Galveston is a Gulf coastal island renowned for its many habitats. Explore the entire island with our local leaders. They know the birding spots well, and will consider the weather, tides, and what they have seen just prior to or during the festival, to decide what to view and where to go. In that regard, the tour is not fixed rigidly in advance, but is more a birding adventure. You’ll go where the birds are!

Join Greg Miller and Wyatt Egelhoff at what is called “one of the finest migratory locations in North America” – the southern end of the Bolivar Peninsula. Shorebirds, terns, herons, egrets, and other water birds will give participants an unforgettable field experience.

Join Richard Gibbons, Director of Conservation for Audubon Texas, on a trip to one of the finest migratory locations in North America – the western end of the Bolivar Peninsula.  Richard has worked as an ornithologist for more than two decades on the Gulf Coast and throughout the Americas.  This trip will take you to Boy Scout Woods, Smith Oaks, The Rookery, and more!

This Nature Conservancy preserve is 2,303 acres of coastal prairie at the intersection of urban expanse and rural beauty. The coastal grasslands found here are vital to the natural resilience of the Gulf Coast—prairies and marshlands act as a natural buffer during storms and hurricanes, absorbing and dispersing water from storm surges and floods. Normally, only 40 acres of this preserve are open to the public. With the permission of preserve staff, we will bird through grassland prairie and wetlands, on to the large dike that protects Texas City.

This trip will focus on gaining a deeper understanding of bird identification. Our approach is to observe differences in body structure, behavior, habitat preferences, and feeding styles of various species of birds. This trip allows us time to observe and discover the distinct characteristics of each species as opposed to generating a list of a larger number of species that we know little about. Notebooks are encouraged!

Get ready to see the full avian diversity Galveston Island has to offer with guides who bird the Island regularly! This trip promises to be a fun-filled way to begin the festival, with destinations possible anywhere along the full length of the island. To see the maximum number of birds, the itinerary will be decided on the fly, based on scouting expeditions in the days prior.

Focusing on discovering migrating songbirds on Galveston’s West End, this trip will feature warblers, vireos, tanagers, orioles, grosbeaks, and buntings. Located at the intersection of two important migratory flyways, Galveston Island provides critical resources and cover for birds as they journey northward. During stormy weather, fallout events are common, as birds seek shelter and much-needed rest at the first sight of land.

This is your opportunity to explore “the other side” of Galveston Bay. We head over the causeway to explore birding areas on the mainland, including the Tiki Island, Texas City, and La Marque areas. One of our best kept secrets and most under-explored areas, participants will be surprised at the number and variety of birds seen on this outing.

Have you ever wanted to practice nature journaling, but found it difficult to know how to start? Or maybe you already love drawing, but want to learn some new tips and tricks to enhance your practice? This nature journaling outdoor workshop is designed to break through the trepidation of the “white page” and get you journaling right away.

Galveston’s West End has drawn birders from all over the world for nearly 100 years. In addition to estuarial saltwater marsh, it contains freshwater ponds, pockets of scrubland, mudflats, and sandy beach habitat. This combination attracts a wide variety of shorebirds, waterfowl, raptors, songbirds, and more. What to Expect:  We will begin the trip by...

This trip is targeted to catch any lingering migrants and catch afternoon arrivals. We plan to visit three HAS and Texas Ornithological Society sites. Watch for the afternoon drop of dozens of neotropic migrants along with local and resident waterfowl, raptors, seabirds, shorebirds, and passerines. April weather fronts can produce 30 or more species of songbirds in a single day!

On this meet-at-site walking field trip, you’ll be birding prairies, woodlots, and marshes of Artist Boat’s Coastal Heritage Preserve with Karla Klay. We’ll top off the evening with a homemade pizza dinner made on the spot! What to Expect: Join Karla for a birding adventure at Artist Boat’s Coastal Heritage Preserve. Walk and explore the marshes, prairies, and oak motts across the Preserve.