Passport to Texas

Blue Mockingbird

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Vagrant birds are those who stray from far outside their expected range. But why do these birds end up so far from home?

04— There are various reasons why a bird might show up in an odd place.

Noreen Damude, wrote an article about vagrant bird sightings for the May issue of Texas Parks and Wildlife magazine.

31— Weather has definitely a lot to do with it. Storms, hurricanes – things like that. Or, extended droughts in certain areas. There was one in Northern Mexico that drove many birds up across the border that we usually don’t see, like white throated robins and masked tyras, and things like that.

But Noreen says Mother Nature can’t take all the credit. Birding is one of the fasted growing hobbies in the US, and more eyes in the sky mean more surprises.

23— There are more birders. And the technology that’s been developed: computers and camcorders, and internet, and there are sites like eBird…. Let’s say you’re going to take a trip to Washington, DC, you can right away find out what’s been seen (besides politicians) in Washington that might be worth looking at.

You’ll find Noreen Damude’s article on vagrant bird sightings in the May issue of Texas Parks and Wildlife magazine.

For Texas Parks and Wildlife…I’m Cecilia Nasti.

TPW Magazine May 2013 Issue

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Sometimes, for reasons we cannot explain, birds end up in Texas that don’t belong here. They’re called vagrants.

16— Basically a vagrant is defined as a bird that strays far outside its expected breeding, or wintering, or migrating range. In other words, it’s a bird that shows up unexpectedly because it’s not supposed to be here.

Noreen Damude, retired from Texas Parks and Wildlife, is a birder, and wrote an article about vagrant bird sightings, called Unexpected Guests, for the May issue of Texas Parks and Wildlife magazine.

31— One of the ones that struck me is the Stygian Owl. It has a very large range in Central and South America, but it’s very hard to see even where it’s supposed to be. And it was seen in Benson Rio Grande State Park in 1996; this young boy and his parents were just going through the park, and he saw this little ‘fuffing’ in a mesquite tree. And he discovered it. He was a kid! That was very exciting.

We’ll have more with Noreen Damude on vagrant bird sightings in Texas tomorrow.

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For Texas Parks and Wildlife…I’m Cecilia Nasti.

Kids out birding

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Competitive and casual birders are putting together teams for the Annual Great Texas Birding Classic; they’ll compete for a chance to help save avian habitat. Coordinator, Shelly Plante says the tournaments for all skill levels and ages, and can be great fun,

51—There have been people who do a big sit in their backyard. They get their friends to come over, they hang out; they make a day of it. This really is the tailgate party for birding. You can hang out and just have fun in a very small area and have friends visit throughout the day and see what birds you see, submit your checklist, and who knows – you might win.

The winning team is the team in each category that sees or hears and identifies the most species of birds. What does that get you? For the kids, it will gets you some prizes. The rest of the teams are going to win winner’s certificates that recognize them as the winners of their tournament category. We’ll post it on the website. And then, some of the winning teams are going to select a conservation project that receives all this grant money. This event is self-funded; all registration fees that come in go into a pot of money for grants.

Registration deadline is April 1st. Find tournament details at birdingclassic.org.

For Texas Parks and Wildlife…I’m Cecilia Nasti.

Great Texas Birding Classic

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This is Passport to Texas

The Great Texas Birding Classic is statewide this year, runs April 15 through May 15, and offers tournaments, for all skill levels. Coordinator, Shelly Plante.

57—You can be a beginning birder and you can take part in just a Big Sit – that’s birding from a 17-foot-diameter circle. It’s really for fun; we call it the tailgate party of birding. Then there are the big days. Those people who want to go for 24 hours, be super competitive, see as many birds as they can, go as many places as they can, in a 24-hour period. In between these two extremes, you have the Sunrise to Noon Birder – a new tournament where you start at dawn and your bird until 12-noon. So, maybe you can’t get around as easily; maybe you don’t want to go to as many spots. But you do want to hit a handful of your favorite spots. This is the tournament for you. You don’t have to be running around all day. You can just have a lot of fun and go out with your friends. We also have kids tournaments, teenaged tournaments, tournaments for the blind. There really is something for everyone. I encourage you to go to the website to look at all the different kinds of categories and ways you can participate, because you do not have to be really competitive – you can go out and have a lot of fun. But, if you are competitive, there’s something for you, too.

Registration deadline is April 1st. Find tournament details at birdingclassic.org.

For Texas Parks and Wildlife…I’m Cecilia Nasti.

The Great Texas Birding Classic 2013 Poster

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Texas provides important habitat for species migrating throughout the US and North America. The annual Great Texas Birding Classic – April 15th through May 15th –raises money to conserve that habitat.

09—By paying entry fees, by getting a sponsor for your team, you are donating money to grants that we’re going to award for habitat projects here in our state.

Shelly Plant nature tourism manager for Texas Parks and Wildlife, says the tournament is statewide this year, with an expanded date range, creating new opportunities for birders.

30—We have made this so easy for anyone, anywhere in the state to participate by going statewide. You can now go in your backyard; you can go down the street to your favorite park. You could travel wherever you wanted and you can do this anywhere. In addition, by having it opened up from April 15 to May 15, and your pick whatever day you want to participate, it makes it very easy to blend with whatever your schedule is. So, hopefully, we’ll have more teams than ever before, which means more registration fees, which means larger grants than we’ve ever given, which is better for the birds.

There are tournaments for all ages, interests, and abilities…and registration fees are lower than they’ve ever been.

06—So, hopefully, by taking these steps, we’ve made this as easy as possible for anyone who likes biding or birds to get out here and participate in the birding classic.

The Great Texas Birding Classic is April 15 through May 15, and registration deadline is April 1st. Find details at www.birdingclassic.org.

For Texas Parks and Wildlife…I’m Cecilia Nasti.