Birdwatching on Terceira: the Cabo da Praia quarry, the Paul da Praia da Vitória and the American waders

If you are a birder heading to the Azores in autumn, the question is usually Corvo or Terceira. Corvo gets the songbird rarities. Terceira gets waders and ducks, and on Terceira the good sites sit on one short stretch of coast at Praia da Vitória, in the same municipality as the airport. This guide covers the three wetlands there, when to go, what you can realistically expect, and a few inland sites for a second day.

Between August 2013 and October 2018, a LIFE project to restore the Praia da Vitória wetlands had experienced observers count birds at three sites, month after month. They logged 82,985 birds of 108 species and subspecies. Three were first records for the Azores, and a Hooded merganser was new for Terceira. Waders made up 75.7% of everything counted. Sanderling led with 18,856, followed by Kentish plover and Ruddy turnstone. The results were published in the Biodiversity Data Journal in 2019.

The three wetlands lie along about 3.6 km of coast, from the town centre south to the port. One morning covers all of them by car.

This is the site that brings birders to Terceira. The island's tourism portal calls it the best place in the Western Palearctic to see North American birds, and the survey backs it up: 54,529 of the birds were counted here, more than at the other two sites put together, and 85 of the 108 species.

It is not a pretty place. The pool formed in an old quarry during the building of the Praia da Vitória port in 1983, and the sea still reaches it, so the water rises and falls with the tide. A fuel depot built in 2000 took half the marsh. Birders come for the mud, which in autumn holds Lesser yellowlegs, White-rumped sandpiper, Semipalmated plover, American and Pacific golden plovers, and American wigeon.

• Access: park and walk about 200 metres along an unpaved track. The ground is flat, and a path loops around the site.
• Tide: avoid high tide, when there is little mud and fewer birds. Check a tide table for Praia da Vitória before you go, and aim for the hours either side of low water.
• Cover: there is no hide. Stand back by the vegetation and let the birds come to you. A telescope helps a lot here.

The second wetland is in the middle of town, just inland from the bay. Its restoration was completed in 2009, and it now has parking beside it and an observation shelter. It is better for ducks and herons than for waders. American wigeon, Blue-winged teal, Glossy ibis and Hooded merganser all appear here. The survey counted 16,663 birds of 55 species. Since you can walk to it from a café, it suits an hour before dinner or a rainy spell.

Paul do Belo Jardim, by the Praia da Riviera, had the fewest birds in the survey, 11,793 of 40 species, but it is close enough to the others to add to the same morning.

Before you leave, scan the bay and the marina. From October to March the late afternoon brings the most gulls. Mediterranean and Ring-billed gulls are regular, and so is Great northern diver in winter. Bonaparte's, Laughing and Iceland gulls appear less often.

Autumn is the main season, when American waders and ducks blown across the Atlantic land on Terceira. The town wetland is best in autumn and winter, and Cabo da Praia also rewards a visit in winter and spring. Winter is the time for gulls and divers in the bay.

For a second day, the island's own list of birding sites includes Lagoa do Negro, the Cabrito reservoir, Ponta das Contendas, Fajã da Serreta and the bay of Angra do Heroísmo. If you want to walk as well, the official PRC13TER trail to the Lagoa do Cerro is a 6.4 km circuit, graded easy, about 2 hours 30 minutes, from the Altares reservoirs. It passes a high wetland with facilities for birdwatching and crosses two protected areas of the Terceira Nature Park. The surface gets slippery, and the official page advises a clear day.

The three wetlands are close to Lajes airport, which is in the same municipality. A car is the easy option. Without one, EVT buses run between Angra and Praia da Vitória, and from the town centre the Paul is on foot. Bring binoculars, a telescope if you have one, and a tide table. Keep your distance from feeding birds. The local guidance asks visitors not to disturb them and suggests going with a guide.

What is the best birdwatching site on Terceira?

The Paul da Pedreira do Cabo da Praia, an old quarry pool by the Praia da Vitória port. A five-year survey counted 85 species there.

When is the best time for American birds on Terceira?

Autumn, when storms carry them across the Atlantic. At Cabo da Praia, go in the hours around low tide.

Is there a hide at Cabo da Praia?

No. The Paul da Praia da Vitória in town has an observation shelter, but at the quarry you use the vegetation for cover.

Do I need a car?

It makes things easier, but the wetlands are close together, and the town site is walkable from the centre of Praia da Vitória, which has buses to Angra.