The Chairman of the TOS Field Trip Committee is Glenn Olsen (Houston, TX). If you would like to serve on the committee or would like to lead or suggest a field trip contact Glenn at

See below for information on trips to South Texas, North Central Texas, the Central Coast, TOS' own Magic Ridge and Alaska!

TOS South Texas Field Trip, January 19th-21st, 2008

Filled.  Contact: Jim Hailey  http://www.jimhailey.com/spring08.htm

TOS North Central Texas Weekend Blitz, March 1st & 2nd, 2008

NCTX Weekend Blitz TOS Field Trip March 1 & 2, 2008 Trip Leaders – Greg Cook and Thomas Riecke 

Disclaimer: This field trip is not recommended for beginners. Participants should bring good hiking boots, rubber wading boots, lots of water, and snacks/meals to eat on the road. Participants should also be in relatively good physical condition (i.e. be able to walk several miles at a time at a 'birding' pace without reaching an exhaustion point) and be able to drive LONG distances. We will probably not stop to eat while birding, and we will start early and end late. Saturday Our meeting point has not been finalized, but we will probably meet at approximately 0730 at the Sabine River Authority Headquarters about three miles down the road from Iron Bridge Dam from Lake Tawakoni. We have tentative access to Iron Bridge Dam and the Sabine River authority airport, along with guaranteed access to the Dallas Audubon property and the Rains Co. beach. We will try for Smith's Longspur (probably too late), Pacific Loon, Red-throated Loon, Henslow's Sparrow, various raptors, and rare gulls at these locations. We will also bird the woods below the dam for Red-breasted Nuthatch, Pileated, Red-headed, and Hairy Woodpeckers, and various other woodland residents and irruptives. From here we will travel to (probably) Hagerman National Wildlife Refuge and Preston Point, where we will search for upwards of 20 duck and sparrow species, irruptives, the most reliable Red-throated Loons in the state of Texas, and a variety of rare gulls. The day will culminate with dinner at some godforsaken Subway®, and a drive to Wichita Falls or some other area of NCTX where we will spend the night (this will be finalized within the next few months, lodging is the responsibility of trip participants, not trip leaders, and we may elect to spend the night at a state park). Sunday We will bird all day Sunday as well (participants are welcome to leave at any time due to time constraints, directions will be given to nearest Interstate or whatnot). Target birds on Sunday include Black-throated Sparrow, Rufous-crowned Sparrow, Curve-billed Thrasher, Pyrrhuloxia, Canyon Towhee, SAGE THRASHER (relatively easy in late February and early March of last year), rare gulls, Verdin, irruptives, Short-eared Owl, Ferruginous Hawk, Rough-legged Hawk, Prairie Falcon, Golden Eagle (rare), Chihuahuan Raven, Lark Bunting, Chestnut-collared, Lapland, and McCown's Longspur (unfortunately probably too late for these longspurs as well), Rock Wren, Canyon Wren (depending on starting location), and Burrowing Owl. Sunday will involve LOTS and LOTS of driving. Last year we had flocks of hundreds of Mountain Bluebirds (although this is highly unlikely to repeat itself). Be prepared to cover hundreds of miles and see dozens of western specialties. Summary This trip will introduce participants to a huge portion of NCTX. We expect to see well upwards of 130 species, perhaps pushing 150 if conditions are ideal, highlighting the interesting mix of eastern and western specialties that make NCTX so special. Greg Cook is the best field birder in North Central Texas, while I usually just point to birds and shout until someone else identifies them. We make a good team. I can't wait to bird with y'all and show y'all some of the neat places that have been discovered out west and the incredible avifauna that inhabit them. There might also be several other field trip leaders and/or local guides that bird with us through their area. This is still under discussion. Anyway, I hope to see you in March. 

-Thomas Riecke   contact Glenn at  for signup details

TOS Magic Ridge Field Trip - March 29th, 2008 

Join TOS President, Ron Weeks, on a trip to the newly expanded Magic Ridge Sanctuary and the greater Indianola area. This trip will also include the dedication ceremony in nearby Port Lavaca where we will recognize those that made the expansion possible. Itinerary: We will meet at 6:30AM at the intersection of Zimmerman Road and CR316 near the town of Indianola. A map can be found on the TOS web site under sanctuaries. http://www.texasbirds.org/_mgxroot/page_10728.html  Prior to sunrise, we will start by making a special effort to listen for calling Black Rails which nest in the immediate area. Once it gets light, we will move to Dr. Brent Ortego’s banding demonstration site to see what he’s catching. By then, the dawn chorus of brush country residents (Greater Roadrunner, Long-billed and Curve-billed Thrasher, Bewick’s Wren, Cassin’s Sparrow, etc.) will have started. Hopefully we will also have a good diversity of migrant passerines and lingering winter residents to enjoy. After that, we will pursue waterbirds on the bay, check any early rice fields for shorebirds and stop by the Magnolia Beach overlook to scan for Common Goldeneye, Red-breasted Merganser and Common Loon. 

Around noon we will break for lunch and then drive to the Heritage Center in nearby Port Lavaca. It is there at 1PM that we will have the Magic Ridge dedication ceremony. We should be done by around 2PM and then I will head out with those wishing to bird the rest of the afternoon and early evening. 

Registration: To register for this field trip please send an e-mail with the subject line “TOS Magic Ridge Field Trip” to ronweeks@sbcglobal.net indicating you are mailing your check ($30 for members and $45 for non-members). This will hold your reservation for one week. Make the check payable to the Texas Ornithological Society and send it to: Ron Weeks, 110 Indian Warrior, Lake Jackson, TX 77566. Please note that cancellations after March 15th will be not be refunded.  

TOS Spring Migration Field Trip April 18-20, 2008 Rockport, Port Aransas, Corpus Christi Leader: Jim Hailey 

Cost: $150.00* 

*does not include lodging, meals or transpiration 

This field trip coincides with the peak of spring migration on the Texas coast. Corpus Christi has been the acclaimed the “birdiest city” in the nation for the past 5 years and both Port Aransas and Rockport are migrant traps as well. We will explore Goose Island SP, numerous Rockport hotspots, Paradise Pond and the Birding Center at Port Aransas, Mustang and Padre Island beaches, Blucher Park, Rose Hill Cemetery, Tule Lake and Pollywog Pond. Each of these sites act as traps for birds in migration. You can expect numerous warbler species, a large shorebird count and many of the resident breeding birds of this species rich region of our state. We will headquarters in Rockport at the Laguna Reef Condos which front on Aransas Bay where you can watch birds from the comfort of your veranda. And Rockport is home to many good restaurants! So come prepared to do some hard core birding. The trip is limited to 15 participants. 

Contact Information: mailto:greenj@prontonet.net http://www.jimhailey.com/spring08.htm

TOS Alaska Trip with Jim Hailey, May 31st-June 14th, 2008

The TOS Welcomes You To Alaska! This is truly an amazing place—a land of majestic vistas, grizzles, reindeer, musk oxen, and beautiful birds dressed in their Sunday best. The first week in June is the height of the northward migration period and the beginning of the summer nesting season; a very special time to be in Alaska if you are a birder. The Texas Ornithological Society Anchorage/Nome/Barrow/Seward/Denali Highway Field trip targets breeding and migrating species and the opportunity to find a few vagrants that drop in on the area sporadically. Last year it was a White-winged Tern! The trip begins on May 31 when we meet in Anchorage. The following day we fly to Nome for four days of hardcore birding. There are three roads leading out from Nome into the vast wilderness area outside this isolated community. All three are approximately seventy-five miles long and we will spend a full day exploring each. In addition to the great birds, these roads often produce musk ox, red fox, arctic hare, reindeer, and bears. At Nome we have the added attraction of Safety Lagoon, a large inland water feature that attracts shorebirds, waterfowl, swans, gulls, and more. From Nome we will fly to Barrow where we expect to see all eider species, Snowy Owl and possibly even polar bears before returning to Anchorage. Those including Part II in their trip will spend three days birding the Anchorage bowl, take a one day pelagic trip from Seward into the Kenai Fjords NP looking for humpback whales, sea otter, harbor seals, orca, puffins, three murrelet species, Red-faced Cormorant, Short-tailed Shearwater, and have lunch watching glaciers calving into the ocean. We will conclude our trip with a three days drive across the 135 miles of wilderness that borders the Denali Highway where the spectacular Alaska Range fills the eastern horizon. Our target birds will be Smith's Longspur, Arctic Warbler and any other Alaskan species missed in previous areas. Some target species include—Snow Bunting, Red Phalarope, two puffins species, five loon species, Bluethroat, Arctic Warbler, two redpolls, all eiders, three ptarmigan species, two swan species, scoters, Harlequin Ducks, Barrow Goldeneye, Snowy Owl and Bristle-thigh Curlew if we can get to the end of the Kougarok Road. And many, many more! My Alaska list currently has 218 species and, needless to say, Alaska is my personal favorite place in the world to go birding. If you want to join this trip you need to act quickly. This year’s trip is filling fast; it is currently over half full with several currently in the process of making their decisions. All proceeds above cost go to the TOS. For more information contact Jim Hailey – greenj@prontonet.net or www.jimhailey.com/alaska08.htm. 

Part I –Nome/Barrow -- $2150.00 

Part II—Anchorage/Seward/Denali Highway -- $1000.00.