What’s the city bird of Houston?
The Houston Audubon Society seeks your nomination for the Bird of Houston, a bird you believe symbolizes the spirit of our Bayou City.
Asking you to nominate the city’s emblematic bird is part Houston Audubon’s 50th anniversary and its enduring pride in the community’s natural beauty, amazing bird life and extraordinary people.
So many birds to choose from. In a city with habitats as varied as woodlands, bayous, creeks, ponds, marshes, urban skyscrapers and tree-lined neighborhoods, it’s not surprising that more than 300 species of birds could be present during any season of the year.
Not to mention perhaps six or more species of birds visiting your backyard birdfeeders.
The city also hosts Neotropical migratory songbirds such as rose-breasted grosbeaks during spring and fall that stop and rest on journeys between winter homes in Latin America and breeding homes in northern North America. Many Neotropical migratory songbirds including summer tanagers breed in Houston.
Then we have American goldfinches and other songbirds that breed farther north but migrate to Houston to spend the winter.
How about the huge numbers of ruby-throated hummingbirds arriving spring and fall on the way to and from breeding grounds farther north and winter
homes in Latin America? Yes, some of them breed here. Consider autumn’s migratory hawks soaring in humongous numbers over Houston skies or winter’s migratory ducks and geese arriving in droves.
Yet a mascot bird for Houston should probably be among the multitude of birds that reside in the city. Birds as diminutive as Carolina chickadees or as humongous as Great Blue Herons. Or as raucous as blue jays. Perhaps red-shouldered hawks that pick off squirrels from birdfeeders.
Lots of resident birds, lots of choices.
Maybe the choice is black vulture. “What!?” you say. Well, the soaring vulture residing in Houston is a connoisseur of “road kill” including dead squirrels, snakes and … sorry … dead turtles and rabbits. OK, not a bird to symbolize a lively city.
My wife, Kathy, suggested the bald eagle — in honor of the Apollo 11 moon landing 50 years ago, with astronaut Neil Armstrong saying, “Houston, the Eagle has landed.”
People often ask me to name my favorite bird. I can’t. Too many favorite birds. But I could nominate a bird that symbolizes the city of my birth.
Your nomination for the Bird of Houston need not be a favorite bird. But do nominate a bird you believe is emblematic of our energetic and resilient city. Email Gary Clark at Texasbirder@comcast.net “Book of Texas Birds,” by Gary Clark with photography by Kathy Adams Clark (Texas A&M University Press).