Houston Audubon has announced that it is now officially rebranded as Birds Houston, marking a new chapter in the organization's nearly 60-year history of bird conservation in the greater Houston, Gulf Coast region. The new name reflects the group's expanded commitment to engaging the community and region in bird conservation and birding opportunities. Already, the organization manages a network of 18 bird sanctuaries across the Houston Metro Area and Upper Texas Coast, including 4 world-renowned High Island Bird Sanctuaries, the Bolivar Flats Shorebird Sanctuary, and the Edith Moore Bird Sanctuary in urban Houston.
Overall, Birds Houston is helping to ensure that birds thrive in one of North America's most important bird migration flyways, partly through the acquisition and permanent protection of 4,300 acres of critical coastal stopover habitat. Birds Houston has also established the Gulf Coast Bird Observatory at Lake Jackson to monitor and protect habitat for migratory birds in southeast Texas. The Edith Moore Nature Sanctuary was also established in west Houston to serve as an urban retreat and a base for educational programming to connect people with nature. And recently, Birds Houston also completed the final acquisition of the Bolivar Flats Shorebird Sanctuary, where a concentration of more than 500,000 birds can be observed daily during peak migration stopovers.
Birds Houston also conducts Houston Bird Week each September that features events designed to inspire people of all ages to discover, appreciate, and protect the birds in their communities. That recent birding festival included 51 events held throughout the Houston area, with more than 2,500 people attending. Birds Houston also led the effort for Houston to receive the "Urban Bird Treaty City" designation from the US Fish & Wildlife Service as well as the "Bird City" designation from the Texas Parks and Wildlife Department and Audubon Texas. They also developed the Lights Out for Birds initiative, a massive urban conservation movement to reduce the numbers of migrating birds that collide with buildings during nighttime migration flights.
For more than 5 decades, Birds Houston has worked to conserve birds and their habitats through land stewardship, habitat restoration, environmental education, community science, advocacy, and public engagement. Through educational programs, volunteering, and guided outings, Birds Houston engages thousands of residents with opportunities to build a sense of place and connectivity around birds and birding. To learn more about the activities conducted by Birds Houston throughout the year, see Home | Birds Houston and to see more about their bird sanctuaries, refer to Sanctuaries | Birds Houston