Your Handy Guide to Birdwatching in the Riverland
20th August 2026
Between the reed beds and the river red gums, spoonbills sweep the shallows, darters vanish underwater, and a Regent Parrot might just make a rare appearance if the day’s on your side. Over 190 species have been logged at Gluepot Reserve alone in South Australia’s Riverland; more than enough to attract bird-watchers from across the country (and world!). Here’s what birdwatching in the Riverland looks like.
Credit: Tourism Australia / South Australian Tourism Commission
The Riverland: a birdwatcher’s playground
Three hours from Adelaide, the Riverland offers birdwatching that happens effortlessly; while you’re paddling the river or wandering a boardwalk.
Kayak the water and you’ll likely tick off pelicans wheeling overhead, black swans gliding past, darters slipping silently under the surface, and superb fairy-wrens flitting through the lignum. Keep watching and the list grows: whistling kites perched high above the bank, purple swamphens picking through the reeds, and if you’re lucky, something rarer like a Regent Parrot or a Rainbow Bee-eater working its burrow in a sandy cliff face.
It’s not just about spotting birds either, the region actively encourages visitors and locals alike to record and share their sightings, with that data feeding directly into conservation efforts and helping track the health of bird populations across the Murraylands and Riverland.
So while you’re around, grab a paddle or a pair of binoculars, keep a list if you’re that way inclined, and get ready to spot far more birds than you expected!
Credit: Destination Riverland
What bird species can you spot in the Riverland?
The Riverland is home to a striking range of birdlife, here are some of the most popular species to look out for.
- Pelicans, often seen wheeling overhead or gliding on the water
- Black swans, easy to spot with their distinctive call
- Whistling kites, found high above the riverbank, occasionally swooping for food
- Purple swamphens, identifiable by their purple plumage and red beak, usually near the reeds
- Darters, often seen slipping underwater when approached, then resurfacing at a safe distance
- Cormorants (pied, little black, and little pied), commonly perched on overhanging branches
- Kingfishers, including the Azure Kingfisher, often spotted darting along riverbanks
- Australian Reed Warblers, more often heard than seen
- Kookaburras, known for their distinctive laughing call
- Yellow-billed spoonbills, sweeping their beaks side to side through shallow water while feeding
- Regent Parrots, an endangered species occasionally spotted around Loch Luna
Where to see birds in the Riverland
Gluepot Reserve
This reserve has been described as a conservation miracle, made up of mallee scrub and dry bushland with plenty of hollowed-out logs perfect for nesting birds! It’s home to 18 threatened bird species and is one of the only places you can see the black-eared miner and the scarlet-chested parrot.
BirdLife Australia purchased the 54,000-hectare property (then a pastoral lease known as Gluepot Station) in 1997, protecting it as the organisation’s first reserve and one of the largest community-managed conservation areas in the country. Today, it’s run entirely by volunteers, and forms part of the largest remaining block of intact mallee in Australia, a habitat that’s become increasingly rare.
Nearly 200 bird species have been recorded on-site, alongside 53 reptile species and 12 species of bats. For visitors, it’s one of the best chances in the country to spot rare and endangered mallee birds in the wild, with tracks, campsites, and bird hides throughout the reserve making it accessible for a day trip or a longer stay.
Pooginook Conservation Park
Dense mallee scrub makes this park a reliable spot for honeyeaters, colourful mallee species, and the elusive malleefowl. First proclaimed in 1970, the park is split into two distinct habitats, dense scrub in the north and more open mallee in the south, a legacy of the area’s earlier use for wheat farming.
The northern section is the real drawcard for birders! The park’s thick understorey and ample leaf litter give the rare malleefowl exactly what it needs to build its distinctive egg-incubation mounds.
Keep an eye out too for black-eared miners, one of the region’s more elusive honeyeaters, along with rainbow bee-eaters, Australian ringnecks, and mulga parrots. And in case you’re wondering when to drop by, spring is a particularly good time to visit, when the mallee understorey bursts into colour with native wildflowers.
Credit: Murray River Trails
Chowilla Game Reserve
Chowilla is a massive floodplain and creek system near Renmark, where you can spot kingfishers, swallows, and peregrine falcons.
Covering over 18,000 hectares north-east of Renmark, Chowilla is recognised as a wetland of international importance under the Ramsar Convention, and one of six “Living Murray” icon sites in the Murray-Darling Basin, a real reflection of just how critical it is for waterbird populations.
River red gums line the anabranches, creeks, and backwaters that make up the floodplain, best explored by canoe or shallow-bottomed boat, though there are walking trails and a vehicle route too for those staying on land. And don’t fret, birdlife is abundant throughout, with plenty of quiet spots to sit and watch water birds feeding at the edges of the creeks.
Go with a guide
For the ultimate Riverland birdwatching experience, Murray River Trails takes you through the region’s wetlands and floodplains, including Chowilla, by foot, kayak and boat. Bellbird Tours offers specialist birdwatching trips with experienced guides who know where to find the Riverland’s rarer species.
Loch Luna and Moorook Game Reserve
A maze of backwaters and lagoons makes this enchanting reserve great for spotting swans, spoonbills, egrets, and ibis.
Loch Luna covers around 1,900 hectares, with the adjoining Moorook Game Reserve adding another 1,200. Together, they form a network of narrow creeks, shallow swamps, and lagoons, including the well-known Watchels Lagoon, that support a huge range of aquatic birds.
Royal and Yellow-billed Spoonbills are common here, and the harsh call of the Darter is a familiar sound, since the species breeds regularly at Loch Luna.
But not only that. Sea Eagles, Regent Parrots, pelicans, and white-faced herons also frequent the reserve, which is ideal for canoeing, particularly on Nockburra and Chambers Creek, with a dedicated bird-watching trail and a 45-minute nature walk at Moorook for those exploring on foot.
Credit: Tourism Australia / South Australian Tourism Commission
Calperum Station
This is the big one! Near Renmark, 240,000 hectares of mallee and Murray River floodplain make up Calperum Station, one of the largest privately managed conservation properties in the entire country!
Calperum is classified as critical habitat for the endangered black-eared miner, and forms part of the Riverland Biosphere Reserve alongside neighbouring Taylorville Station and Gluepot Reserve, together covering roughly a third of the internationally significant Riverland Ramsar wetland! Malleefowl and the bush stone-curlew also call the station home, drawn in by lakes and creeks that support a wide range of native birdlife.
Book onto guided experiences, a walking tour along the property’s ancient creeks and wetlands, or a driving tour through its ephemeral lakes, both run by Calperum’s own ecologists and rangers for a proper look at the conservation work happening on the ground.
Martin Bend Wetland
Near Berri, Martin Bend Wetland is a particularly good stop for birdwatching, with a 2.8km walking trail running through the wetland and floodplain habitat. So if you’ve got an hour or so, it’s a great birdwatching spot. The trail begins at the Berri Marina and includes a bird hide, giving you a chance to watch birds around the lagoons, where lots of water-dependent species have been recorded.
Look for black swans, grey teal, Pacific black ducks, hardheads, Australasian grebes, purple swamphens, pied stilts and several species of cormorant around the water. The reeds and surrounding vegetation are also home to Australian reed warblers, little grassbirds and fairywrens, while birds of prey including whistling kites, Nankeen kestrels and peregrine falcons have been recorded overhead.
For very keen birders, Martin Bend has some more unusual sightings too! Australian darters, Caspian terns, great egrets, spotless crakes and Australian little bitterns have all been recorded at the wetland, with several considered species of conservation significance in South Australia.
Par Five Shacks
Where to stay in the Riverland (and nearby)
Par Five Shacks
Set beside Berri Golf Course, these new, self-contained shacks are a comfortable base for a Riverland stay, with king beds, kitchenettes and private patios.
Berri Hotel
Right on the Murray, Berri Hotel puts you close to the river and the centre of town, with rooms and waterfront villas, plus the Balcony Bar and bistro downstairs.
Big River Golf and Country Club
Accommodation at the golf course makes this a practical choice for golfers, with the course, clubhouse and dining all within easy reach.
Mannum Motel
On the Murray in Mannum, this family-run motel has river-view rooms and kitchenettes, and works well as a stop if you’re continuing along the river towards Adelaide.