Lake Apopka Wildlife Drive
Florida · Southeast
Moderate
October-April
Free
Open Fri-Sun, sunrise to sunset
About This Location
Lake Apopka Wildlife Drive is a productive birding destination in Florida, with 294 species recorded on eBird. This lake habitat attracts Fulvous Whistling-Duck, Blue-winged Teal, and Canvasback among many others. Mild winters attract waterfowl and sparrows, while spring and fall migration bring neotropical songbirds.
Location
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Notable Species
Live Bird Data
Powered by eBird / Cornell Lab of Ornithology
Notable Sightings
Rare or unusual species spotted nearby in the last 14 days
Canvasback
Aythya valisineria
American Flamingo
Phoenicopterus ruber
Black Skimmer
Rynchops niger
White-throated Sparrow
Zonotrichia albicollis
Snail Kite
Rostrhamus sociabilis
Royal Tern
Thalasseus maximus
Mottled Duck
Anas fulvigula
Red-cockaded Woodpecker
Leuconotopicus borealis
Great Crested Flycatcher
Myiarchus crinitus
Cape May Warbler
Setophaga tigrina
Field Sparrow
Spizella pusilla
Recent Observations
Species reported at this location in the last 14 days
Black-bellied Whistling-Duck
Fulvous Whistling-Duck
Blue-winged Teal
Gadwall
Ring-necked Duck
Lesser Scaup
Mourning Dove
Common Gallinule
American Coot
Purple Gallinule
Gray-headed Swamphen
Long-billed Dowitcher
Wilson's Snipe
Lesser Yellowlegs
Ring-billed Gull
Caspian Tern
Forster's Tern
Pied-billed Grebe
Anhinga
Double-crested Cormorant
Birding Tips
- 1
Scan the water surface methodically for diving ducks, loons, and grebes.
- 2
Check the shoreline and mudflats for shorebirds and wading birds.
- 3
Check for wintering sparrows in brushy edges from November through February.
- 4
A spotting scope is essential here — many waterbirds stay far from shore and are difficult to identify with binoculars alone.
Amenities
Nearby Attractions
- Lake Apopka North Shore
- Oakland Nature Preserve
- West Orange Trail
More in Florida
Everglades National Park
Vast subtropical wilderness with incredible wading bird concentrations and tropical species.
Dry Tortugas National Park
Remote island migrant trap with the only continental US Sooty Tern colony.
J.N. "Ding" Darling National Wildlife Refuge
Sanibel Island mangrove refuge with spectacular wading bird viewing from Wildlife Drive.