Gulf Shore Getaway

Birding is big on the Gulf Coast this time of year. So big in fact that there is even something of a competitive circuit for birding.

The New Jersey Audubon Society runs the World Series of Birding each year in a swamp. Well, there's a team planning to compete in the New Jersey Great Swamp this year anyway. And it will bring in competitive birders from all walks of life and from all around the world to compete in four classification levels. Competitor will spend 24 hours - yes, through the night - identifying and cataloging birds.

Closer to the Gulf Coast, the Gulf Coast Bird Observatory and Texas Parks and Wildlife will be hosting their tenth annual Great Texas Birding Classic in late April. The GBTC is a week long event in which birders from around the globe congregate on the Texas Gulf Coast a week of fun and friendly team birding. Each year the event is timed to coincide with the Texas spring migration. For avid birders this is an event not to miss.

The Tenth Annual GTBC will be April 22-April 30, 2006

What is The Great Texas Birding Classic?
The Great Texas Birding Classic is a competitive birdwatching tournament sponsored by the Gulf Coast Bird Observatory and Texas Parks and Wildlife. It is held in April each year to coincide with the spectacular spring bird migration in Texas.

Mission Statement
To increase appreciation, understanding and conservation of birds along the Great Texas Coastal Birding Trail through education, recreation, nature tourism and conservation fund raising.

Find out more at the GBTC web site