Passport to Texas

Foraged feast; image courtesy of Edible Austin, www.edibleaustin.com

Foraging: The Wild Harvest Play Now | Play in Popup | Download

Before grocery stores, humans acquired their sustenance directly from nature. Hunting was part of that culture.

09— The other side of the culture, which is very ancient, is the gathering side. So, I wanted to do something about gathering and just let people know what’s out there for the taking.

Dyanne Cortez calls herself a gatherer.

14— I started gathering when I was about 19, when I discovered wild mustang grapes. To me, it’s like this stuff is out there, and it’s almost an insult to Mother Nature if I don’t go make use of it.

She wrote an article for the August/September issue of Texas Parks and Wildlife magazine about gathering and using wild Texas fruit.

30—Well, the article focuses on persimmons, plums; we also cover prickly pears, agarita berries, and wild grapes. And dewberries – which are the wild blackberries that are found in odd little places. We talk about where to find them, how to harvest them, the best season to harvest, and how to clean and prepare them. And then we’re going to have a web extra that has recipes to get people started.

The dos and don’ts of gathering wild fruit tomorrow; Dyanne Cortez’ article is in the August / September issue of Texas Parks and Wildlife Magazine.

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

Birding in the Rio Grande Valley

Birding: Big List Birding Pitfalls Play Now | Play in Popup | Download

With enough time and money, dedicated birders can compile “life lists” (of species they’ve observed) numbering in the thousands.

11— Their lists are their life experiences. When they look through the list they can relive the incredible memories they’ve had traveling the world, going to exotic places, and seeing incredible things.

Russell Roe, managing editor of Texas Parks and Wildlife magazine, wrote about “big listers” for the August / September issue. These folks exceeded the 8,000-bird level; only about two dozen people in the world can claim this accomplishment. Why so few? Chasing after the big list affects more than just the birder.

11— You do hear tales of birders who spend months on the road, and miss their family’s birthdays and strain their marriages and everything else.

What motivates these people? Roe says for one subject in his article named David Shackelford, it was a chance encounter with a bird.

23— David Shackelford grew up at Pedernales Falls State Park, and he told the story of having this encounter with a Golden Cheeked Warbler. He was climbing up a cliff to get a closer look at a plant. And he heard a Golden Cheeked Warbler; it landed on his finger. He just had this incredible connection to this bird. To me, he was always trying to relive that connection by going out and trying to find all these birds in the world.

Read this article in the August/September 2013 issue of Texas Parks and Wildlife Magazine.

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

Birders at the beach, image Texas Parks and Wildlife

Birding: Big List Birders Play Now | Play in Popup | Download

There are birders…and then there are birders.

15— Some birders can spend a lot of time and a lot of money and they’ll see maybe four thousand or five thousand birds in their lifetime. So, seeing eight thousand birds like these two people have, really requires very extensive amounts of travel where you’re going to every single corner of the globe.

The two people are David Shackelford and Phil Rostron. Writer, Russell Roe, penned an article about the men for the August/September issue of Texas Parks and Wildlife Magazine.

He says these men rank among the top ten “big listers” worldwide. They have each seen and listed more than 8-thousand bird species apiece.

08— There are about 10-thousand known species, and once you get up to those certain levels, it gets harder and harder to reach another level.

Reaching new levels is not just harder, it is also more expensive…

12—Phil Rostron says his cost per bird keeps going up Every trip he used to see maybe 200 new species on a trip, and now he’s lucky to see 20 new species on a trip. And he’s spending the same amount of money on the same type of trip.

More on big list birding tomorrow… Find this article in the August/September 2013 issue of Texas Parks and Wildlife Magazine.

Support provided by Ram Trucks. Doing what’s right and good regardless of the degree of difficulty — takes guts. Those are the people who build Ram trucks. RAM.

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

Engaging the Outdoors, Image courtesy www.projectwild.org

Education: Project Wild Play Now | Play in Popup | Download

Kiki Corry is the Project Wild Coordinator for Texas Parks and Wildlife.

10 – Project Wild is an environmental and conservation education program. It is nationally recognized and distributed internationally. And, Texas Parks and Wildlife is the sponsor here in Texas.

Corry trains the facilitators who make Project Wild training workshops available to teachers.

11 – Some of them are teachers. Some of them work for nature preserves or camps, and they want to be qualified to train their staff. They like to contribute to the environmental literacy of the public.

Not all educators taking the workshops are classroom teachers.

20 – Not necessarily just classroom teachers, but also people at preserves and zoos and museums—people who run summer camps. Because this is a very active curriculum, quite often the activities look like a game, but when they’re done properly, the participants in what looked like a game, come away with a much deeper understanding of different environmental concepts.

Learn how to include Project Wild in your curriculum on the Texas Parks and Wildlife.

The Wildlife and Sport Fish 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.

Texas Water Smart

Conservation: Texas Water Smart Play Now | Play in Popup | Download

Despite recent rains in some parts of the state, Texas continues to suffer from withering drought conditions, which could worsen as summer continues.

While we can’t control Mother Nature, we can control our water use by developing water-conscious habits – especially when it comes to our lawns and gardens, where most home water use and waste occurs.

A new effort called Texas Water Smart provides water-conserving guidelines to help Texans reduce their water use.

Texas Water Smart tips include: Water your lawn or garden in the morning when temperatures are cooler to minimize evaporation. Adjust sprinklers so you water only your lawn and not the driveway or street.

Use a broom instead of a hose to clean your driveway and sidewalk. Install a rain sensor on your irrigation system so it won’t run when it’s raining. When necessary, replace ornamental plants with water conscious varieties…and periodically check outdoor faucets, sprinklers and hoses for leaks.

These simple acts can save thousands of gallons of water annually for your household, and for Texas. Plus, it helps keep more money in your pocket…and that’s no drop in the bucket. More tips at texaswatersmart.com.

Support provided by Ram Trucks. Doing what’s right and good regardless of the degree of difficulty — takes guts. Those are the people who build Ram trucks. RAM.

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