Passport to Texas

Passport to Texas from Texas Parks and Wildlife

The Great Texas Birding Classic is April 27 through May 4. Shelley Plante, nature tourism coordinator for Parks and Wildlife, says there is a tournament for every age group.

We have kids teams for thirteen and under; we call it the rough wings tournament. It’s always a lot of fun. Birders of that age group go out about eight hours during the day, so it’s not a huge, long day. And we have a teenager competition called the Gliders. We also have adults, and we have something called the Big Sit, which is like a big tailgate party for birders. And any age can compete, and those teams can have up to ten people on them, whereas the other teams are only three to five people—enough to fit in a car, basically.

The Energy Saver tournament is new this year.

Our concern was, we have all of these people that are driving around the Texas coast for habitat conservation, and they are burning fossil fuels in the process. So, why don’t we have more than just the Big Sit as something that people can do in a more stationary way. So, the Energy Saver tournament, people are required to go at least fifty miles, but they can just do fifty miles. And the winning team is the team that sees the most species per mile. And they are going to be eligible for a new ten thousand dollar grant project that they get to fund.

Money raised from the Birding Classic funds coastal conservation projects. Learn more at passporttotexas.org.

That’s our show… For Texas Parks and Wildlife…I’m Cecilia Nasti.
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CLICK HERE to read about past year’s highlights.

 

 Great Texas Birding Classic, Part 2 of 2: Play Now | Play in Popup | Download

Passport to Texas from Texas Parks and Wildlife and the Wildlife Restoration Program

Spring migration brings out the birdwatcher in all of us. The twelfth Annual Great Texas Birding Classic offers birders from across North America a chance to spot species for a cause.

The birding classic is a great event to go out in the field and see as many birds as possible with your friends and families for a great cause, which is habitat conservation on the Texas coast.

Shelley Plante is nature tourism coordinator for Parks and Wildlife. This year’s Birding Classic is April 27 through May 4. Teams pay entry fees, which fund habitat conservation.

We’ve now donated five hundred and seventy eight thousand dollars to habitat conservation projects on the Texas coast. Acquisition and restoration are the things that people want to fund; the teams are the ones that get to pick which projects get funded every year, and they consistently pick restoration and acquisition projects, because that’s what we need for the birds that migrating. We need more habitat that is pristine and in its natural state, either by restoring habitat that is already owned, or by acquiring habitat that might do on to development.

While team registration is over, statewide nature-viewing opportunities are not.

We have a migration calendar of events that comes out every year in the May issue of Texas Parks and Wildlife magazine. And that lists activities from May of 2008 through May of 2009 that you can do statewide.

Learn more about the Classic at passporttotexas.org.

That’s our show… For Texas Parks and Wildlife…I’m Cecilia Nasti.
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MIGRATION EVENTS IN APRIL

April 3 — 6

FeatherFest 2008 — Galveston. A birding and general nature festival focusing on the birds of the Upper Texas Coast during early spring (late wintering birds, early spring trans-gulf migrants and many all season birds). Expert led seminars on many topics, field trips by bus, boat and kayak, activities for non-birding spouses and signature socials. Registration: $30/person; Cost varies for specific activities. 5 a.m. — 5 p.m. (409) 392-0841; www.galvestonfeatherfest.com.

April 12 — 14

19th Annual Spring Native Plant Sale — Heard Natural Science Museum & Wildlife Sanctuary, McKinney. Check out over 300 varieties of native Texas plants such as trees, shrubs, perennials, vines and grasses! All sales are tax-free. Free entry. Friday: 4 — 7 p.m. (members only); Saturday: 9 a.m. — 5 p.m.; Sunday: 1 — 5 p.m. (972) 562-5566; www.heardmuseum.org.

 

 Great Texas Birding Classic, Part 1 of 2: Play Now | Play in Popup | Download

Passport to Texas from Texas Parks and Wildlife

When Hurricane Humberto made landfall along the Texas coast last September, High Island, an important sanctuary for migratory birds, got hit hard. The April issue of TP&W Magazine follows the efforts of volunteers who brought the island back to life. Managing Editor, Louie Bond.

When you talk about damaging hurricanes, I think everybody thinks about Katrina and Rita. But actually, Hurricane Humberto was the fastest-growing hurricane in US history. And, unfortunately, the bull’s-eye hit High Island, which is a wonderful bird sanctuary. And, it’s an important stopover for neotropical birds who are coming north from Central and South America to their spring nesting places in North America. There’s marshland all around, and there’s just beautiful little secluded sanctuary where the birds can stop and rest and then continue on their way. And when Humberto came around, it uprooted centuries-old trees, tore up boardwalks, and just did incredible damage. But luckily, volunteers came on the weekends—members of the Houston Audubon Society—and they worked and worked and they cleaned up the debris and rebuilt the boardwalks. And now, I’m glad to say High Island has been totally restored and will be ready for the visiting birds this spring.

Thanks for the great news, Louie. Learn more about High Island at passporttotexas.org.

That’s our show for today… For Texas Parks and Wildlife…I’m Cecilia Nasti.

 

 TP&W April Magazine Preview: Play Now | Play in Popup | Download

Passport to Texas from Texas Parks and Wildlife

Until recently, I did not know hummingbirds ate insects.

Well, if you think about it, an animal that’s swinging it’s arms at 72 times a second, needs something to rebuild those muscles that it’s exercising in there. And, without protein, they’re not going to build muscle.

So, if you find insects, such as bees, snacking at your hummingbird feeder, Mark Klym says, don’t panic.

People get all excited when bees get around their hummingbird feeder. And, bees are a great food for hummingbirds. I’ve watched them take bees out of the air.

Klym coordinates the Texas Hummingbird Roundup, a citizen science project where folks like you help biologists take stock of hummers.

We ask people to have a look out in the backyard once a week, about fifteen, twenty minutes a week, and give us a count of what birds [hummingbirds] you’re seeing out there. How many? What Species? What are they using? And then, if you see anything unusual—you find a nest, you see mating behavior—we ask you to record it and let us know about it. Once a year we have these forms sent back in and right now we’re reviewing the data from the 2007 season.

Download an information packet about the roundup, and find out where you can purchase a hummingbird identification wheel at passporttotexas.org.

That’s our show… For Texas Parks and Wildlife…I’m Cecilia Nasti.

 

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Passport to Texas from Texas Parks and Wildlife

If you’ve never seen a hummingbird in your part of Texas, it’s not because they aren’t around.

There’s not a county in Texas where you won’t see at least two species of hummingbird. In fact, there’s not a state in the United States—with the exception of Hawaii—that doesn’t have at least two hummingbird species.

Okay, maybe that is not a lot of hummers, but they are out there. Mark Klym coordinates the Texas hummingbird Roundup. He says Texas has 18 species of hummingbirds, and one region boasts the most.

Certainly the greatest variety would be in the David Mountains area. The David Mountains and the Chisos Mountains—out in West Texas.

If you want to attract hummingbirds passing through the area, you could put up feeders, but Klym says there is a better way.

That feeder, even in a good garden, is nothing more than a fast food stop. You want to provide plants that these birds can go to for nectar. But also, you want to provide plants that will attract insects, because these birds are heavy insect eaters.

At passporttotexas.org, find links to hummingbird appropriate plants, as well as information on how you can participate in the Hummingbird Roundup.

That’s our show… For Texas Parks and Wildlife…I’m Cecilia Nasti.
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Find the top hummingbird plants as recommended by About.com: http://birding.about.com/library/weekly/aa053001a.htm

 

 Hummingbirds in Texas: Play Now | Play in Popup | Download