Brazoria County is one of the most active spots in the world for bird watching. Quintana Neotropical Bird Sanctuary is located at Quintana Beach, Texas. This is one of many along the Gulf Coast supported by the Neotropical Migratory Bird Conservation Act of 2000. This Act establishes a competitive, matching grants program that supports public-private partnerships carrying out projects in the United States, Canada, Latin America, and the Caribbean that promote the long-term conservation of Neotropical migratory birds and their habitats. The goals of the Act include perpetuating healthy populations of these birds, providing financial resources for bird conservation initiatives, and fostering international cooperation for such initiatives. Texas Parks and Wildlife, Audubon, Partners in Flight and Gulf Coast Bird Obseratory (GCBO) manages this particular sanctuary where I have photographed birds. There are hundreds of different kinds of birds flying through our area while migrating to the northern part of the American continent and Canada. Some of the birds are indigenous to Texas but most of them are on their way to the north, dispersing across the continent as far as northern Canada. This event is called Neotropical Migration. During months between March and May the Neotropical migrants fly north from South American continent, Central America and Mexico. On this journey they have to cross the Gulf of Mexico. Audubon, Partners in Flight, GCBO and many more volunteers set up and maintain natural sanctuaries habitats along the Gulf Coast to give the migrants a place to stop, rest, natural food and fresh water. After a non stop flight (700/1000 miles) over gulf waters they are very tired and this gives the bird watchers and photographers a good opportunity to capture them with their binoculars and cameras.
Every time I visit Quintana I photograph at least three to five different kinds of birds and meet many dedicated bird watchers and photographers. Some are professional wildlife photographers and travelers from all over the world to observe and photograph this event.