Visit Us At The Kemah Boardwalk

GCBO will be hosting a booth at the Kemah Boardwalk Bay Day Festival on May 16th.  Bay Day is a one-day celebration presented by the Galveston Bay Foundation and numerous community partners.  It is a signature education event providing exposure to Galveston Bay for many area residents.  Bay Day highlights hands-on, interactive exhibits, and activities and demonstrations that emphasize the multiple uses of the Galveston Bay system.  Come by and visit with us!

Update on Peveto Woods

Peveto Woods is a coastal chenier with critical stopover habitat for neotropical migrants in Cameron Parish, Louisiana and is one of our site partners.  When Hurricane Ike wreaked havoc on the Texas coast, it also did the same for the western Louisiana coast and Peveto Woods took a direct hit.  Volunteers from the Baton Rouge Audubon Society have been working hard to bring Peveto back to it's pre-Ike state.  Most of the debris has been removed although the wind and surge washed a thick layer of sand into the sanctuary making access difficult.  They have been forced to wait for drier conditions before they can get heavy equipment in to remove the larger debris.  All the trees were stressed from the salt water immersion and the sand over wash, but many of them are now sending out fresh leaves.  Water service has been restored and volunteers installed temporary drips, misters, and baths for the birds until a new permanent water feature can be installed.  Peveto remains open to the public and we encourage our members to visit when they are in Louisiana.  Thanks to all the volunteers for their efforts to restore habitat for our migratory birds!

 

Gulf Coastal Prairies Bird Conservation Plan

GCBO and the Gulf Coast Joint Venture jointly authored the first Partners in Flight (PIF) Bird Conservation Plan for the Gulf Coastal Prairie.  The goal of PIF landbird conservation planning and the Bird Conservation Plans is to ensure long-term maintenance of healthy populations of native landbirds.  These documents are prepared to facilitate that goal by stimulating a proactive approach to landbird conservation.  The Gulf Coastal Prairie Plan covers the coast from the Mississippi/Louisiana border to the Texas/Mexico border and focuses on seven species of concern: Seaside Sparrow, Northern Bobwhite, Loggerhead Shrike, Le Conte's Sparrow, Cerulean Warbler, Swainson's Warbler, and Golden-winged Warbler.  This plan represents a major step forward in the conservation planning process on the Gulf Coastal Prairie and will direct GCBO's research efforts over the next few years.

GTBC Auction Raises $4,050 for Conservation

The GTBC auction concluded on May 3, 2009 and was a great success providing $4,050 towards Classic conservation grants for coastal projects.  The auction items included this years original Classic art (shown above), additional original paintings and photographs, optics, some really special trips to private ranches, wonderful books, bird houses, and other nature related items.  Click here to review the final bids.  Signed prints of this years Classic artwork are still available in our Nature Store and online.

Eagle Scouts Install Bird Boxes

Warren Booth, a member of the Brazoria Boy Scouts built and installed several bird boxes at GCBO for his eagle scout project.  The boxes included two for Prothonotary Warblers, two for Great Crested Flycatchers, and two for Black-bellied Whistling  Ducks.  Warren and several helpers installed them at various locations at the GCBO Lake Jackson Sanctuary where we plan to monitor their use.  Thanks Warren and the Boy Scouts of troop 524!

Join Us For Bird Banding

Join us from 8:00 until noon on Saturday, May 16th for our monthly bird banding session.  Watch as Robert & Kay Lookingbill band the birds and explain how to determine the species, age, and sex of birds in the hand.  Migrants ought to be moving through during this time.  Come out and see what surprises are in store for us. This is a great way to get kids excited about wildlife, but all ages are welcome.  See the map on our webpage for directions.  Note that mapquest and googlemaps will not guide you to the right place using our address.