December 22nd, 2011
This is Passport to Texas
The plan: stock more than a quarter million rainbow trout in over 120 locations statewide through March. The challenge: the ongoing drought, which has caused…
07—A combination of low water that doesn’t cool and doesn’t get enough oxygen in it and a combination of access to those sites.
Carl Kittle, who oversees the trout program for inland fisheries, says those two factors will probably mean stocking fewer fish in fewer locations. He adds there are locations statewide able to sustain this winter fishery.
16—We do feel confident there will be some trout stocking. The large reservoirs with tail races, particularly the Guadalupe River coming out of Canyon, are looking good. And, we have a pretty good level of confidence those will be good places to stock trout this year.
Kittle says if inland fisheries is unable to stock all the sites it usually supplies with rainbow trout, then it will put more fish in locations that are suitable. Kittle’s best advice: monitor the website for the most up to date information on the stocking situation.
16—That’s what I would say: watch the website very closely this year. We will identify stockings that look safe; stockings that can’t happen or won’t happen. And those notifications may happen close to the time of stocking and they may change frequently depending on weather conditions.
Find the stocking report on the Texas parks and Wildlife website.
We receive support from the Sport Fish Restoration Program, which funds trout stocking programs in Texas…For Texas Parks and Wildlife…I’m Cecilia Nasti.
Posted in Events, Fishing, Freshwater | Comments Off on The Drought and Rainbow Trout Stocking
December 21st, 2011
This is Passport to Texas
Winter is no time to put up those fishing poles. That’s because each December Texas Parks and Wildlife’s Inland Fisheries Division stocks rainbow trout statewide.
07—Rainbow trout are a cold water fish, so the winter is the only time that we really have water here that will support them.
Carl Kittle oversees the trout program for inland fisheries. The trout, farm raised in Missouri, arrive at Texas four hatcheries via tank truck.
20—And then we redistribute them from our hatcheries to each of the stocking locations. We have over 120 locations where we have stocked trout in Texas. And how many trout are we expecting to stock this year? Our plan would be to stock about 280-thousand trout. However, this year is unique because of the ongoing drought.
Ah, yes…that pesky drought. The agency may reduce the number of fish and locations it stocks based on how long the drought continues and on conditions going forward.
15—Two things that can happen are that the water level can be so low that there’s no way for fishermen to get at the water. Or, more common what we’re running into right now—is that we don’t have enough clear water in place in a pond to be cool and high in oxygen and support the trout.
But all is not lost. There will be rainbow trout stocked for your fishing pleasure. Learn more on tomorrow’s show.
We receive support from the Sport Fish Restoration Program, which funds trout stocking programs in Texas…For Texas Parks and Wildlife…I’m Cecilia Nasti.
Posted in Events, Fishing, Freshwater | Comments Off on Winter Rainbow Trout Stocking
December 20th, 2011
This is Passport to Texas
Because of tough economic times, the New Year will bring significant changes to the 70-year-old Texas Parks and Wildlife magazine. Editor Louie Bond explains.
When times get tough, you try to be creative and come up with the best solutions. And I think that’s what we’ve done at the magazine.
In order to trim our budget as much as possible, we have made some economies, but I think in some ways they’ll will make the magazine stronger. For instance, we’re going to be sending out a combined January/February issue and later in the year we’ll have a combined August/September issue. So, overall, they’ll get 10 issues this year.
We really didn’t want to take anything away from the readers, so at the same time we’re adding two new digital online guides—one in February for fishing, and the other in September for hunting. A few other changes at the magazine will be the increased use of staff writers, which is actually a lot of fun. We’ve been lucky enough to work with the best freelancers across the state, but now we’re looking within our own ranks and using our own writers. And, it’s a lot of fun hearing the new stories they have to tell.
We’re also taking a few more of our own photographs, but I don’t think people are going to really see a big difference in the quality of writing and photography. We’ll continue to portray the outdoor world of Texas the same way we have since WWII, and we hope the readers will enjoy the new look of the magazine.
That’s our show for today…For Texas Parks and Wildlife I’m Cecilia Nasti.
Posted in TPW Mag | Comments Off on TPW Magazine Changes
December 19th, 2011
This is Passport to Texas
Holidays challenge the creativity of gift-givers everywhere. However, if you have nature lovers on your list, gift giving is easy—and the giving is twice as nice.
A seventy-dollar Texas State Parks Pass is a thoughtful and sensible gift for your outdoor enthusiast. Pass holders enjoy twelve months of unlimited visits to more than ninety state parks and historic sites.
They also receive discounts on camping, park store merchandise and recreational equipment rentals. Money spent on the pass supports your Texas state parks.
For thirty dollars each, you can give the drivers on your list a conservation license plate. Twenty-two dollars from every sale goes directly to help fund conservation efforts in Texas. The horned lizard plate, in particular, funds research and conservation of non-game species such as the iconic horned lizard.
Give every outdoor lover on your list access to more than a million acres of public land—with the Limited Use Permit—for the ridiculously reasonable price of twelve dollars.
Permit holders receive twelve months of access to Texas’ wildlife management areas, where they can fish, hike, bird watch, cycle, and camp.
When you give one of these gifts, you delight the receiver, and help support state parks and conservation in Texas.
That’s our show…we receive support from the Sport Fish and Wildlife Restoration program…I’m Cecilia Nasti.
Posted in Conservation | Comments Off on Gifts for the Conservationist on Your List
December 16th, 2011
This is Passport to Texas
The last naturally breeding wild flock of endangered whooping cranes winters along the Texas Coast at the Aransas National Wildlife Refuge, near Rockport.
04—they spend from about mid-November to about mid-April here in Texas.
Lee Ann Linam is a biologist with the Wildlife Diversity Program at Parks and Wildlife. We spoke in mid November when the birds were just beginning to show up along the coast following their long migration from their breeding grounds in Canada.
10—We have about 25 or 26 whoopers that have been sighted on the Texas coast. We normally, though, don’t get our final count until late December or perhaps early January.
The flock was nearly extinct in the late 1930s 1940s with fewer than 20 members, but its population has grown slowly thanks to well-coordinated efforts to protect habitat and the birds.
20—We had a peak of 283 in Texas last winter, which was a new record. We had approximately37 to 40 chicks that were fledged and were ready to fly I n late august in Canada, according to aerial surveys. So, if we get good enough survival, then we might hit that magic 300 mark.
The Aransas National Wildlife Refuge has a website that updates whooper arrivals, but…
04—The very best experience is to go down and see whooping cranes for yourself.
That’s our show for today. The sport fish and Wildlife restoration program supports our series and fund conservation programs in Texas. For Texas Parks and Wildlife…I’m Cecilia Nasti.
Posted in Endangered, Wildlife | Comments Off on Whoopers Could Break Record
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