Passport to Texas

Bison at Caprock Canyons

Wildlife: The Texas State Bison Herd Play Now | Play in Popup | Download

This is Passport to Texas

Located on the edge of the Caprock Escarpment, near the bottom of the Texas Panhandle, Caprock Canyons State Park delights visitors with breathtaking views.

02—About a thousand foot in elevation drop.

More people may be familiar, though, with its big brother.

08—I’m sure everyone’s heard of Palo Duro Canyon. That’s one of the canyons in the Caprock. We’re further down the escarpment from there, and we’re a series of smaller canyons.

Smaller, yes, but Park Superintendent Donald Beard says the nearly 15-thousand acre park has something Palo Duro doesn’t have: the state bison herd.

15—We are home to the official bison herd of the state of Texas. The Charles Goodnight herd – the Texas state bison herd is what it’s called now – was started in 1878 by Charles Goodnight and Mary Ann Goodnight, right here in these canyons.

These animals are direct descendents of the Southern Plains bison, and successful restoration of the herd is ongoing at the park…and that is worth celebrating.

16—These animals were started here in the canyons – kept here in the canyons. Never had any outside influence. So they are original Texans. And we do celebrate that. We have the Bison Celebration Days every September. This is our second year. It’s going to be a fun event that we have for a weekend.

Bison Celebration Days is September 14-16th At Caprock Canyons SP…with a Sunday Concert by Asleep at the Wheel; details at texasstateparks.org/bison, and on tomorrow’s show.

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

Feral Swine

Conservation: First Friday at the Kerr WMA Play Now | Play in Popup | Download

Friday September 7th marks the second of a three month series called First Fridays at the Kerr WMA. It’s an education and outreach program for resource managers, land owners, and other interested persons in the Edward’s Plateau Ecoregion. This session addresses critical issues facing the area.

07—We have many issues critical here in the Edward’s Plateau. Number one primarily, probably on everyone’s mind right now is water.

Water for humans and wildlife; Ryan Reitz is a wildlife biologist at the Kerr.

16—We’re here to address this issue on a rangeland scale. We’ll have Steve Nalle, a natural resource manager, discussing how to manage your land to capture water, retain water and to get that water into the aquifer. As well as provide that water more effectively in terms for wildlife.

Feral swine research and management and censusing white-tailed deer in small acreages will also get attention during this First Friday event at the Kerr WMA. Registered attendees will tour the facility.

15—We want to give the public a good and specific look not only into what we are doing here on the Kerr area, in terms of research, but give them a perspective of what role you can play as a land manager, a resource manager, or an interested party in wildlife management.

First Friday – part two – at the Kerr is September 7. It’s free to attend, but you must register. Find out how on the Texas Parks and Wildlife website.

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

The Edwards Aquifer

Eye on Nature

Endangered: Recovery Implementaion Program Play Now | Play in Popup | Download

The Edwards Aquifer Recovery Implementation Program, or RIP, protects endangered and threatened species in the Edwards Aquifer.

Many of these species are no more than an inch long. The Comal springs riffle beetle is even smaller…only two millimeters long.

But Texas parks and Wildlife water resources branch chief, Cindy Loeffler, says preserving the species is crucial to the ecosystem.

16 — These are, you know, you’ve heard the cliché canary in the coal mine. If we want to truly protect natural resources, fish and wildlife, these unique ecosystems. These species are indicators of the health of those ecosystems.

Loeffler also says if the program protects the identified species, it will most likely save many more in the process.

16 — We have some species that there’s very little known about. And these are in a way the tip of the iceberg of the threatened and endangered species that are found associated with the Edwards Aquifer. There are many more species that are not listed that are found nowhere else.

Many of these species — like the San Marcos blind salamander and Texas wild rice — are found nowhere else in the world…. And pumping water from the Edwards Aquifer alters the habitat, putting these species in an unstable environment.

Learn more about threatened and endangered species on the Texas Parks and Wildlife website.

The Wildlife and sport fish restoration program supports our series and celebrates 75 years of funding diverse conservation projects throughout Texas… For Texas Parks and Wildlife…I’m Cecilia Nasti.

Donna Shaver Releasing Ridley Turtle With Satellite Transmitter

Conservation: Endangered Sea Turtles Play Now | Play in Popup | Download

The Kemps’ Ridley may be the best known—and most threatened—sea turtle that occurs along the Texas coast, but it’s not the only one.

19—The ones that we hear most commonly about are the Kemp’s Ridley, and the green sea turtle—the green sea turtle is threatened in Texas and the populations are increasing. Also in Texas, there’s the Loggerhead, that’s a threatened species. What we hear about less are both endangered turtles: The Hawksbill and the Leatherback.

Dr. Donna Shaver is with the US National Park Service at Padre Island National Seashore. She says if you ever see stranded or nesting sea turtles, report your observation to officials.

17—Many of our entrances to beach access roads, signs are posted that have a telephone number to call. And then once they call, they will receive a recorded message that will tell them the proper contact number for the particular geographic area where they are located.

The number to call is 1-866-TURTLE5…And if you come across a nesting female…

17—Stay back from the nesting turtle until she’s dug her hole with her rear flippers and is remaining mostly motionless and laying eggs. At that time, without touching the turtle, look for any tags, and without piercing anything into the sand, put a designating market next to where the turtle laid her eggs.

The number to call if you find a nesting female is 1-866-turtle5.

The Wildlife and sport fish restoration program supports our series and celebrates 75 years of funding diverse conservation projects throughout Texas…

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

Kemps’ Ridley Sea Turtle Release

State Parks: South Padre Sea Turtle Release Play Now | Play in Popup | Download

All species of sea turtles are endangered: and none more than the Kemp’s Ridley. Our state park guide Bryan Frazier was on South Padre Island recently and witnessed the release of some Kemp’s hatchlings.

54— Sea Turtle, Inc., which is a partner with TPW and the National Park service..they do such fantastic down on South Padre Island and the Gulf of Mexico in rescuing, rehabilitating and releasing sea turtles back into the wild. And while I was down there on vacation they just happened to be having a hatchling release: 89 baby Kemp’s Ridley sea turtles, which are critically endangered. And I got to photograph that release back into the Gulf of Mexico. It was a profound experience. The whole summertime is the time when those hatchlings come out of the eggs and are released back into the Gulf, and so it’s still a time to do that, and they’re open to the public. If people will visit Sea Turtle, Inc. Like them on Facebook, or call them while they’re down there on South Padre island, they can witness this as well. And the work that’s going on there is impacting things all the way down into the interior of Mexico and the Mexican coast. Follow them and us on Facebook and see the incredible story that the sea turtles have to tell, and how relevant that is to all of our efforts here in Texas.

Thanks Bryan

That’s our show for today…with funding provided by Chevrolet, supporting outdoor recreation in Texas; because there’s life to be done.

For Texas Parks and Wildlife I’m Cecilia Nasti.