DEPARTMENT: Sustainability
DEPARTMENT HEAD: Douglas Melnick, Director
COUNCIL DISTRICTS IMPACTED: Citywide
SUBJECT:
Resolution recognizing World Migratory Bird Day
SUMMARY:
This item will approve a Resolution annually recognizing World Migratory Bird Day. This item will also show support to local organizations in their efforts toward a acquiring a Bird City Texas Designation from the Texas Department of Parks and Wildlife.
BACKGROUND INFORMATION:
Migratory birds are some of the most beautiful and easily observed wildlife that share our communities. Most citizens recognize and welcome migratory songbirds as symbolic harbingers of spring and fall.
The Smithsonian Migratory Bird Center created World Migratory Bird Day in 1993 as an educational campaign to emphasize migratory bird conservation and raise public awareness of the nearly 350 species that travel between habitats throughout North America and their wintering grounds in South and Central America, Mexico, the Caribbean, and the southern U.S.
One of the North American migratory flyways cuts through San Antonio, providing special opportunities for residents and tourists alike to witness and appreciate bird migration, the varied bird species it brings through our community, and the value of conservation efforts. The City's location at the confluence of the Post Oak Savannah, South Texas Plains, Blackland Prairie, and Edwards Plateau ecoregions enables important nesting habitat for migratory birds, including two highly endangered species: the Black-capped Vireo and the Golden-cheeked Warbler.
Bird migration is interconnected with delicate local ecosystems, serving to control insect pest populations, support pollination, and foster seed dispersal. Migratory birds face the challenges of diminishing migratory habitats in the Americas and increased dangers on their migration routes. Our City and community have a proud of history of conservation efforts and the City of San Antonio's Clima...
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