Wintering Bird Surveys in Texas

Texas provides important winter habitat for resident birds as well as migratory species that spend the nonbreeding season in the state.

Lupine Land Services conducts wintering bird surveys for landowners seeking to document wildlife populations, monitor habitat use and support long-term wildlife-management objectives.

A winter survey provides a snapshot of a property during a season that is easily overlooked by surveys conducted only during spring.

What Is a Wintering Bird Survey?

A wintering bird survey is a systematic survey conducted during the nonbreeding or winter season to identify birds using a property.

Some species remain in Texas year-round. Others migrate into or through Texas and may only be present during particular portions of the year.

Winter surveys can therefore document a substantially different wildlife community than breeding-season surveys.

They had departed from the city lying in the mud. A very thin silhouette stretched on the horizon, barely strong enough to support the weight of a distant city, which still lay upon it. They were free from paths, free from people, and a shared sense of liberation filled them all.

Who Should Consider a Winter Bird Survey?

Wintering bird surveys may be useful for:

Wildlife-management properties
Landowners managing for songbirds and nongame wildlife
Ranches and recreational properties
Habitat restoration projects
Properties establishing baseline wildlife information
Long-term wildlife monitoring programs
Conservation properties

They can be especially valuable when the property’s management goals include maintaining habitat for migrating or wintering indigenous wildlife.

How Lupine Conducts Wintering Bird Surveys

Lupine evaluates the property’s habitat and survey objectives before conducting fieldwork.

Survey locations are selected to provide useful representation of available habitat. Our biologists identify birds through visual and auditory detections and document relevant observations during the survey.

Where appropriate, survey locations and methods can be used again during subsequent years to improve the usefulness of long-term comparisons.

What Can Winter Bird Surveys Tell Us?

Winter surveys may help document:

Species diversity
Winter residents and migrants
Use of different habitat types
Wildlife activity around water or food resources
Changes following habitat-management activities
Species that may not be detected during breeding-season surveys

The information can also help identify opportunities for habitat enhancement, supplemental food, supplemental water and shelter.

What You Receive

Depending on project scope, Lupine can provide documentation that includes survey information, species detected, field observations and wildlife-management recommendations.

For wildlife-management clients, survey documentation can also be retained with other records demonstrating implementation of the property’s management plan.

Wildlife-Management Relevance

Texas wildlife-management appraisal is based on actively managing land for a sustaining breeding, migrating or wintering population of indigenous wildlife.

Census counts are one of the seven recognized wildlife-management practices. A wintering bird survey may therefore be particularly relevant for properties managing for migratory and wintering birds when census is one of the practices included in the management program.

The appropriate activities and required intensity depend on the property, target species, ecoregion and wildlife management plan.

Where We Work

Lupine provides wintering bird surveys throughout Central Texas, the Texas Hill Country and other Texas locations depending on project requirements.

Frequently Asked Questions

Why survey birds during winter?

Winter surveys document species and habitat use that may not be apparent during spring or summer. Texas supports numerous migratory and winter-resident birds.

Is a winter survey better than a breeding bird survey?

Neither is universally better. They document different seasonal bird communities. For some properties, conducting both provides a more complete picture.

Can wintering bird surveys support wildlife-management documentation?

When appropriate to the property’s target species and wildlife management plan, a properly documented bird survey may support census-related wildlife-management records.

Do you need to survey the entire property?

Survey design depends on acreage, habitat diversity and project objectives. Representative survey locations can often provide useful information without physically covering every acre.

Can the survey be repeated annually?

Yes. Repeating surveys at similar times of year and using comparable methods can make the information more useful for evaluating long-term changes.

Schedule a Wintering Bird Survey

Lupine Land Services can help determine whether a wintering bird survey is appropriate for your wildlife-management or conservation objectives.