It's a cliché to say that any given area is a meeting ground between north and south, but in Delaware, where the Mason-Dixon Line begins, it's hard to arrive at any other conclusion. Birding the hills along our northern border, you could almost imagine you were in upstate New York, or northern Pennsylvania. Yet only 70 miles away, amid our sandy pine flatlands, you might feel like you were in the Carolinas.

On top of this basic north-south, Appalachian Piedmont-Coastal Plain variation, you'll find that our habitats are largely determined by the influence of water, tides, and salt.

The state thus readily divides into six, ecologically-based birding regions. Beginning in our northwest corner and proceeding clockwise, they are:

• Piedmont Hills & Valleys
• Delaware River Coast
• Delaware Bay Coast
• Ocean Beaches & Inland Bays
• Cypress & Pine
• Forest & Farmland

Spending time in multiple birding regions will naturally increase the number of species you encounter, as well as giving you a more complete picture of Delaware's natural diversity. Click the links in the list above or on the map at right to find out more about the individual regions and to tour their best birding sites.