Passport to Texas

Hornsby Bend Visitor

TPW TV: Natural Wasteland Play Now | Play in Popup | Download

On the second Saturday of every month, Eric Carpenter surveys birds with Travis Audubon, at Hornsby Bend, east of downtown Austin.

03—Hornsby is one of the better spots to bird in Central Texas.

Carpenter and cohorts have recorded more than 360 species of birds at the site over the years. Kevin Andersen runs the Center for Environmental Research at Hornsby; an unlikely place for the genteel activity of bird watching.

07—Hornsby Bend is the facility that recycles all of Austin’s sewage solids, which is a euphemism for poop.

Austin’s sewage and yard waste is recycled at this unique, 1200 acre site along 3.5 miles of the Colorado River.

09—There’s a farm and a bottomland forest, treatment ponds that are famous for birding. Many different things that we can use for environmental research.

Pathogens in the sludge are killed off naturally. Some solids, when mixed with recycled yard waste, become compost; the cleaned water goes into ponds, creating an environment attractive to wildlife and those who watch it — like photographer Greg Lasley.

16—Even though we’re right near the city of Austin, there’s an amazing variety of wildlife: butterflies, dragonflies, birds, reptiles and amphibians. My philosophy is if you just get out in nature and spend time looking, things show themselves to you.

See a segment about Hornsby Bend next week on the Texas Parks and Wildlife PBS TV series. Check your local listings.

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

TPW TV: Turkey Calls Play Now | Play in Popup | Download

Making sounds like a hen turkey can mean the difference between bagging a bird this spring and going home empty handed.

06—Now you want the call of a hen turkey to try and attract the Tom, or male turkey, over to your position.

Steve Hall, Executive Director of the International Hunter Education Association, says a box calls can make enticing sounds.

53—One is called the basic cluck [clucks]. Now, a cluck is a call that says: ‘Hi. I’m here.’ And if you put the cluck in a series of calls, it would be a yelp [yelps]. Now a yelp call says: ‘Come over here; I’m having fun.’ Now, a slate call is much the same as a box call and you can make that basic ‘cut’ sound [cut sound]. And, you can also make a purr, which says ‘I’m on my daily rounds.’ Now, I like to use a diaphragm call; it’s a little more complicated
call. But it allows me, if I’m hunting, to move my arms and hands with my bow or my gun. It fits in the top of your mouth, and you can do it quite easily [cackle]. That was a cackle or a yelp. If you hear a ‘put’ though, that’ll scare a bird away – and that’s the alarm call [put call]. Put them all together and you can have fun imitating a flock of turkeys. [07-of turkey calls…fade]

More tips for talking turkey this week on the Texas Parks and Wildlife PBS TV Series. Check local listings.

The Wildlife and Sport Fish Restoration program supports our series. For Texas Parks and Wildlife, I’m Cecilia Nasti.

Alligator Ancho Relleno, image from El Chile Café y Cantina

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Hunting alligator in Texas is an adrenaline pumping experience, but cooking it shouldn’t be. Chef Jeff Martinez, chef at El Chile Café y Cantina in Austin, whips up a Mexican inspired treat with alligator meat.

57—So, what I’ve done is I’ve taken the meat and I’ve ground it up in my food processor. And so what we’re going to do with this today is we’re going to make an alligator ancho chile relleno. I’ve got a hot pan here; we’re going to start by adding extra virgin olive oil in the bottom. We’re going to add our white onion which has been diced up. We’re going to add our garlic. Oh, I can smell it already; it’s already starting to smell good. Okay, so after that, we’re going to add our tomato. Now, we’re going to go ahead and add our alligator meat. It’s pretty much going to look the same as cooked chicken. And it doesn’t take very long. And that’s just about it. So, we’re going to add a little bit more flavor to this dish by throwing in some sliced green olives; and then we’re going to add some of these raisins, and we’re going to finish it off with slivered almonds that have been toasted. You see everything in there and it looks great. There’s a lot of color in there – a lot of color also means a lot of flavor. And then we’re going to finish it off with some fresh chopped parsley that’s going to add some freshness to the dish. And then to finish it off, we’re going to salt – just to taste. And we are ready to stuff some chiles.

See Chef Martinez in action, and find the complete recipe on the TPW YouTube Channel.

That’s our show for today. For Texas Parks and Wildlife, I’m Cecilia Nasti.

American Alligator, photo TPWD

TPW TV/Hunting: Alligators Play Now | Play in Popup | Download

It’s a hot muggy afternoon in an east Texas marsh, and it’s time to hunt for alligators. We tag along with some lucky hunters that get a chance of a lifetime to hunt alligators at J.D. Murphree Wildlife Management Area.

54—The area that we’re hunting in, it’s a vast bayou of swamps and marshes, with canals running through. The adrenaline rush is way more than deer hunting or anything else because you’re after something that can actually get you.

Alligator hunting – it’s just not like anything else I’ve ever done. You know, there’s one on the line and you start pulling me in. I don’t know. You get anxious, you get excited. You get nervous.

But did they get their gator? Find out on the Texas Parks and Wildlife TV series the week of February 23. Check local listings.

The Wildlife and Sport Fish Restoration program supports our series… For Texas Parks and Wildlife, I’m Cecilia Nasti.

Sea turtle receiving GPS, Image courtesy Corpus Christi Caller Times

TPW TV: Eye in the Sky Play Now | Play in Popup | Download

Understanding where wildlife goes provides valuable information to help manage species. Dr. Donna Shaver uses the newest GPS technology in tandem with satellites orbiting12-thousand miles above earth, [fade in ocean ambiance] to track endangered Kemp’s Ridley Sea Turtles on the Texas coast.

07— We’re conducting this tracking because we want to get an idea about the habitat usage by these adult females.

Dr. Shaver is with the National Park Service.

13— We want to see where they’re going in the marine environment, which is where they spend the vast majority of their life; where they’re going for migration as well as for foraging when they’re done nesting.

[lab ambiance] It takes Dr. Shaver and her team about three hours to prepare a turtle for tracking.

18 – We have to sand the shell; we put down the first layer of epoxy, then we’ll affix the transmitter. Then when it’s on there solid, we will paint the surface to help prevent barnacles from adhering onto that area where it [the transmitter] has been applied.

See how Dr. Donna Shaver uses GPS and satellite technology to track endangered Kemp’s Ridley Sea Turtles on the TPW PBS TV series during the week of January 26. Check local listings.

08— We’re one step closer towards recovering the species someday so that it can be enjoyed by future generations.

That’s our show…Funding provided in part by Ram Trucks. Guts. Glory. Ram…For Texas Parks and Wildlife…I’m Cecilia Nasti.