The Missouri River ecosystem is a significant pathway for migratory birds. Migrating species benefit from bottomland, which serves as wintering, feeding, breeding, and staging grounds. There has been relatively little change in the diversity of the bird community from the historic past, although loss of habitat has affected numbers. 

One bird, the American Bald Eagle, has recently been taken off the federal Threatened and Endangered Species List. Its numbers have gradually increased throughout the park. Two others, the Piping Plover (Northern Great Plains population) and the Least Tern (Interior population), are still listed as threatened and endangered respectively.

Click here for a list of birds in the Missouri National Recreational River (112 KB pdf). 

The South Dakota Office of Tourism, in partnership with a variety of organizations, has produced the Southeast South Dakota Birding Trail booklet. Click here for a copy that you can download (1.25MB pdf file).

The State of Nebraska offers various birding trails.