Passport to Texas

This is Passport to Texas

March is traditionally the month when students—from elementary school on up—have spring break. The coast is a popular destination for spring breakers, and our State Park guide, Bryan Frazier suggests they consider meeting in the middle.

40—I want to look at the middle coast of Texas, which is a traditional spring break spot. You have Goose Island State Park, and Mustang Island State Park. And, Mustang Island, over by Aransas Pass has five miles of beach…you can do beach camping and tent camping on the beach, you can do RV camping. And the water is great with the big surf waves and bird—it’s just fantastic. Goose Island is more bay front, but you’ve got campsites all along the bay; you can fish from your campsite and the picnic shelter’s there. It’s a great destination for spring break. You’re not far from Corpus Christi on either Goose island or Mustang Island, so there’s lots to do. And, it’s easy access. I wholeheartedly recommend it.

Thanks, Bryan.

That’s our show for today…with funding provided by Chevrolet…building dependable, reliable trucks for more than 90 years.

Visit the Parks and Wildlife website to reserve your campsite.

We record our series at Block House Studios…Joel Block engineers our program.

For Texas Parks and Wildlife…I’m Cecilia Nasti.

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This is Passport to Texas

The Wildlife and State Parks Divisions teamed up to make history in December 2010 with the reintroduction of desert bighorn sheep at Big Bend Ranch State Park.

13—Today is a historic day for the wildlife division and state parks, because this is one of our more significant wildlife conservation efforts, where we’re collaborating with state parks to reintroduce a species that hasn’t been here in decades.

Clayton Wolf is Wildlife Division Director. Using a helicopter and nets, biologists removed animals from Elephant Mountain Wildlife Management Area, and transported them by trailer to Big Bend Ranch, about an hour and a half away.

20—[helicopter] We’re capturing bighorn sheep, of course, and we’re transplanting them to Big Bend Ranch State Park. They’re part of our natural history out here in West Texas. They were here long before any of us showed up. They’re part of the natural ecosystem out there, and of course, that’s part of our mission to restore those species that have been out here. And, of course, bighorn sheep they’re a flagship species for these mountains.

The animals underwent testing, and most were fitted with radio transmitters, to track them over time.

11—Our bighorn sheep restoration program has been very successful. So, this is just one of those steps in the process. There’s a lot of other private land tracts and public land tracts we hope to restore sheep to one day.

Watch the bighorn sheep relocation effort when you log onto the Texas Parks and Wildlife YouTube channel.

That’s our show… with support from the Wildlife Restoration Program… funding bighorn sheep restoration work in Texas.

For Texas Parks and Wildlife…I’m Cecilia Nasti.

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This is Passport to Texas

Texas is home to hundreds of bird species, and Texas Parks and Wildlife TV Producer, Alan Fisher, explains how a couple of segments in March programming are for the birds.

We are featuring a story on quail—Northern Bobwhite quail are in decline across the US, faring better in Texas than some places, but it’s still a concern. Um, and we meet with some landowners and biologists who are trying to help the quail stay around.

It’s a small park with a whole mess of birds.

Thanks, Alan.

That’s our show… with support from the Sport Fish and Wildlife Restoration Program…providing funding for boat ramps in Texas.

For Texas Parks and Wildlife…I’m Cecilia Nasti.

TPW TV: For the Birds Play Now | Play in Popup | Download