Annual Great Louisiana BirdFest

The BirdFest is hosted by the Northlake Nature Center, a lovely 400-acre nonprofit preserve just outside Mandeville. The center has seven miles of trails for self-guided tours offering such highlights as a grove of giant magnolias, a beaver pond on Bayou Castine, cypress trees, and a resident flock of 20 wild turkeys.

The Northlake Nature Center is only the beginning on the Northshore for birding enthusiasts. There are more than 80,000 acres of wildlife preserve in St. Tammany Parish, held in areas like the Pearl River Wildlife Management Area, the Big Branch National Wildlife Reserve, and the Nature Conservancy’s Abita Flatwood Preserve.

The Great Louisiana Bird Fest organizes workshops and self-drive tours for birders in these and other areas, including Manchac Swamp. There will be birding trips by foot and pontoon boat for expert and beginning birdwatchers in varied habitat, including swamps, wetlands, pine savanna, and hardwoods. Photography and other workshops, Southern food, and hospitality.

Birders travel from all corners of the U.S. and from around the world to participate in the Great Louisiana BirdFest. Our area is a prime bird-watching location, and the Great Louisiana BirdFest is considered one of the premier birding events in the country. Join us and enjoy what people travel long distances to see and experience “the ideal spring weather, natural resources, and wildlife of Southeast Louisiana” in our own backyard.