Passport to Texas

Extracting venom at the John C. Perez Serpentarium at Texas A&M- Kingsville, TX

How Venomous Snakes Help Humans Play Now | Play in Popup | Download

This is Passport to Texas

The National Natural Toxins Research Center in Kingsville, part of the Texas A & M system, houses 450 venomous snakes from around the world in its Serpentarium, from which they collect venom for research.

This center really is sort of a hidden gem in the A & M System, and in the state. It’s doing great work; it’s something that Texans should be proud of.

Reeve Hamilton works for the A & M System. Researchers at the lab do their own research, such as work on a universal anti-venom; they also share venom with fellow researchers worldwide.

Other researchers elsewhere will get in touch with them and say we really need this for our research, can you get it to us? And they’ll freeze it and ship it off. They’re doing their own research, but they’re also enabling the research of others.

Pharmaceuticals to treat heart attacks, strokes, and to prevent the metastasizing of tumors have come from venom research. Reeve Hamilton hopes that by understanding how venomous snakes help humans…

You know, you come across a snake, maybe you might change your appreciation of the animals a little bit.

Read about the Natural Toxins Research Center in the April issue of Texas Parks and Wildlife magazine.

For Texas Parks and Wildlife…I’m Cecilia Nasti

Battle of San Jacinto reenactors.

The Battle of San Jacinto Play Now | Play in Popup | Download

This is Passport to Texas

The Battle of San Jacinto was only 18 minutes long, but it ended the nearly seven month long Texas Revolution.

Because of Sam Houston’s victory here at San Jacinto, Texas would be its own nation – an independent republic – for almost 10 years.

Park interpreter, Boyd Harris, says we commemorate the battle of the Texians against Mexican General Santa Anna’s Army with a ceremony and reenactment at the San Jacinto Battlegrounds and State Historic Site in La Porte.

The best thing about the reenactment is you actually get to see our reenactors out there dressed as they would have been in 1836—both Texian Army reenactors and Mexican reenactors. You get a better sense of—in our opinion—the primitive nature of their weapons. Short range. The Mexican Army weaponry was only effect up to about 50, 100 yards. Which, in modern day battles is inconceivable to us. You get the idea that idea that this battle was more on a personal level. You could actually see the man across the field. I think that’s the best kind of thing to spark the imagination. To spark the curiosity in the visitor. To learn more about who these men were, how they lived and how they fought, and also how they died.

The commemorative ceremony is April 21—the 180 year anniversary of the battle; the reenactment and festival is on April 23.

Find details in the calendar section of the Texas Parks and Wildlife website.

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

Toyota Texas Bass Classic at Lake Conroe

Fishing Fun at the Toyota Texas Bass Classic 2016 Play Now | Play in Popup | Download

This is Passport to Texas

The Toyota Texas Bass Classic is a professional bass fishing tournament that for the past 10 years has attracted professional anglers from across the country.

These pros, they really love to come to Texas because Texas has great fishing.They know that Texas Parks and Wildlife wants to make Texas fishing the best in the world. And they just love to come to Texas and showcase our department. They come here and they speak real highly about the work that we do. And, of course, us being fisheries biologists, we like to be bragged on. It means a lot to us. There’s just no question about that.

Dave Terre, with Inland Fisheries. The tournament takes place May 20th through 22nd on Lake Ray Roberts.

You’ve got to be there. Get your boat up to Lake Ray Roberts State park, and you need to follow along and see your favorite pro catch that fish. And then, you need to come to the Toyota Stadium, and see tht big fish held in front of a crowd of about 20-thousand people. And while you’re there, take in a great country western concert, and go introduce your youngster to the outdoors at the Texas Parks and Wildlife Department’s Expo.

The tournament helps raise funds for youth fishing programs throughout the state.

Find complete details and ticket information for Toyota Texas Bass Classic at toyotatexasfest.com.

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

Toyota Texas Bass Classic, Image by Larry Hodge

Toyota Texas Bass Classic 2016 Play Now | Play in Popup | Download

This is Passport to Texas

The Toyota Texas Bass Classic is May 20th thru 22nd this year.

We’re in our tenth year now. The event is moving to a new location in Frisco, Texas; we’ll be at the Toyota Stadium, and fishing at Lake Ray Roberts State Park.

Dave Terre, with Inland Fisheries, helps organize and promote this professional bass fishing tournament and outdoor festival.

 The Toyota Texas Bas Classic gives us an opportunity to really showcase what it is that Texas Parks and Wildlife Department does. It gives us an opportunity to showcase the great fishing we have in our state. This year it’s going to give us a great opportunity to showcase state park opportunities we have, since this year we’ll be doing it at Lake Ray Roberts State Park.

Professional bass anglers compete to reel in the biggest bass for big winnings. The true winners, though, are the youth of Texas; the Toyota Texas Bass Classic is a fundraiser for Parks and Wildlife’s youth fishing programs.

We’ve already received about 2.25 million dollars which the department has taken and reinvested back into youth fishing related outreach, creating new anglers. It’s really an exciting opportunity for Parks and Wildlife; something no other state has.

Find details and ticket information for Toyota Texas Bass Classic at toyotatexasfest.com.

For Texas Parks and Wildlife…I’m Cecilia Nasti

Birding in Weslaco in the Rio Grande Valley

It's Good to Have a Ringer in Your Circle Play Now | Play in Popup | Download

This is Passport to Texas

When I hear the word ringer, I think unfair advantage. Yet, wringers are “good guys” and encouraged in the Great Texas Birding Classic’s Big Sit tournament.

You can have a team with all people who are beginning, and then they just have to be sure they have a ringer or two on their team who can ID the bird for them for it to go on their list.

That’s Texas Parks and Wildlife Nature Tourism coordinator, Shelly Plante who oversees the event. She told me our colleague, Bob Sweeney, an attorney, is a Big Sit ringer.

You know, I’ve been fascinated with birds since childhood, and even in high school I was out in the field and woods with my binoculars and my book. I just think it’s an exciting, dynamic part of the natural world, and pretty easy if you’re willing to put a little time into it to develop a minimum level of knowledge.

Bob has done that and more, and says he enjoys helping beginning birders gain knowledge and confidence.

I think any teacher has a great feeling when they feel like someone in the class gets it. Someone snaps to it. That Eureka moment may come, not during the Big Sit, but it may be something that was learned during the Big Sit that is then used in the backyard, or used on a hike or communicated to another person who is wanting to start out, so maybe the light bulb when it goes on is the confidence to transmit that knowledge—I know what that is. I saw it in the Big Sit. And here’s why I think it’s that.

The Great Texas Birding Classic is April 15 through May 15th. Stay on top of the action at birdingclassic.org.

For Texas Parks and Wildlife…I’m Cecilia Nasti