The sixth annual Black Belt Birding Festival will return to Alabama’s Black Belt region July 31 through Aug. 2, bringing together birding, ecotourism, local history, and civil rights heritage across multiple counties in west and central Alabama.

Hosted by Alabama Audubon, the festival highlights the birds, history, and heritage of the Black Belt while promoting the economic and environmental benefits of bird-based ecotourism in one of the country’s most economically challenged rural areas.

“We are thrilled that our festival is now attracting birders from across the country,” said Dr. Scot Duncan, Executive Director of Alabama Audubon. “With its combination of distinctive birdlife, unique landscapes, and globally significant human rights history, there’s nothing quite like it anywhere. Nowhere else can you see flocks of Swallow-tailed Kites and Wood Storks swirling over a landscape where civil rights foot soldiers marched for freedom and democracy.”

According to Alabama Audubon, the Black Belt is the largest natural grassland region in the eastern United States. Named for its dark prairie soils, the region supports grassland and wetland birds across ranches, farms, and restored prairies.

Alabama Audubon’s Black Belt Birding Initiative aims to bring bird-based ecotourism benefits to the region, with major support from Alabama Black Belt Adventures, Alabama Power Foundation, Alabama Department of Tourism, The Daniel Foundation of Alabama and the Drax Foundation.

The kickoff will include a welcome speech by Duncan, live music by Alabama singer-songwriter Rachel Edwards accompanied by jazz guitarist John Holaway, and refreshments.

The festival’s 2026 keynote address will be presented by American Birding Association’s Nate Swick at the Greensboro Opera House on Saturday, Aug. 1. Swick hosts the weekly American Birding Podcast, leads conversations with birding experts and enthusiasts, and showcases rare bird roundups and breaking bird news.

Guided field trips begin Saturday morning across Dallas, Greene, Hale, Lowndes, Marengo, Perry, Sumter, and Wilcox counties. Activities include birding from a 100-foot birding tower designed by Auburn University’s Rural Studio at Perry Lakes Park near Marion and a beginner’s bird walk in Selma while learning about the region’s role in the Civil Rights Movement with Terry Chestnut Jr., whose father was Alabama’s first Black lawyer and represented Rev. Dr. Martin Luther King Jr.

The Joe Farm, a fourth-generation Black-owned cattle ranch, is among the weekend’s most popular events. There, Swallow-tailed and Mississippi Kites put on what organizers describe as an exciting show while snatching insects out of the air behind Cornelius Joe’s tractor.

The Joe Farm has been featured internationally as a premier birding destination in Alabama, with coverage from BBC Travel, National Geographic’s Extraordinary Birder with Christian Cooper, and most recently, Living Bird, Cornell University’s Lab of Ornithology magazine.

Opportunities to bird and learn local history, culture, and ecology continue into Sunday, with events at Old Cahawba Archaeological Park, a trip to the Hall Family Farm, a campsite in Dallas County used by foot soldiers during the historic Selma to Montgomery March for Civil Rights in 1965, and a partnership with the Cahaba River Society to bird by canoe on the oxbow lakes at Perry Lakes Park.

With 30 events across the weekend, attendees can build their own itineraries and experience a sampling of what the Black Belt has to offer.

Community-based programming will also be available throughout the weekend. Visitors and Black Belt residents can view bird-related fine art at Aaron Sanders Head’s Sumac Cottage, located at 1107 South St. in Greensboro, and the Engle Gallery, located at 1301 Main St. in Greensboro.

A special historic exhibit titled Feathers in Fashion will also be held at Magnolia Grove, located at 1002 Hobson St. in Greensboro, in collaboration with the Alabama Historical Commission and guest curator Ian Crawford from the University of Alabama’s Department of Clothing, Textiles, and Interior Design.

“We’re proud to support Alabama Audubon in this festival, which continues to demonstrate that birding in Alabama’s Black Belt is a powerful tourism driver,” states Pam Swanner, Director of the Alabama Black Belt Adventures Association. “The festival’s growth year after year generates sustainable revenue for our rural communities, directly supporting the livelihoods of those who live and work here. The national and international attention it attracts delivers a strong return on investment — earning the kind of high-value exposure that traditional advertising simply can’t match.”

Birders of all ages, skill levels, abilities, and interests are invited to take part in the weekend’s programming across Alabama’s Black Belt.

Founded in 1946 as the Birmingham Audubon Society, Alabama Audubon has grown into the state’s leading nonprofit promoting conservation and a greater knowledge of birds, their habitats, and the natural world.

Alabama Audubon is a certified chapter of the National Audubon Society and an independent 501(c)(3) organization. More information is available at alaudubon.org and through the organization’s social media channels @alaudubon on Facebook and Instagram.