Found an Injured Bird in Aransas County? Here’s How Our Community Can Help
Aransas Pathways has recently received calls from residents concerned about injured, sick, or orphaned birds. Each call reflects something special about Aransas County: our community notices wildlife, cares about its well-being, and is willing to help. Knowing whom to contact—and what to do while waiting—can give an injured wild bird its best chance of recovery. Contact Wings Rescue Center in Rockport When a wild bird needs assistance, contact Wings Rescue Center, a nonprofit avian rescue and wildlife rehabilitation organization based in Rockport, Texas. Founded in 2016 by Kay Adams, Wings Rescue Center is a state- and federally permitted rehabilitation center serving Aransas County and surrounding communities. Guided by its mission of “Rescue, Rehab, Release and Education,” Wings cares for birds ranging from hummingbirds and hatchlings to pelicans and birds of prey. Its goal is to rehabilitate injured, sick, and orphaned birds and return them safely to the wild whenever possible. A Volunteer-Run Community Resource Wings Rescue Center is operated entirely by volunteers. Its dedicated team responds to rescue calls, provides specialized feeding and care, maintains enclosures, coordinates medical treatment, and prepares recovering birds for release. Because volunteers may be caring for other birds, responding to rescues, or unavailable after hours, someone may not always answer immediately. If your call is not answered, leave a detailed message that includes: Your name and telephone numberThe bird’s locationIts approximate size or species, if knownA description of its conditionWhether the bird is contained or still outdoors Providing clear information helps volunteers understand the situation and determine the safest response. What to Do When Wings Rescue Center Is Closed If you find a small, non-dangerous bird and can safely contain it, place it in a secure, ventilated cardboard box lined with a clean towel. Keep the box indoors in a dark, quiet, temperature-controlled area away from children and pets until Wings Rescue Center reopens or a permitted rehabilitator provides instructions. Do not give the bird food or water unless directed by a wildlife rehabilitation professional. Feeding or giving water incorrectly may cause additional harm. Never attempt to handle a raptor, heron, pelican, or another large bird that could injure you. Keep people and pets at a safe distance and wait for professional guidance. Why Wildlife Rescue Matters to Our Community The people of Aransas County are often the first to notice when a wild bird is in distress. By observing carefully, reporting responsibly, and following expert guidance, every resident can help begin a bird’s rescue story. Wings Rescue Center provides the specialized knowledge and rehabilitation care, while concerned residents serve as the eyes, ears, and compassionate hearts of our community. Aransas Pathways is proud to help connect residents and visitors with the people and resources protecting the birds and habitats that make our county extraordinary. Caring for wildlife is part of caring for the place we call home. Wings Rescue Center Contact Information Wings Rescue Center324 W. Third St.Rockport, TX 78382Rescue line: (361) 205-0892Hours: 8 a.m.–5 p.m.Website: www.wingsrescue.com Please save and share this information with your family, neighbors, and fellow nature lovers. When our community knows whom to call and what to do, wildlife has a better chance.
Migration Monday: Kelly Bryan Shares Rare Arctic Tern News from the Texas Coast
Aransas Pathways is honored to feature an extraordinary birding report and photographs shared by respected Texas ornithologist Kelly B. Bryan. His observation of at least three Arctic Terns along North Padre Island offers a rare glimpse of one of the world’s greatest migratory travelers—and another remarkable chapter in the birding story of the Texas Coastal Bend. “For the second time in three years Arctic Terns have been found along North Padre Island during the summer,” Bryan reports. “To understand why this is unusual you have to consider the normal range of this long-distance migratory tern.” A Migratory Champion Far from Its Usual Range The Arctic Tern (Sterna paradisaea) breeds in the Arctic and subarctic regions of North America, Europe, and Asia. It then travels approximately 12,500 miles to waters near Antarctica, where it experiences another summer season. As seasons change in the Southern Hemisphere, the bird makes the long journey north again—completing an annual migration of more than 25,000 miles. During much of this extraordinary passage, Arctic Terns remain over the open ocean, resting on the wing above the waves. Their remarkable migration connects polar regions, oceans, shorelines, and coastal habitats across the world. Finding this species along the Texas coast during summer is highly unusual. Bryan notes that Texas has only 15 accepted records of the Arctic Tern. If accepted by the Texas Bird Records Committee of the Texas Ornithological Society, the current observation would become the state’s 16th accepted record. At least three birds are believed to be involved in the current sighting. They were initially discovered along North Padre Island on June 29 by Cameron Johnson and have since been observed by dozens of Texas birders. A similar occurrence involving one to three Arctic Terns was documented along North Padre Island between June 29 and August 27, 2024. Whether the current birds are the same individuals remains an intriguing but unanswered question because they are not banded. About Kelly Bryan Bird banding brings science to life at Linda S. Castro Nature Sanctuary during the Aransas Bird Days Festival in Rockport, Texas, on April 18, 2026. Kelly B. Bryan is a Texas ornithologist, licensed master bird bander, researcher, author, educator, and retired Texas Parks and Wildlife Department professional. He established the Limpia Canyon Bird Banding Station and founded the West Texas Hummingbird Project. Through decades of fieldwork, Bryan has helped advance the documentation and public understanding of bird migration, distribution, behavior, and conservation throughout Texas. His ability to place an unusual sighting within its scientific and historical context turns a moment of discovery into meaningful knowledge. Why This Matters to Aransas Pathways Although these Arctic Terns were observed on North Padre Island, their presence holds significance for the entire Coastal Bend. Birds do not recognize city or county boundaries. They depend upon an interconnected network of oceans, bays, wetlands, islands, shorelines, and native habitats throughout their journeys. A rare sighting in one part of the Coastal Bend reminds us that every healthy habitat contributes to a much larger migration story. Observations shared by experts like Kelly also demonstrate the importance of birders, photographers, researchers, and community scientists. Careful documentation can help expand knowledge of where birds travel, how they use coastal environments, and whether their patterns may be changing. For Aransas Pathways, this story strengthens our commitment to science-based interpretation, responsible birding, habitat conservation, public education, and nature tourism. It also reminds us that our region is part of a global flyway connecting wildlife—and people—across continents. Aransas Pathways sincerely thanks Kelly Bryan for sharing this wonderful news, his professional insight, and his remarkable photographs with our community. When observing rare or resting birds, please maintain a respectful distance, avoid disrupting feeding or resting behavior, and follow responsible birding and photography practices. Follow Aransas Pathways every Migration Monday as we celebrate the birds, people, and habitats connecting our corner of the Texas coast to the wider world. Bird photos courtesy of Kelly Bryan One County, Countless Adventures—Birding. History. Kayaking. Trails.
Where Every Step Carries a Story: Rockport’s Walking Legacy Finds a New Path
By Leah Medado, Aransas Pathways Admin and Events Coordinator At the edge of the Texas coast, Rockport wakes to the movement of water. Gulls circle above the bay, live oaks bend with the wind, and streets shaped by fishing, storms and generations of community life lead toward the shoreline. Here, a walk is never only a walk. It is a passage through nature, memory and place. A Walking Legacy, Carried Forward For years, Rockport Parks and Recreation carried the community’s connection to volkswalking through the Rockport Trailways Club. Its Rockport Sampler Volksmarch offered 6K and 8.5K routes beginning at the Tule Hike and Bike Trail. Walkers followed established trails and sidewalks through natural areas, historic sites and the waterfront, discovering Rockport one step at a time. The program demonstrated something lasting: A thoughtfully designed trail can do more than support exercise. It can open a community like a storybook, introduce visitors to its character and remind residents why their shared places matter. That spirit returned vividly during the 2024 Rockport-Fulton Paradise Walk. Walkers explored the area’s coastal scenery, history and community landmarks during a two-day event supported by walking organizations and local partners. The gathering affirmed that Rockport-Fulton remains a natural home for AVA walking. Today, stewardship of the Rockport Trailways Club has transitioned from Rockport Parks and Recreation to Aransas Pathways. This transition preserves the club’s roots while creating new opportunities for volunteer leadership, partnerships and community participation. An exploratory meeting with San Antonio Pathfinders Mike and Kathy Schwencke in January 2026 helped Aransas Pathways examine the club’s history and envision future opportunities. Established in 2011, Aransas Pathways connects people with Aransas County’s natural, historical, recreational and cultural resources through four pillars: birding, history, kayaking and trails. As Aransas Pathways celebrates its 15th anniversary, the revitalized club becomes part of Pathways in Motion—a new chapter connecting walking with wellness, conservation, heritage and responsible travel. Where Wellness Meets Stewardship The initiative is especially meaningful to the Trails pillar because one route can unite all four Pathways experiences. Walkers may hear shorebirds in a coastal habitat, pause at a historic home, follow the bayfront or discover an access point to a paddling trail. The landscape becomes more than scenery. It becomes something known—and therefore something worth protecting. Walking also provides a welcoming path to physical and mental well-being. AVA’s noncompetitive approach allows people of different ages, abilities and fitness levels to participate at their own pace. There are no winners or losers, only the shared experience of moving through a place with curiosity. Rockport’s revitalization can also advance AVA’s broader advocacy. It demonstrates how local government, volunteers, tourism partners, historians and conservation advocates can work together to sustain a walking club. It can introduce AVA to residents and coastal travelers, cultivate new volunteers and make lifelong walking more visible as a force for healthier people, connected communities and environmental stewardship. The Next Chapter Begins on the Coast The next chapter begins Oct. 17–18, 2026, with an AVA walking weekend on the Texas coast. On Oct. 17, Time & Tide: A Rockport Heritage Stroll will guide participants along 6K and 11K routes through historic neighborhoods, natural spaces, cultural landmarks, downtown Rockport and the bayfront. On Oct. 18, walkers will explore Fulton Harbor, where fishing traditions, coastal history and waterfront views tell another part of the Rockport-Fulton story. Future Year-Round Events will invite walkers to return in every season—to stay longer, explore more deeply and become part of the community’s continuing story. The trail began under Rockport Parks and Recreation, but its journey is far from finished. Every renewed route, every volunteer and every walker now carries the legacy forward. Every step tells a story. Come walk this one with us. Rockport-Fulton, Texas | Oct. 17–18, 2026
Aransas Pathways Marks 15 Years and Begins a New Chapter as a Texan by Nature Conservation Partner
Milestone partnership expands statewide visibility, collaboration and opportunities for conservation-centered visitor and volunteer engagement. ROCKPORT, Texas — Aransas Pathways is celebrating 15 years of connecting residents and visitors with the natural and cultural heritage of Aransas County and has been accepted as an official Conservation Partner of Texan by Nature. The milestone opens a new chapter for the county program by linking its local work with a statewide network committed to conservation that benefits people, prosperity and natural resources. For 15 years, Aransas Pathways has helped people discover Rockport-Fulton through birding, history, kayaking, and hike-and-bike trails. Its sites, programs and community partnerships invite people of different ages and abilities to explore, learn and care for the places that make the Texas Coastal Bend distinctive. From local legacy to statewide opportunity Through its Texan by Nature affiliation, Aransas Pathways can build greater awareness of local conservation and stewardship, exchange ideas with more than 200 conservation partners across Texas, connect with businesses and nonprofit organizations, and identify new ways to engage volunteers. These connections may support conservation education, accessible outdoor recreation, responsible visitation and community-based storytelling. The partnership also complements Aransas Pathways’ anniversary message, “Be Part of the Pathways Story.” During its 15th year, the program is highlighting the people, places and partnerships that built Pathways while inviting a broader and increasingly diverse audience to help shape its future. “Pathways at 15 is more than a celebration; it is an invitation. We want residents, visitors, volunteers, educators and partners to see themselves as part of this story. The Texan by Nature network can help us create meaningful ways for people to visit, learn, volunteer and give back.”— Leah Medado, Aransas Pathways Administrative & Events Coordinator As future priorities and approvals advance, Aransas Pathways will explore opportunities to apply the partnership to visitor-experience and stewardship planning, including possibilities connected with Copano Cove (Bailey Ranch). Potential areas include visiting-volunteer and voluntourism programs, conservation-focused business engagement, adaptive and accessible outdoor experiences, and interpretation that helps visitors understand how to enjoy and protect local resources. Aransas Pathways will continue working with County leadership, its Steering Committee, program volunteers and community partners as opportunities are evaluated and developed. About Aransas Pathways Aransas Pathways is an Aransas County program that connects people with the area’s natural and cultural heritage through birding, history, kayaking, and hike-and-bike trails. Its mission is to celebrate and preserve the natural beauty and history of Rockport-Fulton while creating opportunities for discovery, outdoor recreation, education and conservation. Learn more at aransaspathways.com. About Texan by Nature Texan by Nature brings business and conservation together to amplify conservation projects and activate new investments that return benefits for people, prosperity and natural resources. Its statewide Conservation Partner network supports visibility, collaboration and shared learning among organizations working across Texas. Learn more at texanbynature.org.
Take Your Shot: Explore Texas History This Summer
Every historic place has a story waiting to be discovered. This summer, the Texas Historical Commission is inviting Texans and visitors alike to participate in the Summer Snapshot Challenge, a statewide initiative that encourages exploration of Texas State Historic Sites through photography and storytelling. From Memorial Day through Labor Day, participants can visit a Texas State Historic Site, take a photo of themselves or their group, and submit their snapshot for a chance to win prizes throughout the summer. For Aransas Pathways, this opportunity aligns perfectly with our History Pillar and our mission of connecting people, places, stories, and experiences. Historic sites help us understand the people, cultures, and events that shaped our communities and continue to inspire future generations. Whether you are exploring the iconic Fulton Mansion State Historic Site, discovering coastal heritage, or visiting other historic destinations across Texas, every journey offers an opportunity to create lasting memories and deepen your connection to the stories that define our state. Travel is more than reaching a destination. It is about experiencing the places that tell the story of who we are. How to Participate Submission Link:https://form.jotform.com/261375982392064 At Aransas Pathways, we encourage everyone to explore, learn, and share the stories that make Texas unique. Where will your next story begin? About Aransas Pathways Aransas Pathways connects people, places, stories, and experiences throughout Aransas County through birding, history, trails, and kayaking. Together, these pathways help residents and visitors discover the natural beauty, heritage, and culture of our coastal community. One County. Countless Adventures.