Passport to Texas

San Jacinto Monument

TPW TV: San Jacinto Monument Play Now | Play in Popup | Download

This is Passport to Texas

Rising from the flat Texas wetlands along the Houston ship channel, the San Jacinto Monument is one of the most recognizable symbols of Texas history. Larry Spasic is President of the San Jacinto Museum of History Association.

14— This monument was built to be a memorial to remind us of the sacrifices of all those who fought for Texas independence. And when people come here, they see that singular vision in the San Jacinto Monument.

Watch a segment about the monument next week on the PBS TPW TV series. Russ Kuykendall, retired site superintendent, says the obelisk is a soaring monument to commemorate a small battle with huge consequences that took place on that site in 1836.

15— The monument really honors both sides of the battle – both Mexico and Texas. And, of course, independence [was] won for Texas from Mexico at this site. And so, what better site to have this magnificent monument erected to honor all of those individuals.

The San Jacinto Monument state historic site embodies the hopes and dreams of the people who fought for the future of Texas.

Watch a segment on the monument and Texas history next week on the PBS Texas Parks and Wildlife TV series.

For Texas Parks and Wildlife…I’m Cecilia Nasti

NOTE: As happens from time to time, there’s been a change in the PBS TV program schedule. The above show about the San Jacinto Monument will not air until a later date. However, you can still catch a TV segment that highlights the San Jacinto Battlegrounds, called Charlie and his Cannon through February 28 on the Texas Parks and Wildlife Television series. Check your local listings.

SOS: Save Our Sharks

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As marine predators go, sharks swim at the top of the food chain.

08—Without having these top end Apex predators, you have the ecosystem that gets out of balance, These predators help control everything below them.

But they can’t control what’s below them if they’re gone.

07—Worldwide, sharks have been depleted by overfishing. Between 30 and 70 million sharks [are] killed by humans every year.

Dr. Greg Stunz is a marine biologist with the Harte Research Institute, and appears the week of February 1 on a For Texas Parks and Wildlife PBS TV segment called SOS: Save Our Sharks.

08—One of the things that has contributed to a decline in sharks is shark finning: fishermen actually catch the sharks, cut their fins off, and discard the body.

Illegal in American waters since 1993, finning remains active in foreign waters, as fishermen earn up to $900 a pound for the fins. Illegal fishing on gear called long lines occurs close to home, too; it’s the most immediate threat to sharks in the U.S. says Game Warden Sgt. Luis Sosa.

12—We’ve got Mexican commercial fishermen that come into US water – Texas waters – on a daily basis. Unfortunately, the most common type of species that is being caught on this illegal gear is sharks.

Save Our Sharks airs the Week of February 1 on PBS stations. Check Local listings. The Wildlife and Sport Fish Restoration program supports our series, and receives funding through your purchase of fishing and hunting equipment and motor boat fuel…

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

Bobcat

TPW TV: Wild Kitties in the City Play Now | Play in Popup | Download

Bobcats don’t fit the description of “city slicker.” Yet, in a new Texas Parks and Wildlife PBS TV segment airing next week, you’ll discover these felines are becoming a common site in the Dallas-Fort Worth area.

04—The allure of cats and their strength and their stealth – they’re pretty fascinating.

Graduate student, Julie Golla, works with Texas Parks and Wildlife to examine how bobcats move in a city. She’s trying to understand the way they use available habitat in an urban setting to make a living. But first she has to trap them.

10—I thought we were going to have a hard time finding cats to catch in these really urban spots; but there’s no shortage of bobcats, and I think people will be surprised.

Once trapped, a team gathers, and they sedate the animals, take their vitals, and collect other data

15—You want to get good, solid information, because this is a lot of work that goes into every bobcat we catch. It’s always stressful doing this because you take the animal’s well-being into your hands when you work with them like this. But, we did everything right and everything went really well. He’s doing great right now.

The wild cat gets a GPS tracking collar before release.

Watch Julie Golla and Texas Parks and Wildlife Wildlife biologists trap and track bobcats in the Dallas-Fort Worth area this week on the Texas Parks and Wildlife PBS TV show.

The Wildlife and Sport Fish Restoration program supports our series, and is funded by your purchase of fishing and hunting equipment and motor boat fuel…

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

Beautiful bobcat.

TPW TV: City Bobcats Play Now | Play in Popup | Download

When you think of urban wildlife, birds and squirrels come to mind, but bobcats? If you live in the DFW area they do… and Texas Parks and Wildlife is studying them.

05—We’re hoping to answer some very basic questions about urban bobcats, something that we know very little about.

Biologist, Derek Browman, says we’ve studied bobcats in rural settings, but need to fill knowledge gaps regarding the urban jungle.

10—We’re genuinely looking at an area that is completely encompassed by human development

Julie Golla is a graduate student, working with TPW, and whose research looks at how bobcats navigate the city.

15—It started out with cameras; cameras have been very important, not only to see the number of animals, but also to find those hot spots, where we can catch them in a quick and efficient manner. We’ve gotten quite a few bobcats on camera; on trails that we do get bobcat traffic – that’s where we’ll put our traps.

They take vitals from trapped cats, and then fit them with GPS collars to track and collect data. Some bobcat traps end up on golf courses.

08—When they’re developing a golf course, they don’t realize the strip of trees between fairways is serving a corridor for wildlife, but it works quite well for us.

We’ll have more on wild kitties in the city tomorrow. The Wildlife and Sport Fish Restoration program supports our series, and is funded by your purchase of fishing and hunting equipment and motor boat fuel… For Texas Parks and Wildlife…I’m Cecilia Nasti.

Relocating Desert Bighorn Sheep, photo by Earl Nottingham, TPWD

TPW TV: Home Again (Desert Bighorn Sheep) Play Now | Play in Popup | Download

There’s a special quality about Far West Texas; and, as Froylan Hernandez can tell you, when the Desert Bighorn Sheep is on the landscape, it’s awe-inspiring.

08—When I’m up on top of Elephant Mountain, my first glimpse of them, it’s overwhelming. Even if it’s just a single animal.

Hernandez is Desert Bighorn Sheep Program Leader for Texas Parks & Wildlife. Meet him on an upcoming segment of the Texas Parks and Wildlife TV Series airing the week of December 8.

20—Historically, the native Texas Desert Bighorn Sheep occurred in about 16 mountain ranges out here in the Trans Pecos. Mainly due to unregulated hunting, diseases associated with the introduction of domestic sheep and goats, and net wire fencing – they brought the demise of the Desert Bighorn. And by the early 1960s, they were all gone from Texas.

For more than fifty years, Texas parks and Wildlife and partners have worked to restore the Bighorn to its home range in Texas.

08—Luckily, the population in Texas is now big enough, we’re using those sources to transplant the animals to Big Bend Ranch State park.

And Big Bend Ranch SP superintendent Ron Trevizo welcomes them to a new home on the range.

07—When we started talking about the release coming in – to release the Desert Bighorn Sheep at Big Bend Ranch, I’m like – Yea, that’s great!

See how agency biologists translocate Desert Bighorn Sheep to Big Bend Ranch SP on a segment of the TPW PBS TV series, the week of December 8.

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