Passport to Texas

Passport to Texas from Texas Parks and Wildlife

Ask invertebrate biologist Mike Quinn how he spent his summer and he’ll tell you…

Since July twenty-fourth it has been living and breathing spiders.

For weeks after a giant spider web was discovered at Lake Tawakoni State Park, east of Dallas, the media, public and scientific curiosity worldwide was insatiable. Quinn collected spider samples and took them to Texas A&M for identification.

I turned them over to Alan Dean and John Jackman, resident spider experts. Alan identified the spiders that I had collected as falling into twelve families. The most common spider with the scientific name Tetragnatha guatemalensis, or the Guatemalan Long-jawed spider.

Typically, spiders aren’t social. So what would make nearly a million spiders put aside their differences to build several acres of web at Tawakoni?

They usually don’t get in that kind of density unless there’s a whole lot of food available to them.

Thanks to rains at the park, there was plenty to eat. A nearby pond served as an all-you-can eat buffet.

The web buzzed with the sound of all these insects in there. And my understanding is that [available food] probably induced the spiders to congregate in high density.

Find more information about the giant web on the web, at passporttotexas.org.

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

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Passport to Texas from Texas Parks and Wildlife

There’s something new and different at Texas Parks and Wildlife Expo this year, and it’s called geocaching.

Geocaching is a fun, fun, family activity that gets moms, dads and kids, and whoever else, into the outdoors, to try to find a prize. The prize has been put there by other geocahers; you use a GPS unit, and wander around and try to find out where they prize is hidden.

Expo Director, Ernie Gammage.

At Expo, we’ll have a new geocaching activity that will actually train people on how to geocache; and we’ll have GPS units for those who don’t have their own, so you can actually try it out, and yes, we will have prizes stashed around Expo.

This activity is in keeping with the agency’s mission.

Because it’s a reason for people to go into our state parks. There is probably no better place to experience the variety, the topography, the flora, the fauna of Texas than in our state parks; and what a great place to geocache and see all of these wonders.

Expo is Saturday and Sunday, October sixth and seventh from nine to five…on the grounds of Parks and Wildlife HQ in Austin….and its free. Find links to more information when you log onto passporttotexas.org.

That’s our show for today… For Texas Parks and Wildlife…I’m Cecilia Nasti.
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Learn more about Geocaching: http://www.texasgeocaching.com

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Passport to Texas from Texas Parks and Wildlife

Thanks to recent appropriations by the Texas Legislature, the first major infusion of new staffing for state parks in many years is underway.

Chief Operating Officer, Scott Boruff says Parks and Wildlife received the funds on September first, and many new hires are already hard at work.

And visitors to state parks will see many improvements once the parks are fully staffed.

Well, they’re going to see more faces there to give them a hand with what they need, in terms of getting them checked in and getting them situated in their sites appropriately and comfortably.

They will also see improvements to the capital infrastructure there – the restrooms will be nicer, the picnic tables will be a little newer, building will have screens on them and painted, and stuff like that.

Not all jobs have been filled; find a link to current state parks job openings at passporttotexas.org.

That’s our show for today… For Texas Parks and Wildlife…I’m Cecilia Nasti.
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Start your State Park job search when you click here.

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Passport to Texas from Texas Parks and Wildlife

The Texas legislature appropriated funds this past session that will allow Chief Operating Officer, Scott Boruff, to hire new staff to fill a variety of positions. When I spoke to Boruff at the end of August, he told me he hopes to have the positions filled quickly.

Well, we’re moving pretty aggressively to get these positions posted now. Our hope is to begin interviewing immediately so that as quickly after the beginning of the fiscal year – which is September the first – we could start filling as many of those positions as possible.

There are about two hundred positions to fill — from maintenance workers to park rangers, to law enforcement and business analysts – as well as others.

The new positions that were funded by the legislature will be positions that have either eroded over the years because of decreased funding or have been unavailable to us because we just didn’t have the money to hire them. So, the majority of our positions this year are going to be new positions. We’ll also be trying to fill those positions that have come open because of turnover.

Boruff says with the money comes responsibility.

I do think that it’s going to be a lot of work because along with the money came requirements for us to look at business practices and for us to look at ways to manage our financial resources more effectively and effectively.

Interested in a career with state parks? Go to passporttotexas.org and find a link to job postings.

That’s our show for today… For Texas Parks and Wildlife…I’m Cecilia Nasti.
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Start your State Park job search when you click here.

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Passport to Texas from Texas Parks and Wildlife

Texas’ State Park system is getting a much needed shot in the arm thanks to appropriations by the Texas Legislature this past session.

The legislature came through for us this session, and did give us some additional money which will allow us to fund roughly a couple hundred new positions. It will give us some new capital money major repairs at state parks, and will allow us to get our state parks back into shape, and have staff there to take care of folks when they come in.

Chief Operating Officer, Scott Boruff, and his teams are working tirelessly to identify and hire qualified applicants.

There’s a broad range of positions that are going to be added to the state parks. I think the bulk of the positions will be park rangers and park interpreters and folks that interface directly with the public.

Boruff says the addition of more law enforcement positions will make the parks even safer for visitors. In addition, qualified applicants are being sought to work behind the scenes, too.

There will be business type folks that are helping us take care of the financial resources of the park. So, there will be additional budget analysts and people like that. I think you will see better business practices as a result of this new money.

Find a link to state park jobs on passporttotexas.org, and begin your new career with state parks.

That’s our show for today… For Texas Parks and Wildlife…I’m Cecilia Nasti.
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Start your State Park job search when you click here.

State Park Jobs, Part 1 of 3 Hide Player | Play in Popup | Download