The 2006 edition of the Alabama Coastal BirdFest begins this Thursday and runs through the weekend. It's that time of year. Many of the northern species of migratory birds have begun their southern migration this year and have found their way to the southeast.
All along the Alabama Gulf Coast neo-tropicals are flocked together, fattening up for the big push south across the Gulf of Mexico where they'll winter in warmer climates.
The Coastal BirdFest is the best place for birders to be right now not only because of the birds' arrival but because the organizers of the Alabama Coastal Birdfest go out of their way each year to make their event the premiere birding event for birders. Whether you're looking to get started and hungry for learning about birding, or you're a seasoned birder who knows where to look and what to look for, the Alabama Coastal BirdFest is just the ticket to birding success.
Not only that but it's a great social gathering too.
All along the Alabama Gulf Coast efforts are underway to bring in the tourism dollar. This time of year the weather is about perfect regardless of where you're from and what kind of weather you're used to.
Areas north are turning colder, and that means the fall migration is on. Birders head to the Gulf Coast this time of year because places like Gulf Shores are overrun by the little feathered ones stocking up on food for the big trip south across the Gulf of Mexico.
It's time again for the Alabama Department of Conservation and Natural Resources photo contest.
Early fall is just about the best time for photographing Alabama's great outdoors. Nature photographers can gain recognition for their work by entering Outdoor Alabama magazine's 2007 Photo Contest.
Winning entries will be published in the February 2007 issue of the magazine, which is published by the Alabama Department of Conservation and Natural Resources.
All photos must have been taken in Alabama within the last two years. Wildlife and plant species must be native to the state. Eligible formats include high quality digital images, 35mm slides or larger format transparencies, and 5x7-inch to 8x10-inch color prints.
It's getting to be that time of year again. The birds up north are fattening up, fighting over available food stores, getting ready to head south for the winter.
All along the Gulf Coast birders are preparing for the grand migration. Everywhere along the Gulf Coast birding events are scheduled. The event described here centers on the ruby-throated hummingbird. Stay tuned, we'll chronicle these events as they are announced. It's sure to be a great year for birding along the Gulf Coast.
River of hummingbirds
Tiny birds pass through La. on way to winter groundsLAFAYETTE -- A little sugar water is all one needs to catch a glimpse of some of the millions of hummingbirds passing through Louisiana to winter homes south of the border.
“What we have now is a river of hummingbirds flowing through Louisiana,†said Dave Patton, a Lafayette hummingbird enthusiast who has a federal license to band the birds with tiny aluminum bracelets to help track migration patterns.
September is the most active month in south Louisiana for the ruby-throated hummingbird, the main species seen in the state.
The birds flew north across the Gulf of Mexico in the spring to breed in the eastern half of the United States, from Louisiana to as far as southern Canada.
The tiny hummingbirds — or “hummers†as birders call them — are flittering around flowers and feeders to fatten up for the return trip to Mexico, Central America and the Caribbean.
“They’ll double their body weight. You can see them do it,†said Bill Fontenot, an avid birder and curator at the Acadiana Park Nature Station.
Fontenot said the birds will go from about 3.2 grams to 5 grams, about the weight of a nickel.
Unlike the spring migration across the Gulf, many ruby-throats are thought to migrate in the fall along the coast, from Louisiana through Texas and then south instead of taking the perilous day-long trip across open water, Fontenot said.
“The entire eastern population, we believe, flies south to the Gulf Coast and hangs a right. … Most of us believe they all funnel through Louisiana and east Texas,†Fontenot said.
The fall migration pattern is a boon for Louisiana birders, because the state not only hosts the ruby-throats that nested here, but also their offspring hatched over the summer and birds from the north passing through on their way south.
“That’s why it’s such a phenomenon in southwest Louisiana,†Fontenot said. “It’s not at all unusual to find 50 birds in one yard.â€
Patton said many of the birds might be in a particular yard only for a day before continuing along the migration journey.
Gulf State Park consists of 6,150 acres on the Alabama Gulf Coast with 2 miles of sugar white sand beaches. Gulf State Park has modern and primitive camping, cottages, marina, trails and fishing. What more could you ask for? How about tennis, group pavilions, nature programs and picnic areas? It's all there at Gulf State Park.
Gulf State Park is located in the city of Gulf Shores, directly on the Alabama gulf coast. Sugary white sun-kissed beaches, a surging surf, seagulls and seashells await you at Gulf State Park.
Mark your calendar. This year's Alabama Coastal BirdFest promises to be the biggest and best ever.
The 2006 Alabama Coastal BirdFest takes place the weekend of October 19-22. This year’s BirdFest will include nearly 20 great tours to prime birding spots on the 240-mile long Alabama Coastal Birding Trail. There will be two exciting evening events plus a free day-long Bird & Conservation Expo.
This year we are repeating some of our most popular tours from past festivals, and adding something new. We have three new tours to Dauphin Island that include an excursion on Mobile Bay on the Dauphin Island Sea Lab research vessel, the A.E. Verrill, a 65-foot ocean-going craft. Not only will we see the birds of Mobile Bay, but marine biologists from the Dauphin Island Sea Lab will be with us to examine specimens caught in a trawl. - John Borom, president of Mobile Bay Audubon Society
At BirdFest’s opening night reception on Thursday, Oct. 19th, a panel of three distinguished ornithologists will discuss Hurricanes & Habitat: How Wildlife Survives. The panel includes
Registration for the 2006 Alabama Coastal BirdFest is now open.