Passport to Texas

[caption id="" align="aligncenter" width="500"]Texas Outdoor Family Workshop[/caption] This is Passport to Texas Need guidance when it comes to spending time outdoors? The Texas Outdoor Family program can help. 23—And it basically just helps teach people how to camp, or remind them of the skills of pitching tents and building fires safely, and how to take their family outdoors. It’s something that we believe very strongly in here at Texas Parks and Wildlife. Our state park guide Bryan Frazier says there are now ninety thousand additional reasons why the program is better than ever. 31—Texas Outdoor Families, through our interpretive services, here at Parks and Wildlife, received a ninety-thousand dollar grant from the National Outdoor industry Foundation. And that can actually parlay into a few hundred thousand dollars down the road. So, it’s a really important thing for lots of reasons. Not only does it recognize this program as significant, but it helps fund this program that state tax dollars now can be used in other ways. What it does, is it essentially allows us to stretch our budget. So, Kudos to our interpretive services and Texas Outdoor Families for getting this grant. 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.

This is Passport to Texas Flagler Ranch is 36 hundred acres of Texas Hill Country. Since George Matthews purchased it in 1992, he’s used an ecosystem management approach. Before his stewardship, the land had suffered 100 years of abuse. 03—As far as being overgrazed by cattle and sheep and goats. Louis Scherer III manages Flagler Ranch, which he said, had too many white tail deer. 15—And through MLD3 permits, we have got the whitetails population down to one in twelve per acre. Since we’ve done that and the other management practices, our weight per animal, and antler growth has almost doubled. Flagler Ranch was a Lone Star Land Steward eco-region award winner for the Edwards Plateau in 2010. Jerry Turrentine is a consulting biologist for the ranch. 17—We’re trying to integrate various techniques into an overall ranch management plan. We’re looking at food plots. We’re going to bring back some rare plants through some plantings. We’re going to do some reintroductions of forbes and grasses…we’re trying to be a learning area for other ranches in the plateau. Water is vital in any ecosystem, and Joyce Moore with TPWD says Flagler Ranch has done an exemplary job of collecting it. 10—And so what the Flagler ranch has been doing, which is very innovative, is they’ve been placing these spreader dams along these drainages to capture every bit of rain that Mother nature does provide. Learn about the Lone star Land Stewards Awards on the Texas parks and Wildlife website. The Wildlife and Sport Fish Restoration program supports our series… For Texas Parks and Wildlife…I’m Cecilia Nasti.

[caption id="" align="aligncenter" width="500"]Bastrop Tree Planting, Image courtesy www.statesman.com[/caption] This is Passport to Texas As you know, Bastrop State park took a big hit during the 2011 Labor Day Wildfires. Approximately 95% of the park burned to ash. Our state park guide, Bryan Frazier, says reforestation efforts continue; and your chance to help is now. 52—We’ve had people lining up, wanting to know when can they help replant the loblolly pine seedlings. And they’re the drought resistant loblolly pines that were there before. In fact, they were originally planted there by the CCC about 75 – 80 years ago. The growth that’s there now –that’s what you’re seeing. Because a lot of Bastrop, and that area, the lost pines, the timber was used to build the city of Austin, San Antonio and a lot of their families. So, this growth now that we’re putting in the ground is for future generations. And we have several weekends in January where we need volunteers to come help put those trees in the ground so that future generations can enjoy those big, beautiful pine trees that we all have come to know and love in Bastrop State Park. And you can find out all about this on Parks and Wildlife’s website, specifically at texasstateparks.org. 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.

This is Passport to Texas It’s a New Year and time for resolutions. For the past few days we’ve been talking about how time spent in nature can make us healthier…happier…and smarter. Outreach and Education director Nancy Herron says when we say “smarter”, we don’t necessarily mean increasing one’s IQ. 54—Being outdoors helps you with focus, and concentration – it clears your mind in a little different way. So when you come back inside, you’re actually more ready to work. And they have neuroscientists who talk about the importance of before an important meeting … a job interview …something you anticipate is going to be stressful: take a walk around the block. Get outside. It clears your mind a little bit. I don’t think you can find a more fertile ground for creativity than nature and outdoors. So, if you want to spark wonder – and that’s the key to learning – that’s getting outside in nature. Put these things on your calendar. Make a commitment to that in those resolutions sop, once a day you’re getting outside to be a little healthier. Once a week you’re going to do something that will help reduce that stress. And once a month get out there – put it on the calendar – you can do this. And they’re fun. They’re really fun resolutions to have. Thanks, Nancy. Remember: Life’s Better outside. The Wildlife and Sport Fish Restoration program supports our series… For Texas Parks and Wildlife…I’m Cecilia Nasti.

This is Passport to Texas Happy New Year! We hope it’s going to be the best yet. Nancy Herron, director of Outreach and Education at Parks and Wildlife says resolving to be happier is as easy as spending more time outdoors. 28—Allowing yourself a little playtime outside does so many great things for you. If you put it on your calendar that once a week I’m going to do something fun for myself and it might be laying out in the grass and looking up and listening to birds, or maybe it’s riding a bike again, or trying another kind of fishing or something like that. You just feel better about yourself; you actually do feel more confident when you’ve been able to be out. Nancy is outdoors regularly as you might imagine; she told me about coming across a sprawling live oak tree while on a walk in the woods with her granddaughter. 16— It was the best climbing tree ever. And my little monkey granddaughter just ran right up…and yes…I couldn’t resist, and I climbed up, too. It was so much fun. I felt pretty good about myself – I could actually do it at my age. Tomorrow, Nancy Herron tells us how spending time outdoors can make us smarter. The Wildlife and Sport Fish Restoration program supports our series… For Texas Parks and Wildlife…I’m Cecilia Nasti.

[caption id="" align="aligncenter" width="500"]Image courtesy of Children and Nature Network[/caption] This is Passport to Texas There’s big push to get children outdoors. But kids aren’t the only ones who benefit from fresh air and sunshine. Survey says: People of all ages – young and old – can achieve a better quality of life by spending time in the wide open spaces…as well as the forested spaces…or watery spaces…or even urban spaces with a patch of green. Outreach and Education director, Nancy Herron, shares some thoughts. 38— When you spend time outdoors you can be healthier, happier and smarter. What do we mean by that? Well, actually there is a lot of research that’s out there that shows that people of all ages actually do have benefits from being outside in nature, and that does include improvements to your health, your stress level, your sense of self esteem and confidence. Even being more cooperative. Can you believe that? Communities are more cooperative; families bond better in the out of doors. These are interesting things that we now know that we took for granted, and we just didn’t realize. That there’s a whole bevy of benefits from being outdoors. Nancy Herron returns next week to offer New Year’s resolutions that will get you outdoors and help to make you and yours healthier… happier…and smarter. For Texas Parks and Wildlife…I’m Cecilia Nasti.

[caption id="" align="aligncenter" width="500"]Image courtesy of Children and Nature Network[/caption] This is Passport to Texas Healthier…happier…smarter: That’s what Texas Parks and Wildlife Outreach and Education Director Nancy Herron says you will be when you commit to spending time outdoors. 03— There’s a whole bevy of benefits from being outdoors. Over the next several days Nancy joins us and suggests resolutions you might embrace for a healthier, happier, and even smarter New Year. Today we focus on health. 60— One of the most fun resolutions is to get a little dose of “vitamin N” every day – and that’s vitamin Nature. Being outdoors in nature, even 30 minutes a day, will make a big difference. If you get outside and take a nice walk, a stroll in the park. If you break it up even in three ten minute chunks, it just helps in a lot of ways physically. It reduces your stress. I have seen you taking a little stroll around the building before. I do try and take a little break. And you know we actually know that little walk around the block – wherever it is – there’s nature everywhere. There’s nearby nature in a city block. Just getting outdoors, just getting a little fresh air – even if you’re checking out the sky and making some shapes out of the clouds: it’s a good break for you and gets you physically moving. And that’s the biggest problem we have is we’re just not moving around. So, let’s get outside and move. And it’s as simple as thirty minutes a day, three ten minute breaks. Give yourself some recess and have fun. Tomorrow it’s a brand New Year, and we get happy. For Texas Parks and Wildlife…I’m Cecilia Nasti.

[caption id="" align="aligncenter" width="500"]Quail Habitat[/caption] Passport to Texas with support from the Wildlife and Sport Fish Restoration Program When it comes to quail, TPW biologist, Robert Perez, says they’ve had it rough. Habitat fragmentation and drought beat them up in Texas. Working with adjacent landowners to manage their properties for quail is helping to address fragmentation – but what about drought? 26— Where it’s dry, what you can do is be proactive. And so you have proactive strategies for drought, which is leaving residual cover; leaving standing grasses; leaving standing vegetation and not mowing it down; shredding it, or putting cattle on it or other livestock that will remove that vegetation. So you have to have something standing there for them, which is difficult to do in a drought. But there are areas that you can protect. And those quail will kind of hole up in those refugia until things turn around. Thanks to a new grant from the Wildlife Restoration program, Robert Perez says the agency can now monitor the recovery efforts to help these native game birds. 20–By monitoring I mean you need to go in and count how many animals there are on the front end, and then you have your treatment or your improvements. You then continue counting and seeing if there is actual response by that species. So, we just got a grant from the Pittman Robertson Wildlife Restoration Act Fund – a federal grant – to go in and start measuring the impacts of our works at three different locations in the state over the next four years. And we’ll follow along and report on their progress. The Wildlife and Sport Fish Restoration Program supports our series and funds diverse conservation programs throughout Texas. For Texas Parks and Wildlife…I’m Cecilia Nasti

[caption id="" align="aligncenter" width="250"]Bobwhite quail, © Texas Parks and Wildlife Department[/caption] Passport to Texas with support from the Wildlife and Sport Fish Restoration Program The northern bobwhite quail may have the largest range among the four quail species found in Texas, but it is also the most threatened. 07— Bobwhites are the big concern as far as our constituents go for parks and Wildlife, and its populations have been in decline range wide. TPW biologist, Robert Perez, says population decline isn’t new for the bobwhite. 17–In recent history in the 40s, for instance – in the 1940s post WWII – bobwhites were very abundant in east Texas. But since that time they’ve all but disappeared from east Texas and other pine woodlands across the SE United States. And that big decline has continues as you go west across Texas; little by little as time goes by. If you were to draw a line along the I-35 corridor from Dallas to San Antonio, quail habitat east of that line is highly fragmented. 13– A lot of the native types of grasses and prairies have been replaced by other things; either concrete or by exotic grasses like Mexia or Bermuda, things that quail don’t live in. So, that’s really the main reason of decline in those areas of the state. Quail need a minimum of 1,000 acres of appropriate, un-fragmented habitat to maintain a viable population. West of I-35, plentiful habitat that includes the bunchgrasses quail need, still exists… but years of drought has taken its toll on the land and the birds. 04– Quail just don’t have that longevity where they can wait through those long drought periods. More on that tomorrow. The Wildlife and Sport Fish Restoration Program supports our series and funds diverse conservation programs throughout Texas.

[caption id="" align="aligncenter" width="500"]Image from Hammock Forums, Saab Zombee[/caption] This is Passport to Texas For some, the biggest barrier to overnight camping is sleeping on the ground. What if I told you there’s a new kind of camping allows you to sleep suspended over it instead? Our state park Guide Bryan Frazier has details on hammock camping. 51— I’m a little new to that, and had never really heard much about it. At Fairfield Lake SP recently, they had the fourth annual hammock camping event there – the Texas Society of Hammock Campers – and it’s really something that’s caught on with lots of people. It’s very stewardship driven; there’s extra care taken with nylon straps so that the hammock does not damage the trees. There’s minimal to no damage on ground resources and so the footprint is much, much smaller, and you’re camping suspended in a hammock with a tarp cover. There’s a whole group that’s doing it; you can find out more at www.hammockforums.net. It explains all about it…gives the details of it…talks about some of the events and how you can get involved. It’s an interesting way and a new way to enjoy parks all over. But here in Texas, it’s a growing trend and I think something that’s going to catch on even more. 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.

[caption id="" align="aligncenter" width="500"]Whooping Crans, photo by Earl Nottingham[/caption] Passport to Texas with support from the Wildlife and Sport Fish Restoration Program Habitat protection and hunting restrictions (in place since the early 20th Century) saved the last wild migratory flock of whooping cranes from extinction. 06— Our whooping crane population in Texas is getting larger. We’re approaching about 300 birds in that population now. That’s up from a low of 16 birds. Lee Ann Linam, a biologist in the Wildlife Diversity Program, says last year a few whoopers wintered farther inland than usual. To better understand this event, Texas Parks and Wildlife created a new monitoring program called Whooper Watch. 18–If we have whooping cranes that linger either in migration or in some of these non-traditional wintering areas, then we are training volunteers at workshops to go out and to observe those cranes in a way that’s not disturbing to the cranes, but would let them gather some data for us about the habitats they’re using and their behavior in those habitats. Anyone can and should report a whooper sighting to Texas Parks and Wildlife, but if you want to go deeper, Lee Ann Linam recommends taking the training. 18– We’re using methods that are used by animal behaviorists – especially those who study cranes around the world. So our volunteers are learning some of the real techniques that biologists use. But anybody who enjoys watching wildlife and is a good observer, can learn from us how to gather this data in a way that is really useful to us. Find information on Whooper Watch at the Texas Parks and Wildlife website. The WSFR program supports our series and funds diverse conservation programs throughout Texas. For Texas parks and Wildlife…I’m Cecilia Nasti.

[caption id="" align="aligncenter" width="500"]Whooping Cranes, photo by Earl Nottingham[/caption] Passport to Texas with support from the Wildlife and Sport Fish Restoration Program Texas has long been home to the last wild migratory flock of whooping cranes in the world. 05— And so we know that in Texas. And we enjoy seeing them and waiting for their arrival in the fall. Lee Ann Linam is a biologist in the Wildlife Diversity program, and oversees the Nature Tracker program –which now includes Whooper Watch. 20–One of the interesting things that’s developing…as the whooping crane population expands… we’re seeing whooping cranes use new areas. Both in migration and in their wintering areas. And so, last year, when several whooping crane families spent the winter in the Austin area, we decided we wanted to be ready to watch for whoopers that might be using habitats like that and learn more about them. Traditional Texas wintering grounds for the endangered species is the central-coast, around the Rockport area and in the vicinity of Aransas National Wildlife refuge. So, finding them so far inland last year was unusual. 20– Our whooping crane population in Texas is getting larger. We’re approaching about 300 birds in that population now. And as they try to squeeze themselves into their traditional wintering territories, perhaps they’re encountering some crowding there. In addition, last winter was a very mild winter, so inland water bodies that might have normally frozen early in the winter did not. Linam also notes that habitat conditions on the coast last year may have suffered due to the drought. We’ll have information on Whooper Watch tomorrow. The Wildlife and Sport Fish Restoration program supports our series and funds diverse conservation programs throughout Texas. For Texas parks and Wildlife…I’m Cecilia Nasti.

[caption id="" align="aligncenter" width="500"]Image courtesy www.russellgraves.com[/caption] This is Passport to Texas We live in an age where nearly everyone has access to more than one kind of electronic media device. 02— Which, personally, I’m not against. What writer, photographer and former Ag teacher, Russell Graves, does take exception to is the amount of time children and families spend indoors using those gadgets. 07 –You know, I think a lot of my attitude comes from the way I was raised. When I was growing up, I was continually outside, and it just seemed like the natural place to be. Studies suggest children who spend time outdoors are healthier, happier and more focused in the classroom. Parents can help their children develop an affinity for nature by starting small…such as by growing a flower garden, or going on hikes in State parks with the goal of spotting specific animals or plants. 06 – Getting them to the point where the kids are motivated so they want to go outside and play on their own, without their parents having to push them outside. Graves, a former award winning public school teacher, says schools have a role to play when it comes to reconnecting young people with nature. 08 – School can provide a way for kids to learn about the outdoors, and become involved in camping or hiking or photography or any number of outdoor activities. Russell Graves wrote an article for the January issue of Texas Parks and Wildlife magazine [called Dirty Nails and Goat Slobber] that outlines simple steps any adult can use to help children take back the outdoors. Because: Life’s Better Outside. For Texas Parks and Wildlife…I’m Cecilia Nasti.

[caption id="" align="aligncenter" width="333"]Photo by Russell Graves[/caption] This is Passport to Texas When given a choice, kids used to spend entire days in unstructured outdoor play. Not so today. 11— There was a study done that says kids spend an average of 5,000 hours by the time they reach kindergarten age being exposed to some sort of electronic media. That’s roughly the equivalent it takes to get a college degree. That’s Russell Graves, professional writer, photographer and former Ag teacher. He cited that statistic in an article he wrote for the January 2013 issue of Texas Parks and Wildlife magazine. Television, video games and other electronic devices compete for a child’s attention. 05 –At some point, kids need to have a love of the outdoors and a love a playing outdoors fostered in them. And that’s where adults come in. We have to help children cultivate what’s already exists inside them. In his article, Russell Graves offers simple suggestions for parents to help their kids cultivate love of the outdoors and of discovery. 16 – One of the things we did when my kids were little is we would garden. Whether it was a vegetable garden or a flower garden – just get them out there in the dirt. Let them dig holes, and let them plant flowers. Because, then all of a sudden, they get involved with wanting to come home every day and check to see how their flower garden or their vegetables are doing. And that leads to examining bugs, and reptiles and birds and before you know it – you have a nature lover on your hands. We’ll have more with Russell Graves tomorrow. For Texas Parks and Wildlife…I’m Cecilia Nasti.

[caption id="" align="aligncenter" width="500"]First Day Hikes[/caption] This is Passport to Texas You’ve heard of walking your talk…we’ll here’s a chance to hike your resolutions. Nearly all of us vow to get healthier each New Year, and with First Day Hikes, you can put your plan into action. Our state park Guide Bryan Frasier has details. 51— It’s becoming quite the tradition. Last year was out first year to participate in Texas; it’s been going on for a number of years with different State Park Systems, and last year we had more than 11-hundred people turn out on New Year’s Day – we had New year’s Day hikes in 47 of our state parks. There are even more scheduled this year. And these hikes range from all levels: challenging to very relaxed, very leisurely. There are nature hikes, birding hikes, hikes through the mountains. Hikes along boardwalks on the Gulf Coast… So whatever you like to do, or if there’s a state park near you….get out after the holidays. Maybe we overdid it a little bit with the holiday dining the little Christmas turkey and new year’s celebration….get outside and walk that off and see the beautiful scenery and enjoy the fresh air; make First Day Hikes a tradition for you and your family. 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.