Cedar Hill highlights Bird City Texas recertification, conservation programs and rare species findings

Katie Christmas, Cedar Hill’s nature and open space coordinator, told the City Council on Sept. 9 that the city was recertified in 2025 as a Bird City Texas, a community-focused designation administered by Audubon Texas and the Texas Parks and Wildlife Department.

Christmas said the city’s certification—originally awarded in 2022 and now renewed—rests on three pillars: community engagement, habitat enhancement and protection, and ongoing programming. She said Cedar Hill will carry action-year work through the next three-year cycle and will be eligible for recertification again in 2028.

Christmas and Parks and Recreation staff highlighted local assets that support the designation, including 52 parks, about 36 miles of trails and “over 200 species of birds” recorded within city limits. She said the city maintains roughly 16% open space and emphasized partnerships with Dogwood Canyon Audubon Center, Cedar Hill State Park and volunteer groups such as master naturalists and conservation allies.

Christmas described several community programs tied to the Bird City work, including backyard bird counts, a world migratory bird day event, native-plant and container-planting classes, youth fishing outings at the state park and interpretive programs at a bird blind in the signature park. She said staff prioritize low-cost or free events to reduce barriers to participation.

On biodiversity and conservation, Christmas summarized recent surveys and monitoring conducted with Texas Parks and Wildlife staff and outside partners. She said surveys at Singleton Preserve and Dogwood Canyon documented hundreds of species, that an urban wildlife biologist’s summer biodiversity work catalogued roughly 691 individual species, and that audio recordings and field surveys detected the endangered golden-cheeked warbler at Dogwood Canyon Audubon Center and at Cedar Mountain Preserve this year.

Christmas also noted a first county record: field work at Singleton Preserve documented a cone‑footed spider that she said was the first recorded instance in Dallas County. She framed those findings as evidence of the ecological value of maintaining connected open space—what staff describe as the Great Greenway linking preserves and parklands.

Council members and staff praised the recertification and thanked Christmas and partners for programming and habitat work. Parks staff said they will continue trainings for staff and volunteers, invasive-species removal projects such as privet removal, and native-planting efforts to support monarch butterflies and other pollinators.

Christmas invited the council and public to upcoming events and pointed attendees to a Cedar Hill Bird City website and a QR code with more information. She said staff will continue to adjust action priorities during the current certification period.

Ending — The presentation was informational; no formal council action or vote on the Bird City program occurred during the Sept. 9 briefing.