Passport to Texas

 TPW TV: Endangered Prairie Chickens: Play Now | Play in Popup | Download

One of the most endangered birds in North America is the Attwater’s Prairie Chicken. Learn about efforts to help protect this species this month on the Texas parks and Wildlife TV series. Producer, Abe Moore.

57—There used to be close to a million of them in Texas and Louisiana; now they’re teetering around a hundred or so. I went down to the Attwater Prairie Chicken National Wildlife Refuge by Eagle Lake. It’s kind of their last stronghold right now.

So, the team goes through some serious struggles this breeding season, and one of the things that happens is they have an ace up their sleeve to kind of help the Attwater Prairie Chicken from going extinct.

Abe says he won’t provide any clues to that ace. We’ll just have to tune in to find out. Check your local listings.

The Wildlife and Sport Fish Restoration Program supports our series; it’s funded by your purchase of fishing and hunting equipment and motor boat fuel. For Texas Parks and Wildlife, I’m Cecilia Nasti.

 Fishing: Last of the Rainbows: Play Now | Play in Popup | Download

Two generations of Texas anglers know the joy of reeling in rainbow trout during the winter months thanks to Parks and Wildlife’s stocking program.

07—I believe it started in the 1960s; so, we’ve been stocking trout for fisherman for winter fishery for over forty years I believe.

Carl Kittle oversees the trout stocking program for Parks and Wildlife. Beginning every December through the first week of March, the Texas Parks and Wildlife’s inland fisheries division stocks more than a quarter of a million of the colorful fish in neighborhood fishing ponds statewide.

06—Rainbow trout are a cold water fish. The winter is the only time we really have water here in Texas that will support them.

Once it starts warming up—which could be any time now—the water will, too, and those fish will not survive. Considering rainbow trout are excellent table fare, it would be a shame to let them expire in the water.

17—They’re excellent eating fish. You can keep whatever fish you catch and I believe it is five per day. The fish that are stocked in general will be between eight and 10 inches, so a nine inch fish would be normal—with the exception of neighborhood fishing program lakes, which should average 11-12 inches in size.

Find the trout stocking schedule on the Parks and Wildlife website. The Wildlife and Sport Fish Restoration Program supports our series, and is funded by your purchase of fishing and hunting equipment and motorboat fuel.

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

 State Parks: Fishing for Rainbows: Play Now | Play in Popup | Download

Get to a state park with fishing opportunities while there’s still a chill in the air for your chance to reel in the last of the rainbow trout. Out state park guide Bryan Frazier explains.

The water temperature has to stay below a certain temperature for the rainbow trout to do well, and February’s a great time, because it’s usually the last month that there’ll be stockings for rainbow trout.

It’s a great reason to get outside during what’s typically a mild winter in Texas, and enjoy something else. It’s a new slant on fishing, and you can do it this time of year when you don’t necessarily think about fishing. But. It’s even better for rainbow trout when it’s cold.

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.

 Invasives: Zebra Mussels: Play Now | Play in Popup | Download

There are two types of aquatic mussels in Texas: those that belong here, and those that don’t.

Texas Parks and Wildlife aquatic habitat enhancement director Earl Chilton says native mussels indicate when rivers and lakes are healthy.

10—Native mussels often have pretty strict environmental requirements, and you can tell whether a system is healthy or not by the kind of native mussel population it has.

Invasive species like zebra mussels aren’t native to Texas. Because they have no natural competitors here, they reproduce quickly. And large numbers of zebra mussels can clog pipes and even kill native mussels.

14—Unlike native mussels, zebra mussels have byssal threads they use to attach to various objects. They also can attach to native mussels and when enough of them attach to a native mussel they can actually suffocate that mussel.

So how can you tell the difference between these good and bad mussels?

07—Zebra mussels are small and they’re going to attach to things. If you see a mussel attached to something it is a non-native mussel.

But native freshwater mussels don’t attach to anything. Now that you know the difference, you can find out how you can help stop the spread of zebra mussels and protect the native species www.texasinvasives.org.

That’s our show… the Sport Fish and Wildlife Restoration program supports our series… For Texas Parks and Wildlife…I’m Cecilia Nasti.

 State Parks: Campfires Allowed: Play Now | Play in Popup | Download

Starting a campfire in a state park this past summer wasn’t just a bad idea, it was terribly dangerous given the drought, and so it was banned. But now that winter’s here and we’ve had some rain, we can start to cozy up to campfires again. Our State Park Guide Bryan Frazier has details.

48— With the drought that we had in Texas, most people are understanding that that affects everything we do. And at the end of the summer—at the apex of that drought—we had burn bans in more than 200 counties here in Texas.

And so it’s a nice natural place to gather. So having those burn bans lifted in most of our counties is really good news for a lot of people who want to get out and enjoy an old fashioned campfire for their camping experience.

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.