Passport to Texas

This is Passport to Texas

When a coyote visits your neighborhood, don’t put out the welcome mat.

05—If the coyotes are coming into a residential area, and you see one, first off – try to scare it.

Brett Johnson is an urban wildlife biologist in Dallas County.

21—They’re not these frightening animals that are out to hurt you. So, if you see one, yell at it and either hit it with water from a water hose, or the other option is to throw something in its general direction. Be it a small stick, in some cases if you have to, even a small rock. Not something that’s going to hurt the animal…but just something where that animal feels a physical contact in addition to your yelling.

After creating this negative association with humans, it’s important to try and figure out why they’re attracted to the neighborhood.

20—If they’re coming through a neighborhood and they’ve decided to stay there, usually that means they’ve found an abundant food source of some variety. And in an urban area, that usually means they’re going after pet food. So, there, the simple thing is, we have to change some of our human behavior and not leave a constant source of pet food outside all the time.

Tomorrow: protecting pets from visiting coyotes.

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

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

Managing Urban Coyotes Play Now | Play in Popup | Download

This is Passport to Texas

You know the story: rural land inhabited by wildlife, developed for suburban life, receives unwelcome visitation by the previous tenants.

07—We can coexist with the wildlife in the urban areas, but to do so – in many cases – we need a change of attitude.

Brett Johnson is an urban wildlife biologist in Dallas County; he educates communities about wildlife — especially coyotes – that occasionally visit the hood.

20—People tend to have one of two reactions when they see a coyote. And those two reactions are, either they are afraid and back away from it, and basically allow the coyote to continue doing whatever it’s doing at that time. Or, they get all excited and want to see how close they can get to it.

Neither reaction is suitable when developing an appropriate human / coyote relationship, says Johnson.

05—Either one of those two reactions are going to cause the coyote to become more and more comfortable around humans.

Once these animals lose their fear of humans, they can become a nuisance. Tomorrow: dealing with coyotes.

05—If the coyotes are coming into a residential area, and you see one, first off – try to scare it.

The Sport Fish and Wildlife Restoration program supports our show…and it’s funded by your purchase of fishing and hunting equipment and motor boat fuels…

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

Problems with Urban Coyotes Play Now | Play in Popup | Download

This is Passport to Texas

How far would you travel to ensure the future of your favorite exotic aquarium fish?

06—We had some folks telling us that they would go as far as 50 miles to find an appropriate body of water.

You may think releasing your pet fish into Texas waters, when you can no longer care for it, is humane. Yet these exotic aquarium species disrupt natural ecosystems and out-compete native fish for resources.

Priscilla Weeks is a senior research scientist at the Houston Advanced Research Center. Her team is using a TPWD grant to research why people release their fish into Texas waters.

14—I think there might be a stereotype where folks think that it is easy, emotionally, just to release a fish. But actually what we’re finding is folks are very attached to their pets.

Weeks says research shows whether a person gets rid of their fish depends on personal preference.

17—What we’re finding so far, but this is very preliminary, is that different individuals prefer different attributes of a fish. So it’s not necessarily that it grows too big in my tank because I may like a big fish.

…but if you don’t like big fish, you could have a problem. So what do you do?

Weeks says some people think releasing a fish is the only option, but, among the alternatives would be to euthanize the animal, and the less drastic—taking it back to the pet store.

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

Rethink Releasing Aquarium Fish in Texas Waters Play Now | Play in Popup | Download

This is Passport to Texas

04 He’s gonna get out of here. He’s going to get flushed. What a smart little guy!

We love the Finding Nemo scenario; the aquarium trapped fish released back into the wild. The problem is most fish in Texas aquariums aren’t from Texas.

Luci Cook-Hildreth is a Parks and Wildlife projects coordinator in Inland Fisheries.

18–Even really really smart people sometimes don’t understand that a fish is not just a fish and water is not just water. They go, “I have a creek in my backyard, and I have a fish that’s too big for my tank. Well, why don’t I just set him free?” And they don’t understand that there’s a lot of biological and ecological ramifications to that decision.

Many of these non-natives end up thriving in Texas waters and out-competing native fish populations.

Cook-Hildreth says controlling what fish people own is practically impossible because of the Internet. Despite state laws, there seems to be a constant supply and demand for illegal species. And these fish can sometimes be expensive.

16–Folks that are interested in selling illegal fish have the potential to make thousands of dollars on these fish. And we can slap a fine on them, for 200 or 300 dollars, and it’s really just the cost of doing business for these folks.

So remember, by releasing your fish into the wild, you might just be endangering a lot more.

That’s our show…with support from the Sport Fish restoration program…funding sport fisheries research in Texas.

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

Don't Dump Your Aquarium Play Now | Play in Popup | Download

This is Passport to Texas

Not all birds nest in trees.

[sfx….bluebird song]

In fact, bluebirds are actually a cavity dwelling species in need of holes to build their homes. Habitat loss has diminished their housing opportunities, but bluebird enthusiasts are rolling out the welcome mat with man-made nest boxes.

16—It’s a rectangular box. In Texas we make it with a large overhanging roof, to protect from the sun. The dimensions are a little larger, that’s because our birds need more air because it’s so hot. Our birds need to be protected from the heat.

Pauline Tom is with the Texas Bluebird Society. The hole of bluebird nest box is about one and a half inches…perfect for a bluebird, not so great for a European Starling.

16—These birds came over from England in the mid 1800’s. It was like bringing fire ants in, a terrible, terrible pest. And so they’ll take the cavities that our native birds need, and they’ll actually destroy the eggs and the nestling.

For information on how to build you own nest box, log on to the Texas Parks and Wildlife web site. If you do take on the responsibility of a blue bird nest box…

09—You would clean out the nest box when the birds fledge. The nest box is used over and over.

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

Build a Bluebird House
[illustrated instructions for building a bluebird house]
Materials List

• 1 x 10-inch lumber–33 inches.
• 6’/2 inches of ‘/2-inch wood dowel or metal hinge.
• One 1-1/2-inch wood screw with washer.
• 20 to 25 l’/2 to P/t-inch nails.
• Wire or ring-shank nails to attach box to post.

Construction Notes

• Dimensions given are for 3/4-inch thick lumber.
• Make entrance hole precisely l-1/2 inches in diameter and l-1/4 inches from the top.
• Provide space between top and sides for ventilation.
• If possible, use 1-3/4-inch galvanized siding nails or aluminum nails.
• Round comers on bottom of box for drainage, and recess bottom 1/4-inch.
• Roughen inside of front board by making notches with a saw or holes with an awl or drill, to assist young in climbing to entrance hole.
• Top of the box should be attached at the back by a 1/2-inch wooden dowel or metal hinge, and in front by a 1-1/2-inch wood screw to facilitate easy opening for inspection and cleaning.
• Drill two or three holes in the back panel of the box above and below the enclosure, to aid in quick, easy attachment to pole or post.
• Do not add any type of perch to the box; it will only serve to attract sparrows.

Site Selection
Site selection is the single most important step in having a successful bluebird program. Bluebirds utilize only a very specific type of habitat for nesting and only rarely will deviate from it. In general, bluebirds prefer open areas with scattered trees where the ground is not covered with tall undergrowth.

There are three general areas that should be avoided when selecting a nest site:

1. Avoid placing nest boxes in towns or within the immediate area of farm yards. House sparrows invariably will occupy every such nest box.
2. Do not place boxes in heavy timber. Bluebirds prefer sites associated with timber, but more at the edge of a clearing rather than in the timber stand itself.
3. Do not place boxes in or near areas of widespread insecticide use. Bluebirds feed almost entirely on insects during the nesting season.

Installation and Maintenance

• Place boxes at 150- to 200-yard intervals.
• Mount boxes about five to seven feet above ground level. Fence posts make excellent mounting sites.
• Clean boxes as soon as possible after a successful hatch. Bluebirds will not utilize the same nest box unless it is cleaned.
Bluebird Boxes Play Now | Play in Popup | Download