An informal 16th Annual Great Texas Birding Classic will be held this month, and the Texas Parks and Wildlife Department will spend the next year planning a newly envisioned Birding Classic for 2013.

This year’s classic will use the TPWD Web site (www.tpwd. state.tx.us/huntwild/wild/birding/ gtbc/) as a place to highlight each team’s efforts.

The Web site will be updated with team listings as information is received. To be include a team on the list, e-mail TPWD Nature Tourism manager Shelly Plante (shelly.plante@tpwd.state.tx.us) by Wednesday, April 11. Teams will be sent a short form to fill out that will include the team name, tournament category, members, etc.

No registration fees are required for this year only since it is an informal event, and no conservation grants will be awarded by TPWD.

Due to the informality of the event, dates are flexible. The tourney was originally scheduled for April 14-22, but teams may feel free to go out on the date that works best for them.

In addition to listing teams on the TPWD Birding Classic Web site, teams may use the Birding Classic Facebook page to post photos, team stories, species totals, and other tales from the field.