Texas still on my mind...

At the end of April, I'll return to the lower Rio Grande Valley for the Great Texas Birding Classic. For almost every one of the event's 10 years of existence, WildBird has sponsored a team in the weeklong tournament.

This year is no different. WildBird and Nikon are co-sponsoring four fellows: Michael Retter (captain), Mike Freiberg, Cameron Cox and Ken Behrens.

Between April 25th and 29th, they'll sleep a little, eat a little and bird a lot. They'll scour the state for species, racking up the IDs so that they can claim first place in the weeklong tourney.

If they earn that honor, the Nikon WildBirders will get to choose a habitat conservation project in Texas to receive thousands of dollars. Previous teams have earned the first-place title six times. One team earned second place -- also an opportunity to designate a habitat conservation project.

All told, the teams sponsored by WildBird have directed more than $122,000 to efforts such as:
Bolivar Flats Shorebird Sanctuary addition
South Padre Island habitat protection and restoration project
Harlingen Bird Sanctuary
Paradise Pond Sanctuary acquisition
Packery Channel Sanctuary acquisition
Port Bolivar Wetlands restoration project
Houston Audubon's Carolyn Raizes Davis Bird Sanctuary

We're quite proud of "our" young birders' skills and pleased to have the opportunity to participate in a habitat conservation program like the Classic.

Map courtesy of University of Texas Libraries