May 2nd, 2011
This is Passport to Texas
If you want to introduce children to hunting, Public Hunting coordinator, Vickie Fite, says try squirrel.
11—That’s a great place to start with a first hunting experience. They’re a large number of squirrels available, it’s a inexpensive sport, it’s one of those kind that I started doing with my grandfather when I was nine years old.
You can hunt squirrel throughout the month of May. And although squirrel makes a good first hunting experience, Fite says they’ll keep you on your toes.
11—Squirrels are a lot of fun. You have to have a lot of patience; you have to be pretty smart. They can see really great. They’re a wily little competitor out there. They’ll give you a run for your money.
You can hunt on more than a million acres of public land for the cost of a $48 public hunting permit. Fite has a suggestion if you go squirrel hunting this spring.
10—If you look in the book there are a lot of our public hunting lands that also offer a fishing opportunity, either right there on the area or in close proximity. So throw in your fishing pole and take advantage of that, too.
If you harvest a squirrel and decided to eat it…
03—Well, it tastes a lot like chicken.
Learn more about hunting opportunities on public lands on the Texas Parks and Wildlife website.
The Wildlife Restoration Program supports our series… helping to fund the operations and management of more than 50 Texas wildlife management areas… For Texas Parks and Wildlife…I’m Cecilia Nasti.
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April 29th, 2011
This is Passport to Texas
If you live in an area that used to be coyote habitat –chances are it still is.
10—The coyotes are here to stay. Cities and private individuals – on a regular basis – try to remove the coyotes from an area. But the thing is – they are incredibly adaptable.
Brett Johnson is an urban wildlife biologist in Dallas County.
06—They can make a better living in an urban area than they can out in the country. There are more food resources available.
Such as bird seed with corn, and especially pet food left outdoors. The latter could put your pet at risk. Brett uses cats as an example.
20—The coyotes come in a few times and end up eating the cat food. Somewhere down the road, they come in and find the cat eating the cat food. How do most canines react when they find something else eating their food? At that point in time you may have just entered the cat as a prey species for the coyote when they realize, ‘Oh. They’re not that hard to kill.’
You control whether coyotes keep a safe distance or become a nuisance.
10—Do not let the coyotes become comfortable hanging around human inhabited areas; don’t make pets accessible to the coyotes; and overall, don’t make your living area attractive to the coyotes.
The Sport Fish and Wildlife Restoration program supports our series and is funded by your purchase of fishing and hunting equipment and motor boat fuels…
For Texas Parks and Wildlife…I’m Cecilia Nasti.
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April 28th, 2011
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.
Posted in Wildlife | Comments Off on Managing Urban Coyotes
April 27th, 2011
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.
Posted in Wildlife | Comments Off on Problems with Urban Coyotes
April 26th, 2011
This is Passport to Texas
If wildflowers haven’t popped up yet where you live, they will soon—it’s what they do this time of year. And as our State park Guide, Bryan Frazier tells us, even non-Texans flock to the flowers when they bloom.
61—Not just all over the US, but all over the world, who come in to see out beautiful bluebonnets, and Indian Paintbrushes, and Indian Blankets, and Evening Primrose, and all of those flowers that make Texas this pallet of color in the spring. And whether you’re talking about Washington County and state parks like Washington-on-the-Brazos, or McKinney Falls, or LBJ State Park in the Hill Country—and even down in South Texas like lake Corpus Christi State Park, or even up in North Texas, you can see lost of different regionalized color for wildflowers, and this time of year is the time to do it. If we’ve had any seasonal rains at all you can even get them out in the Big Bend area—which are some of the most unique flowers you’re going to see any time. It’s a great time to get out and take photographs, and people love to take their children out there. Be safe, because some other animals and critters, sometimes little snakes and things, like the cover and the shade of the wildflowers. So, take your steps carefully and deliberately, but get out and enjoy the beautiful color that’s about to come our way with wildflower season all across Texas.
Thanks, Bryan.
Find more information at texasstateparks.org.
That’s our show… For Texas Parks and Wildlife…I’m Cecilia Nasti.
Posted in State Parks | Comments Off on Wildflowers in State Parks
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