Passport to Texas

Getting up close and personal with Texas critters.

Citizen Scientists Take Biological Inventories Hide Player | Play in Popup | Download

With the help of biological inventory teams of citizen scientists, Texas Parks and Wildlife monitors plants… herps…

Which are the amphibians and reptiles…

…birds and invertebrates…

…and that would mainly be: butterflies, dragonflies, beetles, bumblebees and such….

…in Texas’ 8 wildlife districts; Biologist Marsha May oversees the program. She says she’s recruiting experts statewide to join these monitoring teams.

Mostly, we’re looking at hobbyists; people who have joined herp societies. They know their herps. As well as birders. There’re people involved in Audubon Society that know their birds. So those are the types of people [as well as those with expertise in native plants and invertebrates] that we’re looking for, for these projects.

These biological inventory teams will monitor species on private land.

So, my plan is to start with organizing teams throughout the state. And once we get good, solid teams in place, then we’re going to go out there and open it up to the landowners, and let them know that these teams are available to come and do surveys on their property.

Knowing what’s on the land helps landowners become better stewards. Find out how to volunteer when you log visit the Nature Trackers page on the TPW website.

Funding provided in part by Ram Trucks. Guts. Glory. Ram For Texas Parks and Wildlife…I’m Cecilia Nasti.

Become a Texas Master Naturalist, http://txmn.org/

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This is Passport to Texas

They say you never forget your first love. For writer Sheryl Smith Rogers, her first love had eight legs.

Spiders are my first love, and from there I grew into plants and animals.

Eager to fully understand the natural world around her, Smith Rogers completed Texas Master Naturalist training.

I’m with the Highland lakes chapter, which is based out of Burnet. So you learn about your own ecosystems in your region. I’m learning about the plants that are indigenous to this area. Whereas, if you live on the coast, you’ll be learning about those kinds of plants. So, we’re all learning what’s important to our
area.

Trainees learn about living things in their ecosystem, as well as their region’s geology, hydrology and more. After receiving certification, Smith Rogers says Master Naturalists volunteer in their communities where needed.

Volunteers go to ranches and survey the plant species, and they offer land management advice. In a city, volunteers might go into a city park and create a butterfly garden. For instance, here in Blanco – at Blanco State Park – the Master Naturalists help put on program every May for third graders. They do so
many different things [laughs].

Find details on becoming a master Naturalist on the Texas parks and Wildlife Website.

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

How to Plant and Where to Play Your Trees.

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Trees are habitat for wildlife. And if you’re adding new trees to your landscape, you need to know the rules.

People frequently ask how close they can put a tree to the house, because shade on the house obviously is a huge energy savings. The general rule of thumb is you go no closer to the house than the eaves are high. So, if you measure up to the eaves of your house, and it’s ten feet high, then you need to get ten feet back from the house.

Scott Harris, a certified arborist in Austin, recommends planting only native specimens.

You always want to plant your trees at the exact level they were in the pot. Don’t dig a big deep hole, dig a big wide hole. Always use the same soil you took out to backfill. But, you can put your compost underneath the mulch, and then all of that organic goodness will dribble down in the way that nature intended.

By watering infrequently and deeply, we can help new trees develop extensive root systems.

If you just have a little bit of water in one area, that’s where the roots are going to go. But if you water very deeply, it’ll spread into the surrounding soil, and the roots will follow that moisture out.

Strong root systems help trees remain strong and withstand drought.

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

by Tree planting photo by woodleywonderworks via Flickr, Creative Commons

Plant Native Trees Before Spring Hide Player | Play in Popup | Download

Now is an ideal time to plant trees throughout most of Texas…and you might wonder why.

Two reasons: the two most important constituents in tree planting—the people planting the trees and the trees. It’s just much easier on them.

Scott Harris is a certified arborist in Austin. Tree planting season in Texas started in October and continues through March.

Getting the trees in the ground in the fall [and winter], they have the entire cool season, dormant season, to spread roots out before the big demands on roots and water start in the spring.

Just because a tree will grow in Texas, doesn’t mean it should grow here. Harris advises that we all exercise caution about what we plant in our yards.

The biggest thing to avoid is non-natives. Our natives have all of the features you would want, but they’ve spent thousands and thousands of years getting used to being here, and with all of the wildlife used to having them, too. It’s all a web, and you can’t tell which string you can pull out without upsetting things.

Tomorrow we’ll have a few tree planting tips to help you and your newly planted tree enjoy a long and happy life together

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

Common Eastern Bubmle Bee (Bombus impatiens) worker in flight
TEXAS: Lamar Co. Camp Maxey National Guard Facility in Paris
27.August.2009 J.C. Abbott

Making Pollinators a Priority Hide Player | Play in Popup | Download

Honeybees, native bees, bats, butterflies and other insects are pollinators, and are vital to our economy, food security, and environmental health. The Texas Parks and Wildlife Department Landowner Incentive Program, or LIP, can help interested landowners manage their property for pollinators.

09-The LIP program at the moment is prioritizing projects that are directed at pollinators. Pollinators are definitely hot.

Arlene Kalmbach coordinates the program.

33-Pollinators got on the Landowner Incentive priority list based on the funding source. The landowner Incentive Program is funded by the Fish and Wildlife Service–partners for fish and wildlife program. And pollinator projects are a high priority for them, so they are a high priority for us. They would have been a
high priority for us regardless of our funding source. But, it helps that everybody’s on the same page. So, with this next round of projects, we hope to see a lot of pollinator targeted projects.

Something to know about the LIP program is it does not have acreage restrictions.

13-It really just depends on the resources you’re trying to restore or protect. In the history of the program, I’ve seen us work on an urban lot to thousands of acres of West Texas.

Have a project in mind? Find details on the Landowner Incentive Program on the Texas Parks and Wildlife website.

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