Archive for the 'Shows' Category

Conservation License Plates

Tuesday, December 7th, 2010

This is Passport to Texas

Ninety percent of the 12-hundred vertebrate species in Texas—that’s including fish—are non-game.

04—It doesn’t even include all the invertebrates that we have.

Invertebrates are estimated at 50-thousand. Matt Wagner, deputy Director for the Wildlife Division at Parks and Wildlife, says hunting and fishing license sales support conservation of game species and their habitats.

13—When you talk about non-game, and the species that aren’t hunted, there’s a lack of funding there. Although hunters have been paying for habitat work, we need to expand the number of folks that are contributing to conservation through their pocketbooks.

There are several ways for Texans to do that, and one way Wagner suggests celebrates a spiky Texas icon.

08—If you buy a horned lizard license plate for $30, $22 comes back to the agency to do non-game programs.

Sales of the horned lizard license plate generate between a quarter million to 300-thousand dollars annually.

12—We take that money, and then we leverage it with grants that come from the US Fish and Wildlife Service into the agency so that we can implement our Texas Conservation Action Plan.

Tomorrow: species that have benefited from Texans’ purchase of the conservation plate.

Our show receives support from the Sport Fish and Wildlife Restoration Program…funding the private lands and public hunting program.

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

Cleburne State Park

Monday, December 6th, 2010

This is Passport to Texas

Cleburne State Park has an image problem—people don’t know it’s there. Yet it has so much to offer outdoor enthusiasts. Bryan Frazier, our SP guide, says whether you hike, bike, camp, or fish—you can enjoy all these activities at Cleburne SP.

It may get overlooked by some people, but its just down HWY 67 from the Dallas Fort Worth Metroplex area. And I’ll say—it just might have as good, and maybe the best—trails that we have in our park system. They’re wide. They’re great for bikers and for those who just want to hike, And you can take a leisurely hike, or you can take a pretty intense walk through incredible scenery. You’re up almost in the North Texas Hill Country area. You’ve still got limestone outcroppings in here; you’ve got a nice lake that’s about 130 acres, so it’s good fishing. You’ve got great camping with full hook-ups: water, electric and sewer. And also at Cleburne, we’ve got some real interesting developments going on to make that park better. We’ve had brand new group bunk houses that hold up to 44 people. Total renovations of the dining hall that can be rented. And a new store and bathhouse are being built right on the lake, and a new beach access area right on the lake. So some real nice improvements to use those tax dollars and to use those voter approved, and legislative appropriated monies from past bienniums, that it shows up on the ground in ways that when people get to the park they can see that their park experience is going to be better.

Thanks Bryan.

That’s our show for today…with funding provided by Chevrolet…building dependable, reliable trucks for more than 90 years.

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

Family Winter Fishing Fun: Rainbow Trout

Friday, December 3rd, 2010

This is Passport to Texas

For an inexpensive, entry-level fishing experience the entire family can enjoy, it doesn’t get much easier than winter rainbow trout fishing in Texas.

05—In fact that’s one of the fish we use at the Expo each year to allow kids to catch their first fish.

Carl Kittle oversees the Texas Parks and Wildlife trout-stocking program. The agency will distribute up to 285-thousand fish to 120 sites—including additional urban locations—between December and March.

14—We’re excited about having a number of new ponds online for our neighborhood fishing program. We actually stock slightly larger trout and we stock frequently—every other week—at specific sites that are set up near urban centers to provide opportunities for urban anglers.

If you prefer to get away from the city for your rainbow connection, then state parks provide the perfect escape.

14—A number of our state park ponds will get stocked with trout. For those ponds and lakes that are located completely within a state park, the license will not be required. The limits will still apply: five fish per day, and there is no size limit on trout.

Anglers fishing in locations other than state parks must have a valid license.

Find the trout-stocking schedule at the Texas Parks and Wildlife website.

That’s our show…with support from the SF Restoration Program… helping to fund fish hatchery management and operations in Texas.

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

Winter Rainbows

Thursday, December 2nd, 2010

This is passport to Texas

The annual arrival of colorful, fun-to-catch rainbow trout gets underway this month and continues through March.

02—They’re a good fish to catch and a good fish to eat.

Carl Kittle oversees the Texas Parks and Wildlife trout-stocking program. This year they’ll distribute 285-thousand of the fish.

12—Each winter we try to create an opportunity for fishermen. Right now we’re doing over a hundred and twenty sites, with rainbow trout being stocked almost all over the state.

It gets too hot in Texas to support a natural population of rainbow trout, so anglers have to get ’em while it’s cold.

11—You can catch them with live bait. You can catch them with corn or some other bait; and certainly, they’re great on spinners and even fly-fishing. What about a cane pole? A cane pole and a worm is one of the best ways to catch trout.

Kittle says although relatively easy to catch, rainbow trout can offer a challenge to anglers.

11—In that they are aware of people above the water, and they can see out of the water if the water is clear. So, sometimes you have to be a little bit cautious about letting the fish see you from above while you’re fishing.

Maybe it would help if you disguised yourself as a hunter.

Find the trout-stocking schedule at the Texas Parks and Wildlife website.

That’s our show…with support from the SF Restoration Program… helping to fund fish hatchery management and operations in Texas.

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

Dinosaur Valley State Park

Wednesday, December 1st, 2010

This is Passport to Texas

Dinosaur Valley State Park is a unique destination with some of the most well-preserved dinosaur tracks anywhere. Our State park guide, Bryan Frazier, is here to tell us more.

And you’ve got three distinct species of dinosaurs that can be seen; and the whole scene unfolds where one looks to be chasing the other one.

It’s a spectacular sight when you can see all the tracks. When the river’s low, you can walk around and see them from just a few feet away. They’re very visible. And kids love it.

But also, from a recreation standpoint, there’s more than 40 campsites at Dinosaur Valley with electric and water hook-up. You’ve got miles and miles of great hike and bike trails that are up above the Paluxy riverbed, and some really incredible scenery, making it a worthy destination for an outing like none other that you can have in our state park system.

And on a personal note…

The superintendent at Dinosaur Valley, Billy Paul Baker, he’s known and loved by so many people and countless thousands who visited that park…he passed away from a recent and intense battle with cancer…and so we just wanted to say thanks for all the years of service to a fine man who ran a very find park.

Thanks Bryan.

That’s our show for today…with funding provided by Chevrolet…building dependable, reliable trucks for more than 90 years.

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