Birds of The Marsh and What They Mean for Seasonal Fishing – Why Birds Might Be the Best Fishing Report You’ve Never Checked
Every angler checks the tide charts. Fewer check the sky.
But out in the back marshes of the Galveston Bay Complex, the birds working the shoreline are running a live fishing report every single day — and most of us run right past it. Egrets pacing a shallow flat, spoonbills lifting off a drain, terns diving over nervous bait: it’s all a language, and once you learn to read it, you’ll never look at the marsh the same way again.
That’s exactly what Texas Fly Fishers is diving into at our next guest speaker night Matt Parrish, and he couldn’t be more excited to share it with the club.
What: An evening with Matt Parrish of Empty Stringers — Birds of the Marsh and What They Mean for Seasonal Fishing
When: Tuesday, September 29, 2026, 7:00 – 9:00 PM
Where: St. Thomas Presbyterian Church, Fellowship Hall — 14110 Memorial Drive, Houston, TX 77079
Meet the Expert
Matt Parrish has spent his life paying close attention — to wiring, to lyrics, to water. By day, he’s a working electrician. By night, he’s a singer-songwriter. And somewhere in between, he became one of the most respected fishing guides working the ultra-shallow back country marshland of the Galveston Bay Complex.
Matt runs Empty Stringers guide service, where he poles clients into skinny water most boats can’t touch, chasing redfish and trout in country that rewards patience and observation. He’s also the host of the Empty Stringers podcast, where he’s spent years breaking down the small, overlooked details that separate a good day on the water from a great one — and birds are near the top of that list.
Few people have logged as many hours quietly watching a marsh do what it does. Matt doesn’t just fish the Galveston Bay Complex — he reads it, and on this podcast he’s generous about teaching others to do the same. You can hear more of his story and his approach at emptystringerspodcast.com.
What You’ll Learn
Matt’s talk will focus on the marsh birds you’re already seeing on the water — and what they’re actually telling you. Here’s a preview of what’s in store:
How to identify the marsh’s key “indicator species.” Not every bird means the same thing. Matt will walk through the herons, egrets, spoonbills, and terns worth watching, and what each one’s behavior signals about bait, water depth, and feeding activity nearby.
How bird behavior shifts with the seasons — and what that means for your game plan. As water temperatures change and bait migrates, bird activity changes with it. Matt will connect those seasonal patterns to where and how he adjusts his own approach on the Galveston Bay Complex throughout the year.
How to turn birds into a real-time decision-making tool on the water. This is the practical payoff: instead of running and gunning on a hunch, you’ll leave with a simple framework for reading working birds and putting that information to work before you ever make a cast.
Whether you’re a lifelong marsh angler or brand-new to fly fishing the Texas coast, this is the kind of talk that changes how you see the water.
Join Us
Come early, bring a friend, and get ready for an evening of great stories and even better fishing knowledge with fellow Texas Fly Fishers. Doors open at 6:00 PM.
What: An evening with Matt Parrish of Empty Stringers — Birds of the Marsh and What They Mean for Seasonal Fishing
When: Tuesday, September 29, 2026, 7:00 – 9:00 PM
Where: St. Thomas Presbyterian Church, Fellowship Hall — 14110 Memorial Drive, Houston, TX 77079
Seating is plentiful, so we’d love for you to come join us. — We’ll see you at the meeting on September 29th!