UCR birding spots

  1. Botanical Gardens: The most obvious birding spot on campus is the Botanical Gardens. Diverse species of birds including easy to see California Towhees, vibrant Hummingbirds, secretive Bell’s and Rufous-crowned sparrows call the gardens home.  Some of the notable birds in the gardens in recent time include Winter Wren, Verdin, and Green-tailed Towhee. Just outside the entrance of the gardens there is a small riparian strip which is worth exploring as well.
  2. Health center riparian area: This small patch near the campus health center often holds surprises. Recent notable birds are Summer Tanager, wintering Hammond’s and Gray Flycatcher and  wintering Cassin’s Vireo.
  3. Bannockburn riparian area: This patch is at the intersection of University ave. and Canyon Crest Dr. Last winter a White-throated Sparrow was seen here many times.
  4. Picnic Hill: This hill attracts a lot of migrants. This year a Clay-colored Sparrow and Summer Tanager were seen on the hill.
  5. Sage Hills: These hills overlooking the freeway has native sagebrush and rocky terrain which attracts Sage Sparrows, Gnatcatchers, Rock and Canyon Wrens. Notable birds on the hill this year were Black-throated Sparrow and Brewer’s Sparrow.
  6. Agricultural operations (AgOps): This is a restricted access area of the campus. Agops holds a number of ponds which attract variety of waterfowls.

This map shows where these spots are located.

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