By Amanda Kingston-Beetle, Houston Audubon Member I was lucky to grow up with my mother, a birder, who tried to instill that love of birds and the outdoors into me and my sisters. But it wasn’t until my late twenties that I became interested in birds and started to share that affinity with my mother, […]
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Least Tern (Sternula antillarum) Family: Laridae The Least Tern is the smallest of all American terns with a wingspan of 48-53 centimeters and a size between a robin and crow. Least Terns have a black cap ending at a white forehead and a short white eye stripe. They have a light gray back with a […]
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By Aimee Friend, Laurel Ladwig and Sam Oke While it’s the birds that bring visitors to our High Island sanctuaries, it’s passionate people that make the place truly special. Houston Audubon was established in 1969 by a group of dedicated volunteers who wanted to create an organization focused on protecting birds and habitat while introducing […]
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Black-whiskered Vireo (Vireo altiloquus) Family: Vireonidae By Wyatt Egelhoff, Houston Audubon Conservation Specialist This denizen of the Caribbean is remarkably similar to the much more familiar (to the US birder) Red-eyed Vireo. Black-whiskered Vireo show less contrast between the gray crown and greenish-brown back and wings than Red-eyed. Black-whiskered have longer, heavier bills with a […]
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Wilson’s Plover (Charadrius wilsonia) Family: Charadriidae By Maria Hart Wilson’s Plovers reside on beaches of the southern Atlantic Ocean and the Gulf Coast. They are a medium sized plover with grayish brown upper parts, white underparts, and a pale brown collar. While in breeding plumage, Wilson’s Plovers develop a thick black ring around their neck […]
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Common Nighthawk (Chordeiles minor) Family: Caprimulgidae By Will McDaniel The Common Nighthawk is a medium-sized member of the nightjar family ranging from 8.7 to 9.8 inches in length with wingspans between 20 and 24 inches. Excellently camouflaged in drab greys, browns, and blacks that blend into the shadows of tree bark and leaf litter, the […]
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Black-crowned Night-Heron (Nycticorax nycticorax) Family: Ardeidae Black-crowned Night-Herons are small, stocky herons with short legs and necks. The adults are light gray with a distinct black back and crown, the face and underside are lighter yellowish white with an all-black bill and striking red iris. They also have long narrow white head plumes which can […]
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By Schyler Brown, Conservation Specialist June 5th is World Environment Day, and for every minute in the day, a garbage truck’s worth of plastic will make its way to the ocean, harming countless wildlife. Plastic pollution is the accumulation of plastics to a quantity that is harmful to living organisms. Larger plastics can be mistaken […]
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By Jesi Malowitz, Membership and Event Coordinator That’s a wrap! We met 97% of our $50,000 fundraising goal with $48,684.98 raised by our awesome Birdathon fundraisers! The teams’ hard work birding and fundraising really blew us away and we are so grateful to have such amazing supporters of Houston Audubon. Our awards celebration at the […]
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Northern Rough-winged Swallow (Stelgidopteryx serripennis) Family: Hirundinidae By Will McDaniel, former Houston Audubon Coastal Conservation Technician The Northern Rough-winged Swallow is a small species ranging from 5 to 6 inches in length and a wingspan of 11 to 12 inches. Sharing the small head, tiny bill, and long pointed wings of other swallow species, these […]
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