Editing Grand Isle, Louisiana (section)

===Grand Isle Migratory Bird Festival===

The Grand Isle Migratory Bird Festival, held annually in April, was first established in 1997 by several nature organizations dedicated to the preservation and restoration of the Grand Isle's [[chenier]] habitat.<ref name="Bird Festival">{{cite web|title=The Grand Isle Migratory Bird Festival|url=http://grandisle.btnep.org/GrandIsleHome.aspx|publisher=Barataria-Terrebonne National Estuary Program|access-date=November 2, 2011|url-status=dead|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20111009000706/http://grandisle.btnep.org/GrandIsleHome.aspx|archive-date=October 9, 2011}}</ref> The idea for the project of preserving and establishing the chenier habitat in order for tourists and bird watchers to see the migratory birds was first established by the Grand Isle Community Development Team.  The project was then picked up a year later by the Barataria-Terrebonne Nation Estuary Program to help in the development and preservation of the habitat as well as the advertisement of the Grand Isle Migratory Bird Festival.

Originally, the festival was held on a single day, but due to increased popularity and funding, the festival has grown into a three-day event.<ref name="Bird Festival" /> Sponsors of the Grand Isle Migratory Bird Festival believe that future efforts will be more successful if more people are educated about not only the identification of the birds that migrate through the island, but also the identification and importance of the plants the birds utilize.  Each day during the festival, multiple tours are given throughout the diverse habitats of Grand Isle where experienced guides instruct beginner birders on the different techniques used to find and identify birds as well as the ecological aspects of the island.  Other tours are offered that guide visitors through the chenier forests and teach them about the native plants found on the island, including the species that are not only edible to birds but to people as well.  Other features of the festival include bird banding and mist netting demonstrations, seminars on what to look for when choosing a pair of binoculars or a spotting scope, as well as games and other activities.

Described as a barrier island, Grand Isle consists of mainly marsh habitat, beaches and chenier forests which attract numerous species of migratory birds.<ref name="Neyland">{{cite journal|last=Neyland|first=R|author2=Meyer H.|title=Species Diversity of Louisiana Chenier Woody Vegetation Remnants.|journal=Journal of the Torrey Botanical Society|volume=124|issue=3|pages=254–261|jstor=2996613|doi=10.2307/2996613|year=1997}}</ref> The presence of these hardwood forests allows for the seasonal arrival and departure of major flocks of birds that migrate across the Gulf of Mexico to South America during both the fall and spring migrations.<ref name="DeptInter">{{cite journal|last=Lincoln |first=FC |author2=SR Peterson |title=Migration of Birds |journal=U.S. Department of the Interior, U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service |volume=16 |pages=119–124 |url=http://www.npwrc.usgs.gov/resource/othrdata/migratio/migratio.htm |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20060411204406/http://www.npwrc.usgs.gov/resource/othrdata/migratio/migratio.htm |archive-date=April 11, 2006 }}</ref> The Migratory Bird Festival is held annually and coincides with the arrival of the spring migrants returning from their winter habitat in the south.