A fun and relaxing day spent walking the woodlands, wetlands, and brushy habitats of Conestee Nature Preserve, followed by exploring other Greenville-area hotspots in search of waterfowl and other winter specialties. Birding will be from a combination of trails, roadsides, and gravel roads, with a moderate amount of walking on well-maintained trails.

Conestee Nature Preserve is a top birding location in upstate South Carolina, with a variety of woodland, edge, and wetland habitats that can produce a diverse species assemblage during a morning out birding- even in winter. Here we will look for Rusty Blackbirds, which winter here in numbers large enough to warrant the site’s designation as an Important Bird Area, a variety of sparrows including Song, Swamp, Fox, Field, Chipping, and White-throated, woodland species including Brown Creeper, Hermit Thrush, and Purple Finch, and winter waterfowl on Lake Conestee. We’ll also look for several warbler species that regularly winter here, including Black-and-white and Orange-crowned. Rarities such as American Bittern also show up here from time to time, so there’s no telling what we might find! Afterwards, we’ll visit several other local hotspots in search of additional winter waterfowl, sparrows, and any recent rarities that are being seen. Exact itinerary is to be determined, dependent upon what rarities and other species of interest are around in the prior week.