2012 SoP Conference - Tenative Schedule

Tentative Schedule Registration Expected To Open September 1st DAY 1- FIELD EXPERIENCES Thursday December 6, 2012 | 9:00AM-5:30PM

FIELD EXPERIENCE Option 1: Kika de la Garza Plant Materials Center PENDING | Half-Day Details to follow:

FIELD EXPERIENCE Option 2: South Texas Natives | Half Day 1:30 – 5:30PM Description: details still forming Limit: 50 people Food and drinks: please bring your own water Meeting place: South Texas Natives Transportation: Field Experience organizer:

FIELD EXPERIENCE Option 3: - PENDING | Full Day |10:00 – 5:30PM Description: Limit: Food and drinks: Lunch provided Meeting place: Transportation: Field Experience organizer: Susie Doe, Texas Master Naturalist

DAY 2- Kleberg Wildlife Center Friday December 7, 2012 | 8:30AM-8:00PM Registration Fee includes Lunch and Dinner

Carolyn Fannon

Fri. Dec.7 Time 8:30-9:30 9:30-9:45 9:45-10:45 10:45-11:00 11:00-12:00 12:00-1:30 1:30-2:30 2:30-2:45 2:45-3:45 3:45-6:00 6:00-8:00 6:45-8:00

This day of the State of the Prairie Conference will be held in the auditorium of the Caesar Kleberg Wildlife Center, Kingsville. Presentations will focus on the importance of our native prairies within the context of watersheds and the bigger picture.

All sessions will be in the auditorium. Lunch and dinner will be served on the patio. Posters will be set-up in the auditorium, patio, and foyer Registration and poster set-up Welcome and speaker introduction Jaime Gonzalez Keynote Speaker Dr. Fred Bryant Topic:Prairies, watersheds, and the big picture Break Dr. John Jacob Topic: Geology, watersheds and prairies LUNCH On the patio Dr. Bill Bartush Topic: Strategic conservation: connectivity Break Joesph Fitzsimmons Topic: Landowners rights Poster Session Social and Cash bar DINNER On the patio Forrest Smith Title: South Texas Natives & Texas Native Seeds

DAY 3- Texas A & M Kingsville Saturday December 8, 2012 | 8:30AM-8:00PM Registration Fee includes Lunch and Dinner This day of the State of the Prairie Conference will be held at Texas A&M, Kingsville, in the Student Union building, rooms 219A, 219B and 219C. Carolyn Fannon

Sat. Dec. 8 Time

Sessions will be in rooms 219a-c. Lunch and dinner will be served in Ballroom A. Posters will be set-up through-out the area.

Education

8:30-9:00

9:00-9:45

Topic: Conservation reserve programs, farm bills, etc.

Speaker: Pending

12:00-1:30

Title: Maintaining the Integrity of Native Prairies Through Grazing Management Speaker: Dr. Alphonso Ortega, Texas A&M Kingsville

Topic: Nuts and bolts of managing the land Speaker: Eric Grahmann Texas A&M Kingsville

Break Topic: Landowner Rights and other legal matters Speaker: Gaye McElwain Texas Railroad Commission

10:45-11:00

11:00-11:45

Management

Registration and poster set-up

9:45-10:00

10:00-10:45

Restoration

Topic: You’ve been drilled, how to recover your land Speaker: Pending

Topic: Fire Co-ops Speaker: Kirk Feuerbacher Texas Nature Conservancy

Break Title: Restoring Prairie Habitat- One HAT at a Time Topic: Creating prairie corridors Speaker: Jim Willis Wildlife Habitat Federation LUNCH

Topic: Economics, What is the real cost of converting a field to native grasses Speaker: Mike Hayman Land manager

Topic: Invasives- Grasses and Woodies Speaker: Dr. Timothy Fulbright Texas A&M Kingsville

In the ballroom Saturday, Day 3 continued Time

Education

Restoration

Management

1:30-2:30

Topic: I’m Teaching Now?! That’s not what I’m trained to do!

Speaker: Jaime Gonzalez Community Education Manager, Katy Prairie Conservancy

Title: The Benefit of Commercially Produced Ecotypic Native Seed Material Speaker: Tony Falk South Texas Natives, Manager seed collection and evaluation

Topic: Insect diversity and density in coastal tall grass prairies Speaker: Chelsea Prather University of Houston

2:30-2:45

2:45-3:45

Break Topic: How to recognize a good prairie/what’s worth conserving Speaker: Jim Eidson Texas Nature Conservancy

3:45-4:00

4:00-4:45

4:45-6:00 6:00-8:00 6:45-8:00

Title: Factors Influencing Native Seed Cost Speaker: Keith Pawelek South Texas Natives, Assistant Director

Topic: Managing for grassland birds Speaker: Jon Hayes Oaks and Prairies Joint Venture

Break Open discussion to follow ‘What is a good prairie’. Could it be the plants, animals, location, size, all of the above?

Moderator: Pending

Topic: Wetlands Speaker: Pending Social time, poster session, cash bar DINNER In the ballroom Speaker: Jaime Gonzalez, Prairie Visions, Award presentations

Topic: History and management of Welder Wildlife – What we’ve learned and where are we going Speaker: Dr. Tim Blankenship Director Welder Wildlife Foundation

DAY 4- FIELD EXPERIENCES Sunday December 9, 2012 | 10:00AM-12:30PM Details still forming 10 people must register for this field trip to take place

Greg Lavaty

FIELD EXPERIENCE: Welder Wildlife Foundation | Half-Day |10:00AM-12:30 Description: Details still forming Restrictions: MINIUM 10 PEOPLE, 10 people must register for this field trip to take place.

Meeting place: Parking lot at Welder Wildlife Foundation Transportation: 12 seater vans Field Experience Organizer: Jaime Gonzalez, Community Education Manager, Katy Prairie Conservancy

Presenters and Presentations Anthony Falk, Manager, Seed Collection & Evaluation, South Texas Natives, Caesar Kleberg Wildlife Research Institute Biography: Tony grew up in north west Illinois and attended college in Ripon, Wisconsin where he received a bachelor of arts in Biology and Environmental studies. Following his undergraduate work he was employed by EnCAP inc. an environmental restoration firm located just outside of Chicago, Illinois. He moved to south Texas in January of 2006 to peruse a master’s degree in range and wildlife management. As part of his master’s project he worked with South Texas Natives to restore retired crop land in the Lower Rio Grande Valley. Upon completion of his master’s degree in 2009 he transitioned into a full time position with South Texas Natives where he is employed as the Evaluations and Collections Coordinator.

Presentation Title: The benefit of commercially produced ecotypic native seed material Presentation Description: Native plants are not native everywhere. There is much debate on how “local” restoration material needs to be. In research conducted by South Texas Natives we have found that from a performance standpoint in restoration, adapted material can describe a fairly wide region of origin for some species, while in other species a very narrow region of adaptation exists. In selecting material to be used in restoration projects one needs to select appropriate material. Appropriate can often be determined by soil characteristics and climate, defined commonly by ecoregion. Plant material from the same ecoregion as the planting site is typically called “ecotypic” plant material. Along with selecting ecotypic material, high quality seed material produced in an agronomic environment generally provides better quality results in our experience. Although commercially produced materials have often been chosen because of outstanding traits, most have not been bred or genetically altered in any way. Research indicates commercial material often contains the same genetic diversity of wild stands, and many available seed sources may actually have greater genetic diversity than wild harvests from a single source. Another benefit of these commercial products is production oversight by regulatory authorities insuring a better product to consumers, one of known quality and origin, and one that is free of weed seed or seeds of other crops such as exotic grasses. Cost for commercially produced seed are generally cheaper on a per acre planting basis than alternative sources.

Keith Pawelek, Assistant Director, South Texas Natives, Caesar Kleberg Wildlife Research Institute Biography: I was born and raised in Jourdanton, Texas, where I grew up on a working farm and ranch. I received my B.S. in Range and Wildlife Management from Texas A&M University-Kingsville in 2005. As an undergraduate, I was active on the Plant Identification Team, President of the Student Chapter of Ducks Unlimited, a member of the Student Chapter of the Wildlife Society, and a student work at South Texas Natives. Upon graduation, I became a permanent member of South Texas Natives as a Research Associate, and now serve as the Assistant Director.

Presentation Title: Factors influencing native seed cost Presentation Description: There are many factors that influence the cost of native seed. I will outline many of these factors and explain how and why they relate to the price of native seed. Consumers often only see the retail price of native seed, and never think about what it actually takes to produce it.

The first step is commercial seed production; this entails many costs that influence consumer price, from land rent to irrigation, planting, and many items in between. After establishment, reputable seed companies are required to have the seed fields certified by the Texas Department of Agriculture, to ensure production conditions meet the requirements of existing seed laws. There are fees and added cost to the consumer for this certification. After fields are certified and seed is produced, harvesting begins; many native seeds require special harvesters which must be purchased specifically for certain

species, again an added cost component. Once seed is produced and harvested it must then be processed and cleaned, adding cost of cleaning machines (if there is a machine that can be purchased), and labor to operate, maintain, and clean them. After native seed is cleaned it must be stored until sold, which requires bagging, warehouse space, and occasionally cold storage rental units. After all of these costs are added up, seed companies often have to sit on their products and wait for the market to emerge or appropriate weather for planting to occur before sales are realized. Given the inputs required, market uncertainty, and acceptable margins for growers, seed cost to the consumer is a complex equation.

Forrest Smith, Director, South Texas Natives and Texas Native Seeds Projects, Caesar Kleberg Wildlife Research Institute Biography: Forrest Smith is the Director of the South Texas Natives and Texas Native Seeds Projects at the Caesar Kleberg Wildlife Research Institute.

Forrest is a native of Texas, and grew up near the small ranching community of Mullin. He attended Texas A&M University-Kingsville, earning a degree in Range and Wildlife Management. He has worked for STN since 2001, and has held most every position within the organization, from student technician to director. His work with STN has included the collection, evaluation, and increase of thousands of native plant populations resulting in the release of 20 native plant restoration seed sources. He and his staff have led >50 on-the-ground restoration seeding projects across south Texas and adjacent regions over the past few years, in addition to consulting with projects on thousands of acres of public and private lands. Forrest duties include overseeing the staff of STN and TNS, development work in support of these projects, and frequent presentations about the need for restoration, threats of invasive exotic grasses to wildlife and biodiversity, and importance of native plants. Forrest has authored or co-authored 15 peerreviewed scientific publications, more than 50 popular articles, and gives an average of 20 presentations per year native plants and restoration in Texas to various audiences. Forrest is a native plant enthusiast, and a passionate hunter, fisherman, and conservationist. He lives in Kingsville with his wife Patricia and 3 children, Mary Anna (6), Grant (4), and Lila (2).

Presentation Title: South Texas Natives & Texas Native Seeds Presentation Description: An overview of the goals, beginnings, and accomplishments of the South Texas Natives Project (STN) of the Caesar Kleberg Wildlife Research Institute will be given. STN is a private landowner driven initiative began in 2001, and is funded by private, state, and corporate contributions. Goals of the project are to develop native seed sources for South Texas, conduct research to discover practical and effective native plant restoration techniques, and to disseminate project results, educate constituents, and promote the use of native plants in land management activities. Major accomplishments of the project have been the development and release of 20+ ecotypic native plant seed sources with the help of a number of collaborators. Many of these seed sources have been successfully commercialized and are mass produced by the commercial seed industry. As a result, these seeds are now used in restoration projects on thousands of acres in southern Texas each year. Through the work of STN, restoration and reclamation practices of state and federal agencies, the oil and gas industry, and numerous private landowners have been positively influenced and improved. In 2010, new project with a state-wide emphasis, called Texas Native Seeds (TNS) was begun under the leadership of CKWRI. TNS is modeled after STN, and is currently working throughout south, central, and west Texas, with a goal of one day serving native plant restoration needs in the entire state.

Jim Willis, Wildlife Habitat Federation Presentation Title: Restoring Native Habitat—One HAT at a Time Presentation Description: A growing number (especially new-to-the- land types) of landowners are emerging who have the right resources (e.g. remnants of native grasses and forbs) and passion for restoring wildlife or native prairieland; but, most are not sure how to proceed. The Wildlife Habitat

Federation has been able to get more channeled in restoring wildlife habitat by providing the equipment, know-how and personnel through Habitat Action Teams (HAT’s). This ability to meet landowner needs coupled with a desire to plant drought-tolerant, wildlife-friendly and non-fertilizer dependent native grass has resulted in an expansion of WHF’s wildlife corridor over the last year or so from 12,000 to more than 36,000 acres covering six counties. Participation is still based on getting landowners convinced and this usually takes multiple trips. Once an agreement is reached, WHF no longer waits for the landowner to initiate something or for funding from government sources to be finalized. A HAT (a two or more man team that runs or manages the equipment) becomes the de facto initiator of the wildlife management plan. Nothing convinces a landowner better than showing up at the front gate with a big tractor or dozer and the personnel to get the job done. This also makes sure it’s done at the right time and the right way. HAT personnel are better able to make follow-up visits, which has been sorely lacking and greatly welcomed by not only landowners but also by those biologist and botanists participating in these and similar programs.