Gulf Coast Bird Observatory | 299 Hwy 332 West, Lake Jackson, Texas 77566 |
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GCBO's annual Experience Auction is coming up November 17th through December 10th! We have moved the auction to a new website, and we've also added several new and exciting experiences! You can preview the items now and bid when the auction opens on November 17th at noon. Remember, bid high and often, because all funds are going towards bird and habitat conservation! |
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We are so excited to be co-hosting Seaside Safari on November 4th! Join us for a day on the beach, learning about seaside ecology and cleaning up the habitat for wildlife! This is a free event, so bring the whole family! |
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Help us find Pipits!
GCBO is tentatively planning on conducting a winter grassland bird project starting this January and we need your help! Do you have a property that is open grassland? Do you love trekking through the grass looking for conspicuous birds? Then we could use your help! We are looking for private properties near or along the gulf coast that are at least a few acres in size and are mostly grasses where we can survey for Sprague’s Pipits this winter. We will also be looking for volunteers to help with trapping days this winter. If you know of a possible place or are interested in assisting with the trapping events, please email Rebecca at rbracken@gcbo.org. |
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The Upper Texas coast has many great Christmas Bird Counts. GCBO sponsors one count, compiled by our Executive Director, the Brazoria-Columbia Bottomlands CBC, based in Brazoria county. We would love your help!
There are also two other great CBC’s in Brazoria County, and there are many other wonderful counts in our area, across the state, and country.
· San Bernard - December 15th
· Freeport - December 17th
· Brazoria-Columbia - December 30th
Find info about these, or a count near you in Texas here:
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Turn Off Lights for Birds at Night |
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Excess nighttime lighting distracts and disorients migrating birds, often leading to collisions.
To protect migratory birds in your area, BirdCast and partners recommend turning off all non-essential lighting between 11:00 PM and 6:00 AM during fall migration.
• turn off or dim any non-essential exterior building lighting;
• close curtains or blinds to reduce the escape of interior lighting; and
• avoid illuminating lobbies, plants or fountains that may attract birds.
If you haven't already subscribed to the BirdCast migration alerts, we recommend it! BirdCast will send you an email on days with high migration-intensity so that you can be sure to turn off your lights.
You can subscribe here:
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Join us once again for Bird Banding on November 18th from 8 am - noon at our headquarters in Lake Jackson. Come see birds in the hand and learn about the science of bird banding. The earlier you arrive the more birds you'll see. This event is free of charge.
And while you're here, why not check out our native plant nursery and wander our trails too? We even have picnic tables set up for an outdoor lunch -- It's the perfect nature outing for the family!
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Re-Vegetation Morning at Quintana
GCBO is planning another round of native plantings at the Quintana Neotropic Bird Sanctuary. We would love your help for a few hours on Friday, December 1, at 8:00am!
Come join us help give the migrating birds more cover and food sources by planting native trees and shrubs. It’s mostly soft sand type soils so fairly easy digging. Depending on how many folks show up it may only take and hour or two… or a handful of hours. Bring a good sturdy shovel if you have one, but we will bring some as well. Gloves, sturdy footwear, and hat for sun protection. We will furnish cold water.
We'll meet at 8:00am at the Quintana Sanctuaries across from the Quintana Town Hall at 814 N Lamar, Quintana, TX 77541. Email Celeste at csilling@gcbo.org to sign up. Thank you!
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Welcome Back Tom and Karyn!
Tom and Karyn Schmitz are back at GCBO, helping as RV volunteers. These two have been our RV volunteers several times before and always do a fantastic job. And they brought us cheese from their home in Wisconsin, so they've won our hearts. Welcome back Tom and Karyn!
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Come birding with GCBO and our Executive Director, Martin Hagne! Have a great time birding, exploring, enjoying some extraordinary scenery, dining on local cuisine, and of course seeing great birds! We always hook up with at least one local guide for the best experience. Here are our wonderful upcoming trips, but hurry, our trips are selling out fast!!
Our 2023 trips are all sold out! But take a look at our 2024 lineup! A few trips still need more information posted, so stay tune on those, or email Martin mhagne@gcbo.org to be put on list for more info! You can also go to our website to check for trip information and to register.
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October 12-24, 2023 - SOLD OUT!
February 8-13, 2024 - SOLD OUT!
March 4-13, 2024 -SOLD OUT!
June 16-22, 2024 - SOLD OUT!
November 3-11, 2024 – SOLD OUT!
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Make an in-kind donation to support our sanctuary needs. |
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Black Oil Sunflower Seed and Chicken Scratch
We feed year-round here at GCBO, and during migration at Quintana. We stock our GCBO feeders to help augment natural foods, and this also helps our monthly banding research project.
Sugar
The hummingbirds are coming our way, and we are looking for granulated sugar donations for their sugar water. Please bring it by our headquarters: 299 Hwy 332 W Lake Jackson. Thanks!
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Corporate Matching Programs |
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Did you know that many corporations have a donation matching program? Corporations can match their employees' volunteer hours and/or donations to nonprofit organizations like GCBO! These types of programs are great because they double your contributions to the causes that you care about! If you work (or are retired from) a corporation, ask them about their matching program today! |
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Recycle Your Old Technology and Help Birds |
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The Wireless Alliance is a company that recovers and recycles cell phones, smart phones, tablets, and other consumer recyclables.
We will be collecting these items for Wireless Alliance to keep them out of landfills as well as raise money for our conservation efforts. If you have old technology such as a phone, charger, tablet, or other accessories, consider bringing it to GCBO!
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You can help support GCBO's mission in several important ways!
Save a Tree and some $!
We are trying to go as paperless as we can to save some trees and quite a bit on printing and mailing costs. We would love if you would let us email you instead of snail mailing a hard copy of any correspondence, including your future copies of the Gulf Crossings. Please email or call Tricia to say: “Hey, GCBO, please start emailing me things! Here is my email…” Thanks!
DONATE NOW on our website to support our conservation programs.
BECOME A MEMBER and receive our twice a year newsletter and a 10% discount in our nature store.
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When you shop at Kroger, you can support GCBO! |
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GCBO is a registered charity through Kroger's Community Rewards Program. This means that you can register your Kroger Plus Card online and select GCBO as the organization of your choice. Every time you use your Kroger Plus Card, Kroger will donate a portion back to GCBO! This is an easy way to support GCBO while you shop - your donations help us continue to protect birds and birding habitat around the Gulf Coast and beyond. To register your Plus Card, click here. Our charity number is #DN782.
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