The Teluk Air Tawar-Kuala Muda coastal area is located at Seberang Perai Utara near Butterworth on mainland Penang. The habitats here consist of paddy fields, farmland, coastal mudflats and mangroves – conducive habitats for shorebirds (waders), waterbirds and mangrove birds. It is listed by Birdlife International as one of the Important Areas for Malaysia, locations that provide feeding and resting areas for shorebirds and waterbirds during the bird migration season from October to March.

About 61 species of birds have so far been spotted here, in addtion to thousands of shorebirds that visit the area annually. Species of shorebirds include the Brown-headed Gull, Great Egret, Black-tailed Godwit, Whimbrel, Eurasian Curlew, Terek Sandpiper, Ruddy Turnstone, Red-necked Stint, Great Knot, Curlew Sandpiper, Gull-billed and White-winged Tern as well as the Javan and Chinese Pond Heron. Non-waterbirds such as the White, Yellow and Forest Wagtails as well as the two globally threatened birds, the Lesses Adjutant Stork and Nordmann’s Greenshank, exist here.

During the spring migration in February and March, hundreds of egrets, pond herons, greenshanks, redshanks, sandpipers and other species flock to the Bagan Tambang mudflats. Both binoculars and spotting scopes will come in handy for the viewing of shorebirds and waterbirds along the coastal bunds and when scanning the mudflats during the changing tides. It is advisable to check  for tide times when bird watching here. Birds are likely to roost during low tide.