Gulf Coast Bird Observatory is pleased to host a series of Bird ID Classes focused on species in our local area! These classes are open to the public and consist of in-depth identification lessons in person or on zoom, followed by a field trip. This is a great opportunity to learn about birds, how to identify them, and where to find them in the wild. Your registration fee goes directly to help saving birds through our conservation work!
The next class will be Gulls & Terns with Ron Weeks.
Register Here
Gulls and Terns with Ron Weeks
ID Classes & Field Trip
7:00-9:00 PM March 7th, 2023 – Class session #1 (Zoom)
7:00-900 PM March 9th, 2023 – Class session #2 (Zoom)
7:00 AM March 11th, 2023 – Field Trip
- Details will be shared as the date approaches and we know where the gulls and terns are located
- Current plan is to meet at 6:30AM at East Beach in Galveston
- If the weather is terrible on March 11, our back-up day is March 12
Unfamiliar with Zoom and online workshops? Not to worry! Zoom is quite easy to use on either a computer or smartphone. Our staff is willing and able to answer any questions that you have about this virtual format.
Class Synopsis:
Join GCBO board member and co-author of Birdlife of Houston, Galveston, and the Upper Texas Coast, Ron Weeks, as we learn about the gulls & terns found on the Upper Coast of Texas. This course will include two Zoom-based preparatory identification classes on Tuesday, March 7th from 7-9pm and Thursday March 9th from 7-9pm and an all-day field trip on Saturday, March 11th. The primary focus will be on gull & tern identification, but we will also be covering jaegers. A PowerPoint presentation will be made available to participants prior to the class.
The field trip will be focused on Galveston’s East Beach (east end of Galveston Island) and Bolivar Flats (west end of the Bolivar Peninsula), but other locations like San Luis Pass, the Texas City Dike, and Rollover Pass may be included if interesting birds are being seen there. We will be car caravanning starting at a pre-determined location – most likely East Beach in Galveston. Only moderate distance walking on flat ground will be necessary.
The class will cover the basics of gull identification including some that vary with age and season (primary focus will be on first year and adult plumages which are the most common). We will also cover other aspects like molt, hybridization, and diet.
A list of the species covered is listed below along with some indication of how likely we are to see the birds on field trip day is listed below. Class time will be focused on the expected and unlikely species.
Gulls
Laughing Gull (common all year – expected on field trip day)
Ring-billed Gull (winter resident – expected on field trip day)
Herring Gull (winter resident – expected on field trip day)
Lesser Black-backed Gull (winter resident – expected on field trip day)
Bonaparte’s Gull (winter resident – likely on field trip day)
Iceland Gull (winter rarity – unlikely on field trip)
Glaucous Gull (winter rarity – unlikely on field trip)
Franklin’s Gull (spring and fall migrant – unlikely on field trip day)
California Gull (winter rarity – very unlikely on field trip)
Little Gull (winter rarity – very unlikely on field trip day)
Great Black-backed Gull (winter rarity – very unlikely on field trip)
Sabine’s Gull (fall migrant – very unlikely on field trip day)
Black-legged Kittiwake (winter rarity – very unlikely on field trip day)
Nearshore Terns
Forster’s Tern (common all year – expected on field trip day)
Royal Tern (common all year – expected on field trip day)
Caspian Tern (common all year – expected on field trip day)
Black Skimmer – technical not a tern but closely related (common all year – expected)
Common Tern (common migrant and rare winter resident – likely on field trip day)
Gull-billed Tern (local summer resident – a few possible on field trip day)
Sandwich Tern (common summer resident – a few possible on field trip day)
Least Tern (common summer resident – a few possible on field trip day)
Black Tern (common spring and fall migrant – a few possible on field trip day)
Pelagic Terns (never expected from shore)
Sooty Tern (reasonably common offshore)
Bridled Tern (uncommon offshore)
Brown Noddy (very rare offshore)
Black Noddy (very rare offshore)
Jaegers
Pomarine Jaeger (winter rarity – unlikely on field trip day)
Parasitic Jaeger (winter rarity – unlikely on field trip day)
Long-tailed Jaeger (spring and fall rarity – very unlikely on field trip day)
The course fee of $200.00 includes
- Both classes and the field trip (car caravan for convenient departures)
- Helping save birds, as the fee goes directly to supporting GCBO’s many conservation programs.
All About Ron:
Ron Weeks lives in Lake Jackson, TX with his wife of 33 years, Irenna Garapetian. Ron is a past president of Texas Ornithological Soceity, a former member of the Texas Bird Records Committee, and a current board member of the Gulf Coast Bird Observatory. He has been a sub-regional editor for North American Birds, a Christmas Bird Count compiler, and an eBird reviewer for many years. Ron has co-authored two books about Texas birds, A Birder’s Guide to the Texas Coast and Birdlife of Houston, Galveston and the Upper Texas Coast. He also enjoys planning Big Days having organized teams that set the (now former) national record of 258 species in 2001 and the fossil fuel free (bike and foot only) national record of 193 species in 2015. Ron recently retired from the Dow Chemical Company in Freeport, TX to spend more time birding, working out, and supporting local ministry work.