Passport to Texas

Passport to Texas from Texas Parks and Wildlife and the Sport Fish and Wildlife Restoration Program

Today we are in the process of trying to catch some birds.

Craig Hensley is a park specialist at Guadalupe River State Park and Honey Creek State Natural Area. He’s a certified bird bander who catches birds for research and education.

In the winter time at the park, we catch the birds at a bird feeding station we set up, and then we identify what they are. Try to age and sex them: male/female, are they a young bird or an older bird? Then we put a small metal bracelet, if you will, on the bird that they wear for the rest of their life and has a unique number, almost like our social security number, and it identifies that bird from all of the other birds of that kind anywhere it travels.

When banded birds are caught, identified and released in other locations, their individual movements can be recorded, which provides insight on birds’ lifeways.

Ultimately, it teaches us things about the longevity of birds, migration patterns, and with all the things going on with our climate these days, that’s one way to figure out if the birds are changing what they’re doing, because that’s a good indication of what might be going on a grander scale.

Craig Hensley hosts bird banding demonstrations at the park. Hear about them tomorrow.

More bird banding information is on our website: passporttotexas.org

That’s our show for today…with research and writing help from Sarah Loden…we produce the show with a grant from the Sport Fish and Wildlife Restoration program

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

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Passport to Texas from Texas Parks and Wildlife

While it’s not set in stone, International Migratory Bird Day in 2009 is May 9 in the US and Canada.

We encourage groups to host a program or an event when it works for them and the birds.

When celebrations actually occur depends on the arrival of migrants. Susan Bonfield, Executive Director of Environment for the Americas which coordinates this event, says the goal is for attendees to experience birds firsthand.

I want people to go to these programs and have one of their first opportunities to see a bird. To use binoculars, to use a field guide, to get excited about birds, and to want to become involved in bird conservation.

Find events at www.birdday.org.But if you can’t get to one, don’t fret.

You know, your backyard is just a great place to celebrate migratory bird day. I think that anything you do around your house to help conserve birds—we have information up on the website about threats to birds, and what you can do to minimize the threats at your home. Any improvement of habitat in your yard, cleaning your bird feeders. Any very basic and practical activities are a wonderful way to help conserve birds.

You can also just sit in a lawn chair in your yard with a beverage and binoculars and see who comes along.

That’s our show…with support from the Sport Fish and Wildlife Restoration Program…working to restore wildlife habitat in Texas.

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

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Passport to Texas from Texas Parks and Wildlife

In the early 1990s, scientists started noticing that some populations of migratory birds were declining.

There was a concern about what these causes were, and at the same time there was considerable interest in getting the public involved in learning more about birds and their conservation.

Susan Bonfield is Executive Director of Environment for the Americas. Her non-profit coordinates International Migratory Bird Day, an event created as a direct result of scientists’ concerns over declining avian populations.

Several researchers at the Smithsonian Migratory Bird center came up with the idea of hosting a public event to get communities involved in learning about birds. And that was the origins of International Migratory Bird Day.

It is the second Saturday of May for the US and Canada, and is intended to occur during peak migration. The idea is to give folks an opportunity to see these migrants.

That doesn’t work for everyone. So, for example, in some parts of Canada it may too early, and some parts of the United States, even, it’s a little bit too late—migratory birds have already passed over.

In Texas, for example, April often offers the best opportunities for viewing these migrating species. Tomorrow: how you can celebrate birds, whether you attend an event, or stay in your own backyard.

That’s our show…with support from the Sport Fish and Wildlife Restoration Program…working to restore wildlife habitat in Texas.

For Texas Parks and Wildlife…I’m Cecilia Nasti.
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Copy and paste www.birdday.org into your browser to go to the official International Migratory Bird Day website.

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Passport to Texas from Texas Parks and Wildlife and the Sport Fish and Wildlife Restoration Program

The saying, slow and steady wins the race, applies to the recovery of endangered Whooping Cranes. From sixteen birds in the mid twentieth century, the migrating flock today has more than 200 members.

Last year we had 266 whooping cranes that arrived on the Texas coast. That included some adults and some young.

Wildlife biologist Lee Ann Linam says this wild flock, which winters at Aransas National Wildlife Refuge, returns to Canada each spring to nest and raise young—and this year they were prolific.

When the birds returned to Canada, they formed at least 66 nests. And from that we hope that perhaps we will have thirty young or so make it down. Maybe we’ll hit another record this year—getting close to the 300 mark.

This wild population has been so productive that eggs from it have enabled researchers to try additional recovery efforts.

There are Whooping cranes in captivity to provide some insurance against loss, and to perhaps aid in some restoration programs. And we have a couple of experimental populations. And so, all total about five hundred whooping cranes exist.

Find links to more information about Whooping Cranes when you visit passporttotexas.org. That’s our show for today, with support from the Sport Fish and Wildlife Restoration Program… providing funding for the Private Lands and Habitat Enhancement Program For Texas Parks and Wildlife…I’m Cecilia Nasti.
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Aransas National Wildlife Refuge
http://www.fws.gov/southwest/REFUGES/texas/aransas/

Whooping Cranes: Fruitful & Multiplying Play Now | Play in Popup | Download

Passport to Texas from Texas Parks and Wildlife and the Sport Fish and Wildlife Restoration Program

The saying, slow and steady wins the race, applies to the recovery of endangered Whooping Cranes. From sixteen birds in the mid twentieth century, the migrating flock today has more than 200 members.

Last year we had 266 whooping cranes that arrived on the Texas coast. That included some adults and some young.

Wildlife biologist Lee Ann Linam says this wild flock, which winters at Aransas National Wildlife Refuge, returns to Canada each spring to nest and raise young—and this year they were prolific.

When the birds returned to Canada, they formed at least 66 nests. And from that we hope that perhaps we will have thirty young or so make it down. Maybe we’ll hit another record this year—getting close to the 300 mark.

This wild population has been so productive that eggs from it have enabled researchers to try additional recovery efforts.

There are Whooping cranes in captivity to provide some insurance against loss, and to perhaps aid in some restoration programs. And we have a couple of experimental populations. And so, all total about five hundred whooping cranes exist.

Find links to more information about Whooping Cranes when you visit passporttotexas.org. That’s our show for today, with support from the Sport Fish and Wildlife Restoration Program… providing funding for the Private Lands and Habitat Enhancement Program For Texas Parks and Wildlife…I’m Cecilia Nasti.
________________________________________________________

Aransas National Wildlife Refuge
http://www.fws.gov/southwest/REFUGES/texas/aransas/

Whooping Cranes: Fruitful & Multiplying Play Now | Play in Popup | Download