Plan Your Visit
Birding
Bird watching is an excellent way to spend time in nature, to learn about the green spaces in your area, and to appreciate the beautiful animals in our community. It is a very rewarding and popular hobby for amateurs and experts alike.
The Cope family established a compound on what is now Awbury Arboretum beginning in 1849. The property, referred to as the Awbury Historic District, includes 55 acres of natural landscape as well as many privately owned homes.
In 1916 the Cope family donated the property to the public, with one of the express purposes to establish a refuge for birds. To support this plan, Awbury Arboretum was planted with many native species to provide food and cover for both year-round and migratory birds.
Today, Awbury hosts birding events, participates in Philly bird censuses, and offers field studies programs for children to learn about birds. Click here to view our Events Page to see if there are any upcoming birding events.
Recommended Birding Resources:
eBird
eBird invites birders of all levels of experience to report their observations, compiling those sightings into an easily-searchable database. Awbury is listed as an eBird “hotspot” location; click here to learn which bird species have been recently spotted on our grounds, and expand the time frame to see the list of all 126 species reported over the last 15 years! We thank the bird watchers in our community who have contributed to the list so far, and we encourage you to visit the Arboretum and add your own observations to the list.
PA Game Commission
Bird Philly
This initiative of the Delaware Valley Ornithological Club (based at the Academy of Natural Sciences) aims to “increase interest and awareness of Philadelphia’s birds by providing quality birding experiences on expertly guided field trips” and to encourage interaction with nature.
Audubon Pennsylvania
2022 is the Year of Birds at Awbury Arboretum!
Click here to learn more, including information about speakers, bird walks, and other bird-themed events.
We encourage you to visit Awbury Arboretum during your next birding adventure, and be sure to check out these other excellent bird watching locations around our city: