While giving several presentations on Birding Central Florida, I’m often asked where I like to go birding. This is a prominent topic during the presentation, but I frequently get the follow-up question of whether I have this list of my top ten eBird hotspots anywhere online. This is the answer to that question!

This list isn’t in any particular order from my number one spot down to tenth place; it’s more of a list of locations moving north to south across Central Florida, ending with two locations on the Atlantic and Gulf Coasts.

My primary goal is to include as many areas as possible that provide unique species that call Central Florida home. I also want to include some locations that are exceptionally easy to access, underrated, or under-birded.

Many of you who have birded in Central Florida for any length of time will be familiar with at least some of these locations. Still, for potential visitors to our state, these could provide a nice break from the traffic and noise of the more densely populated areas most people associate with our region.

Here is Part 2 of my favorite birding locations in Central Florida!

If you’d like to see Parts 1 and 3, here are their links:

Part 3: Coming Soon!

Lake Apopka North Shore

• General (Orange County) – https://ebird.org/hotspot/L559416
• General (Lake County) – https://ebird.org/hotspot/L3481470
• Lake Apopka Wildlife Drive – https://ebird.org/hotspot/L298649
• Pump House Area – https://ebird.org/hotspot/L3281871
• Loop Trail Northeast Section – https://ebird.org/hotspot/L1598413
• Lust Road Gate Area Only – https://ebird.org/hotspot/L4323171
• North Shore Trailhead – https://ebird.org/hotspot/L578282
• McDonald Canal Boat Ramp – https://ebird.org/hotspot/L3845532
• Clay Island Loop Trail – https://ebird.org/hotspot/L3187776

Located between Lake and Orange Counties, Lake Apopka is the fourth-largest lake in Florida and sports nearly 350 species of birds. This is the second-highest location for species in the state, according to eBird.

The Marsh Flow-Way started in 2003 to remove phosphorus from the lake. This was necessary because the surrounding agricultural land leached fertilizer-based chemicals into the water.

These chemicals create algal blooms that suck all of the oxygen out of the water, suffocating any other aquatic life. Thankfully, this has been extremely successful, and the avian diversity is a testament to this.

Lake Apopka is a fantastic location for wintering waterfowl.

Species like Gadwell, Redhead, Ruddy Duck, and many others are relatively common to see here in the cooler months. Thousands of American Coots and Ring-necked Ducks congregate here over the winter and can become overwhelming if you’re trying to keep an accurate count.

With the ducks come the predators. Peregrine Falcons, Northern Harriers, Bald Eagles, Merlins, and several other raptors use Lake Apopka as a stopping point or an area to spend the winter.

In the spring, many migratory warblers move through here. For whatever reason, Yellow Warblers and Northern Waterthrush tend to stick together in the willows near the U and Pump House (if you know, you know).

Barn Swallows fill the sky at dusk near their rookeries, getting a last-minute meal before the sun sleeps. All of this commotion makes for excellent opportunities to practice flight photography, and now and then, you get lucky with a swallow that needs to rest for a few seconds.

Residents of Lake Apopka are quite unique in Central Florida.

This is one of the few locations in the state where you can consistently see Fulvous Whistling-Ducks. While this is a globally spread species, common in South America and Africa, it isn’t particularly rare. However, there are only a handful of locations in the US where this duck exists.

Virtually all herons, egrets, and ibis remain here year-round and build their nesting rookeries among the cattails and grasses.

These birds tend to partition based on their size, where Great Blue Herons and Great Egrets nest near each other, and Tricolored Herons, Snowy Egrets, Little Blue Herons, and Cattle Egrets form mixed-species rookeries.

One relative of the heron that is much easier to see here than in other areas during the summer is the Least Bittern. This shy and reclusive bird typically stays deep in vegetation and rarely comes into the open. Lake Apopka, particularly along the Wildlife Drive, is the exception to this rule.

During the nesting season, April through July, these birds have to come into the open to forage for food for their nestlings. This increased activity makes them much easier to see, and it is my favorite spot to photograph this otherwise hard-to-see bird.

Orlando Wetlands Park

• Orlando Wetlands Park – https://ebird.org/hotspot/L452007
• Seminole Ranch Conservation Area – https://ebird.org/hotspot/L3692880
• Fort Christmas Historical Park – https://ebird.org/hotspot/L3405772
• SR-50 Public Boat Ramp – https://ebird.org/hotspot/L1897275

While attending the University of Central Florida, the Orlando Wetlands was my escape from the city. In Orange County, this fantastic park has over 250 species of birds.

The Orlando Wetlands Park is a wastewater reclamation system in Orange and Seminole Counties.

Water moves from cell to cell, while vegetation and sediment naturally clean the water before it enters the aquifer. The park processes 35 million gallons daily, which takes 40 days to complete.

This pristine wetland is a great location to see egret and spoonbill rookeries in the spring and early summer. Roseate Spoonbills are an incredible sight to see here, and with nesting populations, this shows the exceptional health of the ecosystem.

Short-tailed Hawks are also surprisingly regular sights at the Orlando Wetlands during migration. These raptors tend to mix into vulture kettles and can almost disappear if you aren’t scrutinizing them.

Crested Caracaras are also an unpredictable presence here. Although the population is small in the surrounding area, Caracaras occasionally wander into the wetlands, making them a great addition to the list. Still, another location is coming up soon that I feel is better for viewing this odd falcon.

Purple Gallinules are oddly comfortable around people in the Wetlands, and this is a trait shared with many birds. Limpkin, another relatively shy bird, often walk alongside the path right next to you, looking for apple snails. 

Other shy species occasionally seen here are Barred Owl, American Bittern, and Sora. While they aren’t always apparent, these birds are also seemingly accustomed to humans due to the high foot traffic this park sees. 

A resident pair of Florida Sandhill Cranes have nested in the Orlando Wetlands for several years, and their colts are always a major draw for photographers and bird lovers.

My favorite duck, the Black-bellied Whistling-Duck, is extremely common here.

I always love watching these birds flying, messing with each other by trying to scratch each other with their feet, snap at them with their bill, or fly into their path and make them alter course.

Their soft, whistling calls are ingrained in my memory whenever I walk into the wetlands.

Painted Bunting, Marsh Wren, Orange-crowned Warbler, and Verry are all excellent songbirds in the Orlando Wetlands. Similar to many of the other birds here, some of these more reclusive and shy birds come into the open with surprising frequency. 

I’ve had great luck with Painted Bunting at the Wetlands, in particular, compared to other locations where I’ve seen them. These timid birds come to Central Florida during the winter.

Most times that I’ve seen Painted Buntings, especially males, they tend to dart out in the open for just a few seconds before falling back into dense vegetation. However, I’ve spent several minutes watching a small group of three Buntings feed in a tree at the Orlando Wetlands.

Joe Overstreet Landing and Surrounding Area

• Joe Overstreet Landing – https://ebird.org/hotspot/L269357
• Lake Kissimmee – https://ebird.org/hotspot/L127361
• Double C Bar Ranch – https://ebird.org/hotspot/L5377663
• Three Lakes WMA – https://ebird.org/hotspot/L127364

Joe Overstreet Road is an exciting location, and this is what I consider the southernmost point of Central Florida. In Osceola County, Joe Overstreet is at the north edge of the Kissimmee Prairie.

Surrounded by cattle farms and sod fields, this environment attracts a whole different set of species. The grassland ecosystem is ancient, providing some vestiges of an age long past.

During the Pleistocene, Crested Caracaras were common across much of what is now the southern United States. They fed on the carrion of megafauna, such as mastodons, bison, and camels.

However, as these large mammals started dying off, the population of Caracaras followed suit.

Still, a stronghold of these raptors remained in the grasslands of Central Florida, and today, we have a relic population from the last Ice Age, 12 million years ago.

Crested Caracaras are doing relatively well today, though their numbers have declined. They nest in this area, and it is my favorite location to look for them.

If you want to learn more about Caracaras, check out my article The Most Intelligent Bird of Prey:

Joe Overstreet Road and the surrounding fields are most active after a good rainstorm. The rain brings insects closer to the surface, and birds know this, so they go into the fields to feed on them.

Keep an eye on the radar in August, and if there’s a good storm, go out to Joe Overstreet. Around this time, Upland and Pectoral Sandpipers are moving through Florida and will use this area as a holdover to refill their fat reserves.

Upland Sandpipers, in particular, are very odd-looking birds. I always refer to them as bowling-pin-shaped.

Their high-pitched whip-whip flight calls are a dead giveaway, but even with their tall stature, they can easily hide in the tall grass.

Eastern Meadowlarks sing to their heart’s content perched on fence posts in the spring. However, Loggerhead Shrikes use the barbed wire as their butcher’s hooks for any unfortunate victim that comes across their path.

Northern Bobwhites are typical residents here, following the same pattern of becoming more active after the rain.

These small game birds are reasonably skittish, so if you see one, try to stay inside your vehicle and use it as a blind so they are less likely to take off.

At the end of Joe Overstreet Road, there is a public boat ramp and the headquarters for a local airboat tour company. Here, watch for Snail Kites working the lakeshore for invasive apple snails.

The Kite’s typical hunting behavior is to fly relatively low over the shore’s edge, right where the water floods the grass. This is because the apple snails need to lay their eggs on partially submerged vegetation.

After the raptor locates its prey, it hovers to confirm its target, swoops down, and clutches it in its talons. Once seized, the Snail Kite finds a perch and expertly separates the flesh from the shell.

Bald Eagles are also commonly seen around the lake and in cattle pastures. You can see an old Eagle nest by looking into the oaks behind the pastures.

Limpkins, Black-necked Stilts, and several species of sandpipers are also regularly seen working in the shallow waters and vegetation. It’s worth spending some time looking over the lake for gulls and terns as well.

A resident pair of Great Horned Owls usually emerges just after sunset around the parking area. I’ve been lucky to see these two in the daylight, but watching them hunt in the orange glow from the light poles is a very memorable experience.

Now You Know 3 More of My Top 10 eBird Hotspots for Central Florida!

Those are three more of my top ten birding spots in Central Florida! These add great options for viewing wetland and marsh birds at Lake Apopka and the Orlando Wetlands, while Joe Overstreet provides a hugely distinct array of avifauna.

Make sure you check out Parts 1 and 3, where I show the rest of my top ten eBird hotspots for Central Florida and several honorable mentions!

Thank you for taking the time to read this article. If you have ideas or suggestions for topics you would like me to write about in the future, feel free to leave a comment below or email me!

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Get Outside & Happy Birding

Max