Audubon NC has released its 2011 eBook of North Carolina's Important Bird Areas (download the introduction here). You can download the regional sections of the book below.

IBA Sites by Region Mountains - Piedmont - Coastal Plain - Full eBook

What are Important Bird Areas?

Important Bird Areas, or IBAs, are places that provide essential habitat for one or more species of birds at some time during their annual cycle, including breeding, migration, and wintering periods. Well-known North Carolina IBAs include iconic landmarks such as Grandfather Mountain and Cape Lookout National Seashore.

Nearly all of the state’s IBAs include a state, federal, or nongovernmental conservation lands component, but many also contain a high percentage of privately owned and managed land.

“The IBA program is a wonderful tool for highlighting North Carolina’s ecologically significant habitats and locations,” says Curtis Smalling, IBA Coordinator and Mountain Program Manager for Audubon North Carolina. “IBAs provide so much more than just prime bird habitat. These special landscapes also provide clean drinking water, healthy populations of other species, and in many cases, special opportunities for people to connect to nature through recreation, education, and engagement.”

To date, 30 North Carolina IBAs have been approved by BirdLife international as globally significant, including the Amphibolite Mountains, which provide habitat for Golden-winged Warblers; the Sandhills, which sustain Red-cockaded Woodpeckers; and Lea-Hutaff Island, which is inhabited by Piping Plovers.