Sylvan Heights Bird Park

It was a pleasant surprise to find a bird park only 30 miles away. While it wasn’t the photo opportunity I was hoping for, it was a lovely park, with many birds and a fun Sculpture collection.

The Sylvan Heights Avian Breeding Center is home to over 170 species of birds–more than half of the known species of ducks, geese and swans–along with cranes, parrots and many other birds.

Founded in 1989 by internationally renowned aviculturalists Mike and Ali Lubbock, the avian breeding center cares for more than 2,500 individual birds, including over 1,000 hatchlings reared each year. Adjacent to the breeding center is Sylvan Heights Bird Park, which together form the world’s largest waterfowl collection and the second largest bird collection in the United States. The center is also the avicultural training site for conservation-oriented avian biologists. Every year, wildlife professionals from the nation’s zoos and nature centers come here to learn advanced techniques through the Sylvan Heights Avian Husbandry Program.