My main reason for going to North Alabama Bend! Don't get me wrong, the birding is FANTASTIC even if you don't make it down the trail all the way to the Missouri River. But it's the river itself, the wonderful free-flowing Missouri River in this location and those expansive sandbars, that make this place special for a birder.
It's some of the best remaining habitat in South Dakota for nesting Least Tern and Piping Plover. If you look at Google Earth images for the region and look through the available historical imagery, you'll see that the exact state of the rivers varies a LOT from year to year, with high-water periods resulting in inundation of many of the sandbars, and lower-water periods resulting in vast expanses of sand. Overall though, it's that variability and shifting sands from year to year that form the habitat for these two iconic, threatened species in South Dakota.
A typical birding trip for me to North Alabama Bend...walk the prairie loops. Linger a bit in the forested areas. But most of my time is spent on the river bank, scanning the skies for passing Least Terns as they forage for food, or scanning the sandbars themselves for Piping Plover. Note depending upon the condition of the river on the day of your visit, suitable sandy habitat for these species may be out away from the shoreline. If you have a scope that you can bring, it will certainly increase your odds of seeing the Piping Plover in particular (as they're less apt to be airborne and fly over your location). Least Terns are a little more forgiving here, as they are seemingly constantly in flight and more easily seen.
Keep an eye out for other species as well, of course! A Bald Eagle nest is near hear, and each of the recent trips I've taken as I write this (summer of 2020), I've seen at least one bald Eagle do a fly over. I missed the region this spring, but heard with the vast expanses of sand and shallow water, it was absolutely fantastic for migrating shorebirds in April and May. Tree Swallows, Barn Swallows, and Cliff Swallows have all been pretty common when I visit, flying over the water and surrounding shoreline in search of insects.
It's a terrific spot to just pull up a log (there tend to be scattered logs on the river banks), have a seat, and watch the fantastic life that can be found on this stretch of river.
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SOUTH DAKOTA BIRDS AND BIRDING - LOCATIONS OF WEBSITE VISITORS
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Please mail any comments/suggestions/additional links for this page to: Terry L. Sohl