Volume XXVI, No. 1
January-February 2008
BexarAudubon Society
is a chapter of the
National Audubon
Society. Its primary
goals are to promote
species and habitat
conservation and envi-ronmental
education
in the community.
The Envision Process
Thursday, January 10•6:30PM gathering; 6:45 announcements; 7:00 program
Trinity University Cowles Life Sciences Building, Room 149 (see map, p. 4) •Free; open to the public
Bexar Tracks
For the latest news & updates, see http://www.bexaraudubon.org & http://www.sa-naturecenter.org
Something different: a program less about “what” and
more about “how to.” It will be of special interest to
people who are or wish to become active in conserva-tion
efforts.
Peter Bella, director of the Natural Resources
Department of AACOG (Alamo Area Council of
Governments), will explain how the “Envision” process
can be used to set the course for local conservation
and environmental protection.
The goal of Envision is to bring community stakehold-ers
together in a wide-area visioning process that yields
a clear, citizen-led focus on community needs and
resources. It is a democratic, collaborative process used
around the country. It can embrace a wide array of
quality-of-life indicators, e.g., the economy, employ-ment,
education, public safety, and government, as
well as culture, recreation, growth, health, social envi-ronment,
natural resources, and the natural environ-ment.
The results can often leverage funding from
public and private sources, too.
Peter has spent nine years with AACOG. As director of
the Natural Resources Department, he provides strate-gic
planning, targeting air-quality improvements within
the AACOG region. He also presents widely before local
elected officials and the general public in order to
familiarize them with the air-quality work of the depart-ment
and the clean-air challenges faced by those living
in the San Antonio region. He also researches legal and
technical aspects of federal and state statutes related
to air quality.
Peter holds a BS in Physics, magna cum laude, and an
MS in Mathematics, both from UTSA.
Saturday, February 16, 9:30am – 12 noon
WinterWalk at Crownridge Canyon Natural Area
Join Patty Leslie Pasztor for a leisurely hike at this won-derful
Natural Area in Northwest San Antonio. We will
look for birds and animal signs and do some winter
tree I.D. This is San Antonio’s first Natural Area devel-oped
as part of the Edwards Aquifer Protection initia-tive.
The 200-acre preserve has hiking trails through a
variety of habitats. Features include a canopy-level
bridge overlook, beautiful forested canyon bottoms,
hillside vistas, and restored grasslands. We will meet at
the trailhead pavilion. For reservations and questions,
call (210)837-0577.
Directions: take Interstate Highway 10 west about 1/2
mile past Loop 1604. Take exit 554 for Camp Bullis
Road. Two miles down the access road, take a left onto
Camp Bullis Road. Proceed under the interstate and
continue heading west on Camp Bullis Road. After 1.6
miles, take a right on Luskey Blvd. Crown Ridge Canyon
Natural Area is on the right.
There will be no program meeting in February. Happy Valentine’s Day!
Judit Gowen, Texas Parks & Wildlife Dept. Urban Biologist, speaks on Wildscaping March 13.
Trinity biologist Dr. Kelly Lyons will speak on exotic/invasive plant species April 10.
May 8 falls during Trinity’s final exams, so our May meeting (the final one until fall)
will be held on Thursday, May 15.
Jan-Feb 2008.qxp:Jul 97 issue 12/10/07 11:39 AM Page 1
Bexar Tracks 2 January-February 2008
The 11th Annual Great Backyard Bird Count
February 15-18, 2008
“Count for Fun; Count for the Future”
Photo by Ardith Bondi of New York,
who was witness to this confronta-tion
between an immature Red-tailed
Hawk and a gray squirrel.
Both came out of the encounter
unscathed. Winner in the Behavior
category of the 2007 Great
Backyard Bird Count photo contest.
The Great Backyard Bird Count is an annual four-day
event that engages bird watchers of all ages in count-ing
birds to create a real-time snapshot of where the birds
are across the continent. Anyone can participate, from
beginning bird watchers to experts. It takes as little as 15
minutes. It’s free, fun, and easy — and it helps the birds.
Participants count birds anywhere for as little or as long
as they wish during the four-day period. They tally the high-est
number of birds of each species seen together at any
one time. To report their counts, they fill out an online
checklist at the Great Backyard Bird Count web site.
As the count progresses, anyone with Internet access can
explore what is being reported from their own towns or
anywhere in the United States and Canada. They can also
see how this year's numbers compare with those from pre-vious
years. Participants may also send in photographs of
the birds they see. A selection of images is posted in the
online photo gallery.
In 2007, participants reported a record-breaking 11 million
birds of 616 species. They submitted more than 80,000
checklists, an all-time record for the ten years of the count.
Why Count Birds?
Scientists and bird enthusiasts can learn a lot by knowing
where the birds are. Bird populations are dynamic; they are
constantly in flux. No single scientist or team of scientists
could hope to document the complex distribution and
movements of so many species in such a short time.
We need your help. Make sure the birds from your com-munity
are well represented in the count. It doesn’t matter
whether you report the 5 species coming to your backyard
feeder or the 75 species you see during a day’s outing to a
wildlife refuge.
The All About Birds web site provides photos, sounds,
maps, and information about birds:
www.birds.cornell.edu/AllAboutBirds/
For help in distinguishing similar-looking species, visit the
GBBC page on tricky IDs:
www.birdsource.org/gbbc/learning/trickyIDs
Want to photograph birds? Get advice from the experts at:
www.birds.cornell.edu/AllAboutBirds/bp
The GBBC is a joint project of the Cornell Laboratory of
Ornithology and Audubon.
Everything you need to know is on
the GBBC web site:
www.birdsource.org/gbbc/
• How to participate
• What 2007 participants have to say
• A special page for kids
• Science stories
• Gallery of remarkable participant
photos like the one at left
• Online Bird Guide
• Birding Tools
• Bird-Feeding Tips
• Audubon WatchList
• Top 10 Birds for 2007 GBBC
• GBBC Slideshow with Top-10 Birds
Jan-Feb 2008.qxp:Jul 97 issue 12/10/07 11:40 AM Page 2
Birds: Bellwethers of Watershed
Health — Lynne Trulio, PhD from
San Jose State University, is author
of an educational module on this
topic: www.epa.gov/watertrain/birds/
Because they respond to basic
changes in landscape and habitat
condition, birds can be good indi-cators
of watershed health. Birds
are also well-studied and very pop-ular
with the public. This module
introduces how birds respond to
changes in watersheds and how
landscape conditions can be man-aged
to help birds and improve
overall watershed health. Many of
this module’s photos and graphics
were provided courtesy of the
American Bird Conservancy’s mag-azine
Bird Conservation.
It’s excellent information, nicely
presented, and worth your perusal.
Gardening for Birds — For some
interesting ideas, take a look at:
www.hgtv.com/hgtv/gl_wildlife_bir
ds/article/0,,HGTV_3652_4409419,
00.html
Very Merry Berries for the Birds!
— Many good trees and shrubs pro-vide
pretty and good-eating berries
for wildlife — American beautyberry,
crabapple, pyracanthia, agarita, etc.
Check your local Extension office or
Horticulture websites, and
www.hgtv.com/hgtv/gl_trees_shrubs
_fruit/article/0,,HGTV_3647_336631
5,00.html
Field Guide to the World’s Birds —
www.flickr.com/groups/birdguide/pool/
Beginning Birding — Involved in
teaching youngsters how to bird or
want to learn more about the
sport? Check out Texas Parks and
Wildlife’s web pages.
www.tpwd.state.tx.us/adv/birding/
beginbird/beginbird.htm
It Could Happen — According to
the New York Times (12/9/07),
2008 may offer a rare spring
bloom in California’s Death Valley,
the result of an unusually wet fall.
Death Valley is home to more than
1,000 species of wildflowers. For a
peek at the last such incident, see:
http://travel.nytimes.com/travel/gu
ides/north-america/united-states/
california/death-valley-national-
park/overview.html
The Yangtze River dolphin, the
baiji, is now considered to be
extinct, according to an article by
Greg Bungo:
www.guardian.co.uk/environment/
2007/aug/08/endangeredspecies.
conservation
“Conservationists described the
extinction as a ‘shocking tragedy’…
caused not by active persecution
but accidentally and carelessly
through a combination of factors
including unsustainable fishing and
mass shipping.” In other words, too
many people were living their lives
on or near the habitat of the baiji.
This is hardly a surprise in badly
overpopulated China. We can cer-tainly
expect more episodes like
this in overpopulated India, as well
as China.
Effective household cleaning
products — A number of “green”
cleansers are available today, made
without the petrochemicals, chlo-rine,
phosphates, and other toxins
in many cleaning products. Go to:
www.newdream.org/consumer/cle
aners.php for a list.
Make your own cleansers with sim-ple
ingredients such as vinegar and
baking soda. Studies have shown
that a 5 percent solution of vinegar
kills 99 percent of bacteria, 82 per-cent
of mold, and 80 percent of
germs (viruses). Dissolve 2 table-spoons
of vinegar in 2 cups of
water to create a basic household
cleanser. For more tips see:
http://www.care2.com/greenliving
/make-your-own-non-toxic-clean-ing-
kit.html and search
www.care2.com for additional tips.
Children are particularly vulnerable
to the effects of products used in
the home and school. New York
became the first state to institute
green-cleaning legislation requiring
all schools and government agen-cies
to use environmentally benign
cleansers. Read more about this at
www.emsc.nysed.gov/facplan/gree
nclean.htm
Submit questions about consumer
choices and their environmental
effects to cblayer@audubon.org at
“Ask Audubon.”
The Birdhouse Network: A Decade
of Dedication — If you’re looking
for a new way to indulge your pas-sion
for birds, consider joining The
Birdhouse Network, a citizen-sci-ence
project of the Cornell Lab of
Ornithology. Participants put up
nest boxes and record information
once or twice a week about what
the birds are doing. Over the past
10 years, participants have submit-ted
nearly 70,000 records detailing
when birds build their nests, how
many eggs they lay, and when the
fledglings take their first flights.
These efforts have helped expand
scientific knowledge about
Bluebirds, Tree Swallows, House
Wrens, and other cavity-nesters.
People of all ages and skill levels
can be part of The Birdhouse
Network. To sign up or find out
more, visit the project's web site:
www.birds.cornell.edu/birdhouse, or
call (800) 843-2473. The project fee
is $15 ($12 for Lab members).
Purple Martin Time! — It’s time to
think about welcoming Purple
Martins late January or early
Febraury. New colonies may be
started later into the year, too. For
information, housing, tips, and
more, see the Purple Martin
Conservation Association’s website:
www.purplemartin.org/
January-February 2008 3 Bexar Tracks
News & Information
Jan-Feb 2008.qxp:Jul 97 issue 12/10/07 11:40 AM Page 3
Cowles
Cowles is just uphill from the Laurie Auditorium
and between the Library and the Chapman
Graduate Center. Park by the Laurie or in
lots or on streets to the west. Handicapped
parking is across from Cowles. Enter from
Oakmont or Rosewood. Call Patty for addition-al
directions (210)824-1235 or see additional
map at bexaraudubon.org/map.jpg
Library Laurie
Chapman
Map to Cowles Life Sciences Building, Trinity University, west of Highway 281
Earth Share of Texas raises money for environmen-tal
and conservation organizations through workplace
giving. If your employer participates in such pro-grams,
please ask them (if they don’t already) to add
Earth Share to your giving options. By designating the
Audubon Foundation of Texas (AFT), Bexar Audubon
Society can benefit. BAS receives credit for our sup-port
— getting the word out and promoting participa-tion.
Then BAS receives funding annually from AFT.
Want more info? 1-800-GREENTX, ESTX@earthshare-texas.
org, or www.earthshare-texas.org
El Cielo Nature Festival — A sus-tainable
development project in the
Biosphere Reserve — the forest in
the clouds in Northeast Mexico.
Register Online:
www.elcielofestival.com
Come meet the local guides and
help preserve this wonderful area.
Nature Festival (4th Annual)
February 28 – March 2, 2008.
Both events will be hosted at
Ciudad Mante, Tamaulipas. All
inclusive festival package trips will
be departing from McAllen, Texas.
Audubon’s Rowe Sanctuary will
host a Chapter Workshop, “Taking
Action for Birds in a Changing
Climate,” March 14, in conjunction
with the 2008 Audubon Rivers and
Wildlife Celebration in Kearney,
Nebraska. For more information see
www.audubon.org/local/index.html.
The Rivers and Wildlife
Celebration centers on the annual
Sandhill crane (and Whooping
crane) migration — one of the nat-ural
wonders of the world. (Editor’s
note: If you’ve never witnessed it,
don’t wait another year!)
A new booklet is available, “Bat
Watching Sites of Texas,” produced
by TPWD in partnership with the Bat
Viewing Sites Forum coalition of
partners. The booklet covers basic
information about free-tailed bats,
plus bat-watching etiquette for the
public. It includes maps and infor-mation
about 10 established sites
across Texas where people can wit-ness
evening bat emergences from
caves, tunnels, and highway bridges.
The booklet is available for $2 at any
of the bat-watching sites, or people
can order it by sending a check for
$2 made to “Texas Nongame Fund,”
mailed to Wildlife Diversity Program,
Texas Parks and Wildlife Department,
4200 Smith School Road, Austin, TX
78744.
More information about free-tailed
bats is on the TPWD web site:
www.tpwd.state.tx.us
Who’s What? and how to contact them
President & Webmaster, Harry Noyes — 210-490-3124 —
harrynoyes@satx.rr.com
Treasurer, Caryl Swann — 210-653-2860 — cjswann1@earthlink.net
Secretary, Anita Anderson — 210-533-8726 — ajandrsn@sbcglobal.net
At-large: Kara Ryf — 503-803-2856 — kararyf@hotmail.com
Amy L. Whitley — 210-340-0114 — nueces66@yahoo.com
Kathy Ikerd — kathy@wordwright.com
Editor, Susan Hughes — 210-532-2032 — editor@bexaraudubon.org
Programs/Outings,Patty Pasztor—210-824-1235 —
pasztor@ix.netcom.com
Bexar Tracks 4 January-February 2008
San Antonio
Audubon
Beginners
Birdwalk — Each
Second Saturday of
the month at 8am.
Begins at the Judson
Nature Trails House
next to the Alamo
Heights Swimming
Pool on Viesca St.
Info at (210)342-
2073. Binoculars
available to lend.
Report your bird
sightings to San
Antonio Audubon
Society’s Birdline at
(210)308-6788.
www.saaudubon.org
Jan-Feb 2008.qxp:Jul 97 issue 12/10/07 11:40 AM Page 4
First Saturday Walks, 9-11am
The first Saturday of each month,
the San Antonio Natural Areas
Program of the San Antonio Parks
and Recreation Department holds
a natural and cultural history inter-pretive
walk at one of the Natural
Areas. Contact (210)564-6400 for
the schedule, locations, and reser-vations.
$2 per person donation
suggested. Limited to 15 persons
per hike.
January 5 — Friedrich Wilderness
Park, 12603 West Ave.
February 2 — Eisenhower Park,
19399 NW Military Dr.
Second Saturday Programs at
Eisenhower Park
Co-sponsored by SA Parks and
Recreation Natural Areas Program
and Bexar Audubon. Reservations
required; details occasionally
change. Call (210)564-6400. $3
each or $5 per family donation
suggested.www.sanaturalareas.org
Eisenhower Park, Harris (Mass
Pavilion), 19399 NW Military Hwy.
Take FM 1535/Military Hwy exit off
Loop 1604 on the city’s northwest
side. Go north on FM 1535/Military
Hwy for 2 miles. Park entrance is
on the left, just before Camp
Bullis. Program is in the large
gated pavilion.
January 12 — Bare Branches —
10am-12 noon — Go for a walk with
city forester, Michael Nentwich, to
explore our trees in winter. Learn
how they can be used in urban situ-ations
and begin to think about trees
you may want to plant in your yard
this year.
February 9 — The PEAK, Promoting
Environmental Awareness in Kids,
program — 9am-12 noon (designed
for children 8-12 years) is the result
of a partnership between the Leave
No Trace Center for Outdoor Ethics
and REI (Recreation Equipment
Incorporated) and is designed to
educate children about the outdoors
and responsible enjoyment of our
shared public lands. www.lnt.org
Mitchell Lake Audubon Center
10750 Pleasanton Road, San
Antonio, TX 78221, (210)628-1639
www.mitchelllakeaudubon.org
News: BAS Board member Kara Ryf
is the new docent and volunteer
coordinator at Mitchell Lake
Audubon Center.
MLAC has received funding from
the City of San Antonio and the
Kronkosky Charitable Foundation
for the construction of an ADA-accessible
outdoor-education pavil-ion
that will increase capacity to
accommodate more school and
community programs. It will have
covered seating and additional
restrooms. Work is also near com-pletion
on an outdoor amphitheatre
donated by KB Homes that will pro-vide
open-air theatre seating adja-cent
to the visitor center as well as
picnic areas.
2008 Docent Training for the
Mitchell Lake Audubon Center
Come on Saturday, January 5 from
2-4pm for a Docent Orientation
Meeting at the Mitchell Lake
Audubon Center, 10750 Pleasanton
Road (exit 46 from IH-410 Loop).
MLAC is seeking individuals who
are enthusiastic and energetic
about nature and wish to instill this
appreciation through education.
Orientation will provide information
about the MLAC Docent Program
and an opportunity to meet staff
and see the site! Refreshments will
be provided.
The Training Program will take place
Saturdays beginning on January 12.
Cost: $35.00 per person. For more
information please contact the
Visitor’s Center (210) 628-1639.
February 14-16 — 4th
International Partners in Flight
Conference — McAllen Convention
Center. Registration information at:
https://pif.secure.mpcstudios.com/
Specials
February14-16 — Texas Chapter
of the Wildlife Society — San
Antonio. February 13 —
Population-estimation workshop.
www.tctws.org
February 14-16 — 8th Annual
Brownsville International Birding
& Nature Festival — Offers birders
and other nature lovers a complete
program of field trips, seminars,
and other events that explore the
biodiversity of South Texas and
Northern Mexico.
www.brownsville.org
February 22-24 — Annual
Celebration of Whooping Cranes
and Other Birds — Port Aransas.
Birding tours by land and sea,
seminars by world-renowned
speakers, free juried nature-related
trade show (completely revamped
this year with a wide selection of
optics, paintings, photography, and
one-of-a-kind gift items for the
nature lover in all of us).
Other activities include tours of the
Animal Rehabilitation Keep at The
University of Texas Maine Science
Institute, photography workshops,
and field trip. the International
Crane Foundation’s International
Children’s Art Exhibit, annual
beach dash, and much more.
www.portaransas.org/cranes.html
March 27-29 — Texas Tropics
Nature Festival — McAllen.
www.mcallencvb.com
May 15-18 — Dragonfly Days —
Weslaco.
www.valleynaturecenter.org
Events
January-February 2008 5 Bexar Tracks
Jan-Feb 2008.qxp:Jul 97 issue 12/10/07 11:40 AM Page 5
Bexar Tracks 6 January-February 2008
In my first column, in the November-
December issue, I noted that Bexar
Audubon seeks better ways to create a
“culture of conservation,” i.e., a society
in which conservation is an assumption
rather than an afterthought, in every
governmental and business decision
process.
I also suggested that Bexar Audubon
can best succeed by being a goal-orient-ed,
realistic organization. In short, we
must face obstacles and problems forth-rightly,
not ignore them. At the same
time, we must engage those obstacles
and problems with determination and
intelligence, not surrender to them. And
we must honor our chapter’s reputation
as a moderate, constructive organization.
With those underlying values in mind,
let’s look at what we mean by “finding
better ways.” In briefest terms, we want
to stop chasing after stampeding issues
and instead head them off at the pass.
In other words, let’s be more “strategic.”
We want to minimize exhausting,
never-ending political battles over per-mits,
zonings, ordinances, development
plans, utility lines, etc. Of course, some
such fights are unavoidable. But as a
realistic organization, we know we are
unlikely to win the war for conservation
by fighting endless skirmishes against
determined, well-funded interests. That
will only burn out our people.
What then is the alternative? The alterna-tive
is to be imaginatively goal-oriented,
i.e., to identify creative, win-win ideas
whose results will outweigh all of those
petty squabbles.
Win-win ideas must offer prompt con-servation
benefits for everyone. They
must be appealing or at least acceptable
to business, preferably by creating
money-making opportunities. At the
very least, their costs must be reason-able
and fairly shared. They must gore
no one’s sacred oxen. And they should
help build a foundation of trust, coop-eration,
and good will between business
and conservationists/environmentalists.
One example of a win-win strategy is
the Prop 1/Prop 3 programs to protect
land over the Edwards Aquifer Recharge
Zone by taxing everyone at a modest
rate and buying the land from willing
sellers. Another is WildFest San Antonio,
in which the Tourism Council and con-servation
groups are cooperating to
build a world-class annual festival with
both ecotourism and education benefits.
(See article on page 7.)
Finally, Bexar Audubon is working on a
third win-win idea. I like to call it “The
Hanging Gardens of Bejar,” to empha-size
the tourism potential. So far that’s
not catching on. What does have
momentum is the underlying idea:
bringing to San Antonio a concept that
has been very successful in some other
cities, such as Chicago, namely the
“green-roof/green-wall” concept.
This embodies installing live gardens on
the roofs and/or walls of buildings. The
gardens help to insulate the buildings,
cutting utility costs, but also bring wide
benefits to the city as a whole: air
purification, tempering the heat-island
effect, etc. (And potentially offering
tourist-luring vistas, roof-top bistros
and boutiques, etc.) It’s a win-win
because business reaps immediate bene-fits
from utility savings and attracting
customers. It’s scalable. Whether one
business or a hundred or a thousand do
it, at any level it has some value.
Mayor Phil Hardberger laid a founda-tion
for this initiative when he signed
the Sierra Club’s “Cool Cities” procla-mation.
Now an energetic young leader,
Mario Obledo, is organizing a non-profit
group to foster green roofs. Bexar
Audubon plans to work with Mario to
kick-start the program by hosting a
one-day green-roof workshop for archi-tects,
builders, government officials, and
business owners. Reflecting the syner-gism
this strategy offers, our workshop
will take place Friday, May 2, as one of
the first events in the 2008 edition of
WildFest San Antonio.
Be looking for more information on
our workshop in coming months. For
now, I urge all BAS members to put
their thinking caps on and come up
with more win-win conservation ideas
that Bexar Audubon can pursue in
future years.
— Harry Noyes
The Unexpected President
Master Naturalist Program Seeks Applicants
Chapters of the Texas Master Naturalist program are
conducting spring training classes for volunteers wanti-ng
to learn about natural resource and conservation
management. With 41 chapters located across the
state, the program aims to develop a corps of well-informed
citizen volunteers who educate their com-munities
about the management of natural resources.
The main qualification needed to become a
Certified Texas Master Naturalist is an interest in
learning and in playing an active part in conserva-tion.
Volunteers receive a minimum of 40 hours
training from educators and specialists from places
such as universities, natural resource agencies,
nature centers, and museums.
Training topics include interpretation and management
of natural resources, ecological concepts, eco-regions
in Texas, and natural systems management. Volunteers
are expected to give 40 hours of service a year in
community education, demonstration, and habitat
enhancement projects and are also expected to pur-sue
a minimum of eight hours of advanced training in
areas of personal interest.
Alamo Area Chapter classes start February 28 with
applications accepted until February 1. For informa-tion
phone (210) 842-7967 or email:
pball0908@earthlink.net
The Texas Parks and Wildlife Department and Texas
Cooperative Extension co-sponsor the Texas Master
Naturalist Program.
Jan-Feb 2008.qxp:Jul 97 issue 12/10/07 11:40 AM Page 6
Stewardship Earth & Wildfest
San Antonio 2008
We have a special Spring season on
the way, with two major conservation-related
events Bexar Audubon Society
members should be sure to support
and to enjoy. While they may seem
quite different, we encourage you to
think of them as a package and to
“save the date” for both.
First comes Stewardship Earth
Weekend, April 18-20. This is a multi-faith
celebration of God’s creation for
those who believe the environment is
a blessing from God and it is man’s
duty to safeguard that treasure even as
we benefit from the use of its fruits.
Stewardship Earth 2008 is scheduled
just before Earth Day on April 22.
Throughout the weekend, on their vari-ous
holy days, the many faiths of San
Antonio will pursue a common, con-centrated
focus on the stewardship of
the Earth, through bulletin inserts,
prayers, homilies, and religious-school
classes to remind their members that
we have a duty to save God’s creation,
the world’s beauty and resources, for
God’s children of the future.
We urge Bexar Audubon members to
participate at their houses of worship.
If you aren’t sure your congregation
will participate, ask. If need be, encour-age
your leaders to join in and then
work to help them organize the event.
For more information, visit:
www.solarsanantonio.org/Stewardship
Earth.htm
Just two weeks later comes our com-munity’s
civic celebration of Nature,
WildFest San Antonio, May 2-4.
The first WildFest occurred last May, an
event of historical significance. For the
first time, the San Antonio business
community and the San Antonio envi-ronmental/
conservation community
worked together on a major initiative
to boost nature tourism and nature
education. The roster of events was
world-class, ranging from excursions to
the Bracken Cave bat emergence to
birding tours at Mitchell Lake, seminars
on nature photography, and native
plants. Clearly San Antonio can com-pete
with the country’s best festivals,
as far as activities and leaders.
WildFest combines a nature-tourism
goal and a local nature-education goal.
The events are attractive to both audi-ences
and the availability of events is
ample to serve both audiences. We
urge you to put WildFest on your calen-dar,
both as volunteers to lead activities
or to assist with administrative support
and as participants, to learn from and
enjoy the activities that appeal to you.
You can track WildFest plans over the
coming months by checking out the
WildFest website at
www.wildfestsanantonio.com
Plans are to add online registration to
make it easier to reserve early for
one’s preferred activities.
If you have friends who want to visit SA
this year, urge them to come during
this special weekend and participate in
WildFest activities.
We urge you to see this as a pack-age…
be inspired by God’s love for
nature during Stewardship Earth 2008,
then by nature itself at WildFest.
Encourage your fellow worshippers to
do the same.
And by the way, use both of these
events to promote family togetherness.
After worshipping together on
Stewardship Earth weekend, take your
children or grandchildren to a few of
the many fun and educational events
being offered on WildFest San Antonio
weekend. — Harry Noyes
Whooping Crane Numbers Break
Record Fifth Year In A Row
AUSTIN, Texas — Wildlife scientists
reported December 3 that for the
fifth year in a row a record-breaking
number of whooping cranes —
257— had completed their winter
migration to the Coastal Bend of
Texas. The previous record was 237
during last year’s Winter. Experts
predicted more were on the way,
raising the estimated flock size to
261, according to National Whoop-ing
Crane Coordinator Tom Stehn.
Whoopers have also expanded their
range. This year a record-high 82
cranes were documented on
Matagorda Island, a record 13 on
the Lamar Peninsula, and the 31
cranes at Welder Flats tie the previ-ous
record high there.
Whoopers have also settled on pri-vate
lands, such as San Jose Island
and the Lamar Peninsula, and pri-vate
landowners are also playing a
significant role by providing flock
activity updates and observations.
“We’ve passed the highest number
we've seen since counts began in
1937,” said Lee Ann Johnson Linam,
TPWD wildlife biologist. “The good
news is that for the last several
years we’ve set a new record each
year, so we’re on the right track.”
Whooping cranes have been on the
endangered species list since
1970, when only 56 birds sur-vived
in the wild in a flock that
wintered in Texas and nested in
Canada. That flock passed the
100-bird mark in 1986 and the
200-bird mark in 2004. Texas
continues to play a key role in
the survival and recovery of this
endangered species, and today
the flock that winters in Texas
continues to be the only self-sustaining
wild population in the
world.
Additional information about
whooping cranes and how to
see them may be found at the
TPWD web site:
www.tpwd.state.tx.us
January-February 2008 7 Bexar Tracks
Events & News
www.epa.gov/espp/poster/crane.htm
Jan-Feb 2008.qxp:Jul 97 issue 12/10/07 11:40 AM Page 7
Non-profit
Organization
U.S. Postage Paid
San Antonio, TX
Permit #1527
Bexar Audubon Society, Inc.
P.O. Box 6084
San Antonio, TX 78209-0084
Membership and Support for
Your Environmental Voice in Our Community
Bexar Audubon welcomes new members to join Audubon through the chapter. This brings 100 percent
of the first-year’s dues directly back to support local work. The same applies to gift memberships placed
through the chapter. Your additional tax-deductible donation is greatly appreciated. Bexar Audubon
receives only a few thousand dollars each year from National Audubon Society as dues share. The rest
we must raise ourselves. Your help is needed, and your donations will be put to good use right here in
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Bexar Tracks is the official
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Audubon Society, a Chapter of
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The Chapter’s primary goals
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Your membership includes
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Audubon and subscriptions to
Audubon and Bexar Tracks.
The Economy is a wholly owned subsidiary of the Environment. — Tim Wirth
January-February 2008 8 Bexar Tracks
Jan-Feb 2008.qxp:Jul 97 issue 12/10/07 11:40 AM Page 8