Extending from the Chesapeake Bay to the Appalachians, Virginia's diverse habitats are home to a wide variety of birds. On the Eastern Shore, Chincoteague National Wildlife Refuge attracts wintering waterfowl, migrating shorebirds, and nesting Southern specialties like Chuck-will's-widow and Brown-headed Nuthatch; further south, Kiptopeke State Park is a fall hawk-watching hotspot, with thousands of raptors passing by every year. In the Appalachians, Shenandoah National Park is a place to look for nesting birds of the mountains like Ruffed Grouse, Common Raven, and many warblers and other songbirds. The state has one namesake bird, the Virginia Rail, which can be found throughout the country but reaches the southern limits of its breeding range along Virginia's coast.
