Passport to Texas

Urban wildlife at Lake Corpus Christi — Northern Raccoon.

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Some of Texas’ greatest thinkers, including San Antonio Businessman and Philanthropist, Louis Stutman, and Dr. Roger Tory Peterson, Ornithologist, Writer, Educator, talk about striking a crucial balance about the stewardship between our states’ economy and our natural resources.

You’re in an enormously changing environment – doubling a population in your lifetime. With that happening, you’ve got to be sure that those people have jobs, transportation; you’ve got to be sure they’ve got a place to live. And at the same time, to be sure that the wildlife and the other things aren’t frozen out.

My problem is that I don’t understand this thing of growth, because growth eventually kills itself jut by size.

Hear more from Mr. Stutman and Dr. Peterson on the TPW TV series on your PBS station. Check local listings.

That’s our show for today… Funding provided in part by Ram Trucks. Guts. Glory. Ram. For Texas Parks and Wildlife, I’m Cecilia Nasti.

Crab trap removal from Texas bays

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Crab traps—abandoned by their owners in Texas bays—continue to snare crabs, sport fish and other marine life. Since 2002 TPW, its partners and volunteers have removed traps annually during a 10 day cleanup.

04— And we’ve removed 30,449 traps to date.

Coastal biologist, Art Morris, says one derelict trap can ensnare 26 crabs a year; since the removal program, a half million crabs have been spared. This year’s cleanup is February 21 through March second.

14— Anytime during that closure, anybody can remove traps from the bays. But, on Saturday the 22nd, we’ll have our main event day, where we have our staff facilitating some of the sites on the coast and some of our partners will be facilitating some of our sites on the coast.

The program welcomes volunteers with boats, as well as those who wish to work on shore.

18—We will pass out gloves and tarps for people; we will have water available at our facilitated sites. All ages can participate. We’ve had boy scout troops come out and help out. We’ve had the elderly and everybody in between that’s spent significant time doing this.

At some locations along the coast, partners and volunteers even have cleanup parties.

11— There are some places that have barbeques and hot dog and hamburger grills going. Some of these places have had a party every year and really get into it.

Contact your local coastal fisheries field stations, or visit the TPW website for details about getting involved.

The Sport Fish Restoration program Supports our series…For Texas Parks and Wildlife I’m Cecilia Nasti.

Picking up abandoned crab traps in Texas bays

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Crab traps lost or forgotten in the gulf kill crabs as well as other marine and shore life.

04— But blue crabs, stone crabs, and sheepshead are the big three.

Throughout the years rogue traps have ensnared countless species of game and sport fish, says coastal biologist, Art Morris.

22— We’ve [also] seen things like Diamondback Terrapins—which are a species of special concern—as well as river prawns, other turtles (not sea turtles, but other freshwater turtles). We’ve removed the remains of an otter out of a trap; we’ve seen the remains of birds that have been caught in these traps once the traps have been washed onshore. These are prolific killing machines.

Prior to 2002, only Game Wardens or the trap owners could remove the devices legally from surf or shore. Until then, the derelict traps kept racking up kills. But in 2001, the Texas legislature stepped in.

19— The Texas Legislature saw to it that we [TPWD] needed authority to create an abandoned crab trap removal program. And the grated us the authority to do that. And what that looks like today is a 10 day closure for the use of traps; any traps that are left in the water [during that time] are considered abandoned and classified as litter. So, anybody can remove them.

We’ll have details about the 2014 Crab Trap Cleanup – and how you can help – on tomorrow’s show.

The Wildlife and Sport Fish Restoration Program supports our series…For Texas Parks and Wildlife I’m Cecilia Nasti.

Birders on the lookout for…well…birds.

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Texas provides important habitat for species migrating throughout the US and North America. The annual Great Texas Birding Classic – April 15th through May 15th –raises money to conserve that habitat.

09—By paying entry fees, by getting a sponsor for your team, you are donating money to grants that we’re going to award for habitat projects here in our state.

Shelly Plant nature tourism manager for TPW, says the tournament is statewide this year, with an expanded date range, creating new opportunities for birders.

26—We have made this so easy for anyone, anywhere in the state to participate. You can now go in your backyard; you can go down the street to your favorite park. You can travel wherever you wanted and you can do this anywhere. In addition, by having it open from April 15 to May 15, it makes it very easy to blend with whatever your schedule is. So, hopefully, we’ll have more teams than ever before, which means more registration fees, which means larger grants than we’ve ever given, which is better for the birds.

There are tournaments for all ages, interests, and abilities…and registration fees are lower than they’ve ever been.

06—So, hopefully, by taking these steps, we’ve made this as easy as possible for anyone who likes biding or birds to get out here and participate in the birding classic.

The Great Texas Birding Classic is April 15 through May 15, and registration deadline is April 1st. Find details at birdingclassic.org.

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

Bird watching along the coast

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What started 18 years ago as a way for Texas Parks and Wildlife to promote its Coastal Birding Trails and fund conservation projects, the Great Texas Birding Classic has since become one of the country’s premier birding tournaments.

08—The birding classic allows you to test your skills and see how you rank against other birders here, in one of the best birding locations in the world.

Shelly Plante oversees nature tourism for the agency. Once held exclusively along the Texas coast, in 2013 the tournament became statewide.

07—You can now go in your backyard; you can go down the street to your favorite park; you can travel wherever you wanted, and you can do this anywhere.

The Birding classic has an expanded date range.

17—From April 15th through May 15th. You get to pick what day you participate. You can pick that based on the weather, on your team’s schedules –whatever works for you. In the past we designated specific days for a tournament, and everybody had to compete on those specific days regardless of weather.

Register your team for the Great Texas Birding Classic by April 1, and compete April 15 through May 15. There’s more information at birdingclassic.org.

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