Antigua and Barbuda / Special Interests / Birdwatching

Despite a general lack of original habitat because of deforestation, there is a reasonable amount of birdlife to be seen in Antigua. There are reckoned to be about 120 species visible on the island, in a number of different habitats (offshore and on the beach, on the small islands, in lagoons, in mangroves, reservoirs, plains and in dry forest and the small areas of wetter forest). They include ospreys, gulls, turnstones, herons and egrets, grassquits, Zenaida doves, hummingbirds, bullfinches and kingfishers.

Good locations for birdwatching include the North Sound Islands (including Bird Island below), Potworks Dam, Wallings Forest and of course the Codrington Lagoon in Barbuda.

Bird Island

Bird Island is one of a scattering of islands and outcrops off Crab’s Peninsula in the North Sound. Great Bird Island itself happens to be the home of the world’s only population of a harmless grey-brown snake called the Antiguan Racer, but the island was obviously named for its bird population. Species that still inhabit it include West Indian whistling ducks, tropicbirds, pelicans and other sea birds. The island also has a nice beach and some snorkelling, so it is a regular stop for day sails and trips. You are asked not to disturb the wildlife. Great Bird Island is the largest of six islands, which include Rabbit Island, Lobster Island, Red Head Island, Exchange Island and the delightfully named Hell’s Gate.

Frigate Bird Sanctuary, Barbuda

Barbuda’s frigatebird sanctuary is an extraordinary sight. Set in the north-western part of the Codrington lagoon, it has the largest breeding population of Magnificent Frigatebirds (Fregata magnificens) in the Caribbean. Literally hundreds of the huge birds, roost and nest in a large area of mangroves, and circle like arrow-shaped black darts hundreds of feet above the island. Frigatebirds have a wingspan of over six feet for a body of just eighteen inches long, so it is impossible for them to take off if they drop into the water, but fishermen have seen them picked up off the water by two other frigatebirds that swoop down, each grabbing a wing. The best time to visit the lagoon in autumn, the courting season, then you will see the males blowing up the enormous red pouch at their necks to attract females.