Prince George’s County is fortunate in having a large variety of parks and other public lands that offer an excellent variety of habitat and a corresponding excellent selection of birds, despite the pervasive development in the greater Washington, D.C. metropolitan area. The birding sites presented below are some of the top birding hotspots in the county, in terms of total species reported. Each site is linked to the corresponding entry in the Prince George’s section of the Birder’s Guide to Maryland & DC (http://www.mdbirdingguide.com/prince_georges), an online resource developed by the Maryland Ornithological Society. Click on the name of each site to access detailed information for each site, including geography, habitat features, hours open, any fees, directions, special features, and more.

Also see our Bird Checklists page on this website for links to printable, PDF-format eBird-based checklists for sites listed below as well as other popular birding spots.

Sites on the Patuxent River (eastern border of the county), in order from north to south:

• Rocky Gorge Reservoir (Supplee Lane Recreation Area & Duckett Dam)
• Fran Uhler Natural Area
• Governor Bridge Natural Area
• Mount Calvert Historical & Archaeological Park (Patuxent River Park)
• Jug Bay Natural Area of Patuxent River Park (Jackson Landing, Croom Airport, and Selby’s Landing)
• Merkle Natural Resources Management Area
• Milltown Landing Natural Resources Management Area

Sites on the Anacostia River or Potomac River (western border of the county), in order from north to south:

• Bladensburg Waterfront Park, Colmar Manor Community Park & Anacostia River Trail
• Oxon Cove Park & Oxon Hill Farm
• Fort Foote Park
• Fort Washington (National) Park
• Piscataway (National) Park, including Boardwalk, National Colonial Farm and Wharf Rd (Farmington Landing)

In the interior of the county, in order from north to south:

• Patuxent Research Refuge – South Tract and National Wildlife Visitor Center
• Greenbelt Lake Municipal Park (aka Buddy Attick Lake Park)
• Greenbelt (National) Park
• Lake Artemesia Natural Area
• Schoolhouse Pond
• Rosaryville State Park
• Piscataway MOS Sanctuary

Another resource is the list of Prince George’s County hotspots within eBird, the online database of bird reports developed by the Cornell Laboratory of Ornithology. There are over 100 eBird hotspots for Prince George’s County. The  webpages for eBird hotspots include links to recent bird reports for each site, along with seasonal occurrence bar charts, top birders, and a printable field checklist, as well as maps showing the location of each site.