Birding spots · South Dakota
Best Birding Spots in Pennington County, South Dakota
Canyon Lake Park leads Pennington County's birding spots with 115 species reported, best in spring. 24 spots in the county have enough data to rank.
Species counts are birds reported at least three times in that season at that spot, 2016–2025. Busy spots list more species simply because more people look, so compare the checklist counts. Spot names come from public map data and hotspot listings.
| Spot | Species | Winter | Spring | Summer | Fall |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Canyon Lake Park | 115 | 50 | 86 | 72 | 76 |
| Mount Rushmore National Memorial | 83 | 3 | 33 | 63 | 33 |
| Badlands National Park (northwest) | 68 | 0 | 34 | 50 | 21 |
| Badlands National Park (South Fork Sage Creek) | 68 | 1 | 37 | 51 | 16 |
| Sheridan Lake | 67 | 5 | 31 | 42 | 21 |
| Kiwanis Mary Hall Park | 61 | 23 | 55 | 28 | 28 |
| Horse Thief Lake | 58 | 0 | 17 | 53 | 14 |
| Old Storybook Island Park | 50 | 2 | 45 | 13 | 10 |
| Pactola Reservoir | 49 | 5 | 21 | 40 | 7 |
| Memorial Park | 49 | 2 | 21 | 38 | 23 |
| Deerfield Lake | 47 | 0 | 0 | 45 | 0 |
| Badlands National Park (northwest 3) | 43 | 0 | 15 | 33 | 3 |
| Badlands National Park (northwest 2) | 38 | 0 | 17 | 29 | 6 |
| Badlands National Park (Dillon Pass) | 29 | 0 | 16 | 22 | 4 |
| Badlands Wilderness Area | 27 | 0 | 6 | 16 | 4 |
| Badlands National Park (The Pinnacles) | 25 | 0 | 11 | 19 | 1 |
| Badlands National Park (northwest 4) | 23 | 0 | 7 | 15 | 3 |
| Norbeck Wildlife Preserve National Game Refuge (Iron Mountain) | 19 | 0 | 5 | 18 | 5 |
| Badlands National Park (northwest 6) | 15 | 0 | 0 | 13 | 5 |
| Birding spot near Rapid City | 113 | 41 | 92 | 58 | 66 |
| Birding spot near Caputa | 86 | 8 | 57 | 63 | 21 |
| Birding spot near Wall | 62 | 0 | 34 | 43 | 17 |
| Birding spot near Wasta | 39 | 0 | 19 | 31 | 3 |
| Birding spot near Rapid City (southeast) | 34 | 1 | 26 | 16 | 6 |