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Natural Awakenings Dallas -Fort Worth Metroplex Edition

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Audubon Notes Sighting of Rare Bird in Dogwood Canyon

A small, migratory songbird, the golden-cheeked warbler, is a bird in decline that has been sighted at Dogwood Canyon Audubon. Amateur naturalist David Hurt discovered a stand of flowering dogwoods (cornus florida) in 1999, a rare and remarkable find, as the flowering dogwood is common to the piney woods and post oak belts of East Texas, but is generally absent from shallow clay soils of limestone regions to the west.

Usually only the oldest Ashe junipers, with their loose, peeling bark, suit the golden-cheeked warbler as the right place to build their nests. The ancient junipers in the canyon provide protection and freedom from disturbance that these endangered birds need to rebuild their fragile population, so Dogwood Canyon provides the perfect habitat for this endangered songbird. The goldencheeked warbler can be seen at number of other state lands and sanctuaries.

For more than a century, Audubon has built a legacy of conservation success by mobilizing the strength of its network of members, chapters, Audubon centers, state offices and dedicated professional staff to connect people with nature and the power to protect it.


For more information, visit Dogwood Canyon Nature Park at DogwoodCanyon.org.