Free shorebird expedition to Grand Bay Reserve offered

A free expedition to Grand Bay National Estuarine Research Reserve near Moss Point is being offered on Nov. 12, the Mississippi Department of Marine Resources announced today (Nov. 3).

The tour, which begins at 8 a.m. and ends at 11 a.m., will feature ornithologists who will discuss overwintering waterfowl, wading birds and other shorebirds, the MDMR said.

The Grand Bay NERR includes wetlands and waterways from Bang’s Lake to the Alabama state line, and is managed with a goal of providing 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.

Ornithologists include the reserve’s Research Coordinator Mark Woodrey and staff researcher Jake Walker (who also is a past president of the local Audubon Society chapter).

Participants will learn how to identify these birds and how they can take action in their 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 19 people who pre-register.

Please bring binoculars, cameras and/or spotting scopes.

Participants will be getting in and out of a boat in a variety of habitats, so please dress accordingly. There is a chance you will get wet and muddy.

Participants must sign in at the Grand Bay Coastal Resources Center located at 6005 Bayou Heron Road in Moss Point at 7:30 a.m. prior to boarding the boat.

Pre-register by emailing your contact information (including your name, email address and phone number) to Jennifer Buchanan or call her at 228.475.7047.

Be sure to sign up soon. This trip will fill up fast.

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 Mississippi Department of Marine Resources 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.