grosbeak. The trail leads you to Ship Rock, a good perch for watching migrating hawks, such as the broad-winged hawk.

The portion of the Grandfather Mountain backcountry that is jointly managed by Grandfather Mountain, Inc. and The Nature Conservancy offers many good birding opportunities. The first half mile of the Grandfather Trail, which runs from the parking area at the top of the mountain to the intersection with the Underwood Trail, takes you through good examples of spruce-fir and northern hardwood forest. In the spring and summer, some of the many birds you may encounter on the trail are the cedar waxwing, ruffed grouse, brown creeper, golden-crowned kinglet, dark-eyed junco, and solitary vireo. You also have the chance to see more northern rarities, including the hermit thrush and magnolia warbler.

The Profile Trail, which is a less strenuous trail than the Grandfather Trail, winds along the northwest slope of the mountain, through mature cove hardwood and oak forests. Birding this trail in the spring can be very rewarding and may offer views of the red-breasted and white-breasted nuthatch, wood thrush, scarlet tanager, and several species of woodpeckers.

Uncommon Finds

Part of Grandfather Mountain's ecological significance lies in its many rare and uncommon bird species. Understandably, birders feel fortunate to see many of these elusive birds. In 1995, researchers from Appalachian State discovered a northern saw-whet owl nest in an old birch tree in the backcountry. North Carolina's smallest owl, the saw-whet measures only eight inches and has a wingspan of 18 inches. This nocturnal hunter is considered a "species of special concern" by the State of North Carolina.

The peregrine falcon is another rare inhabitant of the mountain. Once on the verge of extinction because of the effects of DDT, the peregrine has made a comeback. In the 1980's, the Peregrine Fund, Inc., the NC Wildlife Resources Commission, and the US Fish and Wildlife Service released immature peregrines on Grandfather Mountain in a hacking program. Birders often observe peregrines soaring over the more remote parts of the mountain. From May to June, you may have the opportunity to see another rare raptor, the sharp-shinned hawk, which nests in dense hardwood or spruce-fir forests.

Grandfather Mountain is home to a large, year-round population of common ravens. These birds nest in secluded, usually inaccessible, ledges and cliffs in the mountain's high elevation rocky summits. If you spend some time at Grandfather, you are likely to witness ravens performing aerial acrobatics. In North Carolina, ravens are only found in the mountains and in a few Piedmont locations. Although ravens are fairly uncommon in North Carolina, the state population seems to be increasing.

Migratory Songbirds

For more than a decade, biologists have observed a decline in populations of Neotropical migratory songbirds. Neotropical migrants are the more than 200 species of birds that winter in Central and South America, Mexico and the Caribbean and return to North America to breed in the spring. Like many environmental crises, the loss of migratory birds is linked to a combination of factors, including habitat destruction in the tropics and North America. The black-billed cuckoo is one of the more uncommon Neotropical migrants that nests on Grandfather Mountain. The cuckoo winters in northern South America and has been observed in eight mountain counties in North Carolina. It has been found in several locations on Grandfather Mountain, in the upper portions of northern hardwood and spruce-fir forests.

I have only scratched the surface about Grandfather Mountain's bird life. If you are interested in finding out more about the particular species of birds you will see on different parts of the mountain, I highly recommend that you read Birds of the Blue Ridge Mountains, by Marcus B. Simpson, Jr. And the next time you visit Grandfather, be sure to bring your binoculars!

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