Cajun country is one of the primary rice-growing regions of the US, and as such it provides many prairie and taiga pothole breeding birds their winter home: ducks, geese, bitterns, Sedge Wrens, LeConte's Sparrows, and secretive Yellow Rails. These species are found across much of the Southeast, but because of the rice-harvesting schedule of Cajun farmers, the chance of seeing them here is perhaps better than anywhere else--as the rice combines collect the lagniappe (extra) autumn crop, they flush the birds that are otherwise buried deep in marshy grass. In addition to the marsh birds, any hedgerow may have lingering or vagrant migrants, wintering sparrows, or some other surprise!

In the course of our long weekend, we'll also bird the coastal marshes, beaches, and cheniers (tree islands) for late seasonal migrants and wintering species, and we'll visit the nearby pine woods that are home to such southeastern specialties as Red-cockaded Woodpecker, Brown-headed Nuthatch, and Bachman's Sparrow. And don't forget your appetite: Louisiana is rightly known for its tasty cuisine! So why don't y'all come on down and visit?

Select the KEY INFO tab or click here for our itinerary plus space requests, status, fees, limits, and guides for any departure.

Client comment
"It's a wonderful tour. Although it's short, we saw a large number of species and a large number of individual birds. I was amazed we saw all the rails so well. Dan Lane does everything well as a tour leader. He gets us on the birds, has thoughtful and interesting comments about what we are seeing, is patient and good with people, and makes the shared experience a lot of fun. I usually travel with Field Guides. FG trips have been a good fit for how I like to travel and bird--for many years now." A.B. LOUISIANA: YELLOW RAILS & CRAWFISH TAILS 2019