Passport to Texas

This is Passport to Texas

If you live in an area that used to be coyote habitat –chances are it still is.

10—The coyotes are here to stay. Cities and private individuals – on a regular basis – try to remove the coyotes from an area. But the thing is – they are incredibly adaptable.

Brett Johnson is an urban wildlife biologist in Dallas County.

06—They can make a better living in an urban area than they can out in the country. There are more food resources available.

Such as bird seed with corn, and especially pet food left outdoors. The latter could put your pet at risk. Brett uses cats as an example.

20—The coyotes come in a few times and end up eating the cat food. Somewhere down the road, they come in and find the cat eating the cat food. How do most canines react when they find something else eating their food? At that point in time you may have just entered the cat as a prey species for the coyote when they realize, ‘Oh. They’re not that hard to kill.’

You control whether coyotes keep a safe distance or become a nuisance.

10—Do not let the coyotes become comfortable hanging around human inhabited areas; don’t make pets accessible to the coyotes; and overall, don’t make your living area attractive to the coyotes.

The Sport Fish and Wildlife Restoration program supports our series and is funded by your purchase of fishing and hunting equipment and motor boat fuels…

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

Protecting Pets from Coyotes Play Now | Play in Popup | Download

This is Passport to Texas

When a coyote visits your neighborhood, don’t put out the welcome mat.

05—If the coyotes are coming into a residential area, and you see one, first off – try to scare it.

Brett Johnson is an urban wildlife biologist in Dallas County.

21—They’re not these frightening animals that are out to hurt you. So, if you see one, yell at it and either hit it with water from a water hose, or the other option is to throw something in its general direction. Be it a small stick, in some cases if you have to, even a small rock. Not something that’s going to hurt the animal…but just something where that animal feels a physical contact in addition to your yelling.

After creating this negative association with humans, it’s important to try and figure out why they’re attracted to the neighborhood.

20—If they’re coming through a neighborhood and they’ve decided to stay there, usually that means they’ve found an abundant food source of some variety. And in an urban area, that usually means they’re going after pet food. So, there, the simple thing is, we have to change some of our human behavior and not leave a constant source of pet food outside all the time.

Tomorrow: protecting pets from visiting coyotes.

The Sport Fish and Wildlife Restoration program supports our show…and is funded by your purchase of fishing and hunting equipment and motor boat fuels…

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

Managing Urban Coyotes Play Now | Play in Popup | Download

This is Passport to Texas

You know the story: rural land inhabited by wildlife, developed for suburban life, receives unwelcome visitation by the previous tenants.

07—We can coexist with the wildlife in the urban areas, but to do so – in many cases – we need a change of attitude.

Brett Johnson is an urban wildlife biologist in Dallas County; he educates communities about wildlife — especially coyotes – that occasionally visit the hood.

20—People tend to have one of two reactions when they see a coyote. And those two reactions are, either they are afraid and back away from it, and basically allow the coyote to continue doing whatever it’s doing at that time. Or, they get all excited and want to see how close they can get to it.

Neither reaction is suitable when developing an appropriate human / coyote relationship, says Johnson.

05—Either one of those two reactions are going to cause the coyote to become more and more comfortable around humans.

Once these animals lose their fear of humans, they can become a nuisance. Tomorrow: dealing with coyotes.

05—If the coyotes are coming into a residential area, and you see one, first off – try to scare it.

The Sport Fish and Wildlife Restoration program supports our show…and it’s funded by your purchase of fishing and hunting equipment and motor boat fuels…

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

Problems with Urban Coyotes Play Now | Play in Popup | Download

This is Passport to Texas

If wildflowers haven’t popped up yet where you live, they will soon—it’s what they do this time of year. And as our State park Guide, Bryan Frazier tells us, even non-Texans flock to the flowers when they bloom.

61—Not just all over the US, but all over the world, who come in to see out beautiful bluebonnets, and Indian Paintbrushes, and Indian Blankets, and Evening Primrose, and all of those flowers that make Texas this pallet of color in the spring. And whether you’re talking about Washington County and state parks like Washington-on-the-Brazos, or McKinney Falls, or LBJ State Park in the Hill Country—and even down in South Texas like lake Corpus Christi State Park, or even up in North Texas, you can see lost of different regionalized color for wildflowers, and this time of year is the time to do it. If we’ve had any seasonal rains at all you can even get them out in the Big Bend area—which are some of the most unique flowers you’re going to see any time. It’s a great time to get out and take photographs, and people love to take their children out there. Be safe, because some other animals and critters, sometimes little snakes and things, like the cover and the shade of the wildflowers. So, take your steps carefully and deliberately, but get out and enjoy the beautiful color that’s about to come our way with wildflower season all across Texas.

Thanks, Bryan.

Find more information at texasstateparks.org.

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

Wildflowers in State Parks Play Now | Play in Popup | Download

This is Passport to Texas

Spring has sprung, and birds are everywhere making a glorious racket. Texas Parks and Wildlife magazine Editor, Louie Bond, says the May issue captures this fine feathered fun.

63—You know, every morning you wake up and the first thing you hear are those wonderful birds singing outside our window in a buzz of activity with nest building and fledglings leaving the nest. It’s a great time of the year to get outdoors and take a look at those birds. One of the things I think we do best is bring in experts to write about what they love best. So, this month, we have a couple of experts—one who has been a regular contributor, and one who’s brand new. Our regular contributor is Noreen Damude, and she writes about her favorite birding hot spots. And these aren’t really the traditional ones; this is akin to a fisherman telling you where the best places to fish [are]. Our other writer is a new writer for us, Manny Carasco, who is a great wildlife artist, but is also an expert falconer, and trains his own birds, and takes out a variety of birds in a variety of settings for a variety of prey. And his first hand account of how that goes down is some pretty fascinating reading. We’ll also provide the birding calendar, so if you want to try it on your own, you’ll know all the great places to go in your neck of the woods, or to take a trip. So, we hope you’ll get out and bird in May.

Thanks, Louie.

Don’t miss an issue. Subscribe at www.tpwmagazine.com.

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

TPW Magazine: Birds and More Birds Play Now | Play in Popup | Download