Bird Watching

Directions: The Preserve is on U.S. Highway 82 West at Cypress Lane. It is one-half mile from the Mississippi Welcome Center, and a few miles from the bridge that crosses the Mississippi River. Greenville Cypress Preserve is a sixteen acre tract of land that protects three stands of ancient Cypress trees. There is an open pavillion and walking trail on site. By an observation deck with signage, the trail goes through the open meadow and over the slough, and through the mixed woodlands.

Directions: Go 20 miles south of Greenville on MS Hwy 1; Turn east on Highway 12; and proceed 9 miles to Leroy Percy State Park. Entrance sign on the left.

Named after Leroy Percy, a former U.S. Senator from Mississippi, Leroy Percy is characterized by its bubbling hot springs, cypress trees and ancient live oaks dripping with Spanish moss. Visitors can safely observe these reptiles from a raised boardwalk. The park also abounds with deer, squirrel, turkey, duck and dove, as well as unspoiled hunting sites. Park facilities include a snack bar, cabins, meeting rooms, fishing, RV and camping sites, and a nature trail.

Directions: 10 miles of Greenville and just east of Leland.

Stoneville Wildlife Management Area (WMA) is a 2,500-acre parcel located in Washington County, approximately five miles north of Leland.  Stoneville WMA is owned by Mississippi State University and is located on the Mississippi Agriculture and Forestry Delta Branch Experiment Station in Stoneville.  This area is dominated by bottomland hardwood stands of varying age classes with some mature timber stands scattered throughout the area.

Directions: On MS-1 S, turn right at Stone Airport Rd. Turn left at Eastside Lake on Washington Road. Go approximately 4.3 miles. Turn left at Yazoo Refuge Road. Destination will be on the right.

A cooperative effort between the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service and Ducks Unlimited, Inc., this wetlands project offers some of the best bird watching in North America. The National Audubon Society’s annual bird counts conducted in this area have identified more species in Washington County than in any other inland location in the United States. The refuge also features an out-standing nature trail, hiking trail, and wildlife photography opportunities. Theodore Roosevelt National Wildlife Refuge is also known as one of the premier hunting refuges in the southeast. A variety of species make their home here, including a healthy population of duck, geese, alligator as well as Louisiana black bear. The Refuge also features a 4,000 acre oxbow lake.

Holt Collier National Wildlife Refuge
(Hwy 61 South, Near Darlove MS)

The refuge is located on Holt Collier’s historic hunting grounds near Darlove, Mississippi, about 29 miles southeast of Greenville. Holt Collier National Wildlife Refuge is the first refuge named to honor an African-American.  Bordered on the north by the Bogue Phalia River, on the east by the Big Sunflower River, and on the south by Highway 12. Located strategically in the Mississippi Flyway, the Holt Collier National Wildlife Refuge provides habitat and resources for more than 250 songbirds.