12-77-CWS | November 6, 2012
BILOXI, Miss. – Mark your calendars now! It is time for Grand Bay Reserve’s free guided birding boat tour to the outer waters of the Reserve near the Grand Battures and Catch-Em-All Bar on Saturday, November 10 from 8 a.m. * until noon. Ornithologist, Dr. Mark Woodrey, the Reserve’s research coordinator, will lead this expedition to observe overwintering waterfowl, wading birds and other shorebirds. You will not only learn how to identify these birds but also learn how you can take action in your own community to help conserve the habitats needed to help support migratory birds.
This trip is designed for teens and adults and is limited to the first 15 people who pre-register. Please bring your own binoculars, cameras and/or spotting scopes and field guides. Participants will be getting in and out of a boat in a variety of habitats, so we recommend that you dress to get wet and muddy. *Participants must sign in at the Grand Bay Coastal Resources Center located at 6005 Bayou Heron Road in Moss Point, Miss., at 7:30 a.m. prior to boarding the boat.
To pre-register, please email your contact information including your name, email address and phone numbers to Jennifer Buchanan at jen.buchanan@dmr.ms.gov or call her at 228.475.7047. Be sure to sign up soon. This trip will fill up fast.
The Grand Bay NERR is located in southeast Jackson County and includes wetlands and waterways from Bang’s Lake to the Alabama state line. A major goal of the Reserve is to provide for research coordination and dissemination of scientific data to the community and local decision-makers to provide sound information on which to base management decisions.
The 18,000-acre reserve is home to several rare or endangered plant and animal species and serves as an essential nursery habitat for numerous important commercial and recreational fish species. The Reserve is managed through state-federal partnership between the MDMR and its local partners—Mississippi Secretary of State’s Office, U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, Mississippi State University and the Nature Conservancy—and the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration.
The Mississippi Department of Marine Resources is dedicated to enhancing, protecting and conserving marine interests of the state by managing all marine life, public trust wetlands, adjacent uplands and waterfront areas to provide for the optimal commercial, recreational, educational and economic uses of these resources consistent with environmental concerns and social changes. Visit the DMR online at www.dmr.ms.gov.
PHOTO CREDITS: Photo Courtesy of Mississippi Department of Marine Resources
Photo caption 1: Overwintering White Pelicans in Grand Bay Reserve.
Contact: Syneathia Lett
Phone: 228-523-4101
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