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FLASH! Saturday, July 26, at 10 a.m., Dedication of our new bird blind at the Patsy Glenn Refuge. A brief ceremony will be held near the blind. In case of rain, bring umbrellas. Also, bring lawn chairs for seating. Refreshing iced soft drinks and assorted snacks and goodies will be available after the ceremony. Let's all show Jesse Huth how much we appreciate the great job he did on this first-class structure.

FLASH! Monday, August 18, at 10 a.m. quarterly meeting in the community center. Speakers will be Paul and Georgean Kyle, presenting a PowerPoint show on "Chimney swifts - why we should care." Join the Kyles as they explore the secretive home life of these aerial acrobats, their fight to cling to survival and what is being done to conserve their declining numbers.

FLASH! Those of you who enjoyed Greg Lasley's photographs at the February meeting will be pleased to hear that his book "Greg Lasley's Texas Wildlife Portraits" will be out in September, and can now be ordered online from Texas A&M Press.

AND ANOTHER FLASH: Greg will be our speaker at the November 17 meeting, with another program of awesome photos. He will have copies of his new book for sale and will be glad to autograph them at the meeting.

NOTICE: David Newstead, coastal program manager for Audubon Texas, and our speaker at the November 19 meeting, has provided two websites he recommends to those wishing to stay current on environmental issues. These are Coastal Habitat Alliance, www.coastalhabitatalliance.org; and Border Wall, www.notexasborderwall.com. In addition, websites for the Travis Audubon Society, www.travisaudubon.org and Environment Texas, www.environmenttexas.org are recommended.

WBS Overview

The Wimberley Birding Society promotes the watching, protecting and enjoying of birds in and around Wimberley and other locations.

It was founded in 1986, as the TLC Bluebird Society, with the aim of protecting and restoring the local bluebird population. Each member was given two bluebird houses upon paying membership dues; hundreds of nest boxes were erected and many are still in service throughout the area. (TLC stood for the tender loving care required to bring back the bluebirds.)

The club currently has some 130 members. Meetings are held quarterly, generally on the third Monday of May, August, November and February. An active trip schedule is maintained -- excursions have ranged from half-day excursions around Wimberley to an 18-day African safari. For a look at upcoming trips, check our Calendar.

Donations from the club have supported such endeavors as the Adopt-a-prairie-chicken program of the Texas Parks & Wildlife Department, Driftwood Wildlife Association, Gulf Coast Bird Observatory, Audubon Texas and similar avian programs. A current major project of the club is the Patsy Glenn Refuge, a Wimberley bird sanctuary which has been developed with a Chimney swift tower and information kiosk, paths, wildflower areas, native tree plantings, bluebird nest boxes, bird viewing platform, and feeding and watering sites.

In addition to trips around Texas, the club takes at least one major trip each year. Past journeys have been to Costa Rica, Panama, Peru and the Amazon River, Trinidad and Tobago, Maine, Hawaii, Ecuador and the Galapagos Islands, Orcas Island, California, and Africa.

"We enjoy birds and we also enjoy eating," said Peggy Wilkerson, club president. "Our annual salad supper is always a treat." Club members come from Houston, Justiceburg, Wimberley, San Marcos, Dripping Springs, Kerrville and Austin.

Annual dues are five dollars per person. If interested, make check payable to Wimberley Birding Society and send to:
            WBS
            P. O. Box 1526
            Wimberley, Texas 78676.

Additional Information: Jerry Hall, publicity chairman at publicity@wimbirds.org or 512 847-3730