Conservation Legacy

Teaching “Birds of a Feather”

The View From Below

Article by ADRIENNE PAQUETTE Photos courtesy of CONSERVATION LEGACY

How do birds stay dry in the rain? By preening their feathers, which spreads protective oil, as these students are learning. As I prepared to enter an elementary school first thing in the morning one spring, I stopped to listen to the cacophony of Blue Jays and Mockingbirds in the loblolly pines that shaded the parking lot. I looked up to see what all the fuss is about, wondering if I’m the one causing their stress.

What I saw was a very harassed-looking Red-tailed Hawk being dive-bombed by the territorial songbirds. Half an hour later, I relayed this encounter to a group of fifth graders, who were in awe that something so wild could be happening just outside their classroom door.

These are the moments I live for as a conservation educator— sharing the love of our native Texas wildlife with students in the Houston area.

“Birds of a Feather” is one of five in-class TWA Wildlife by Design programs currently offered to teachers in Texas. Kids enjoy these hands-on explorations of our native Texas wildlife as we discuss what it means to be a good steward of Texas lands, water, and wildlife.

“So why is a bird not a mammal?” “How do birds fly?” “Why don’t birds have teeth?” We answer these questions and explore what makes a bird a bird in our “Birds of a Feather” Wildlife by Design program.

Birds are a unique group of animals that anyone anywhere can enjoy. They are found on every continent on Earth, so it’s no surprise that many of us feel fascinated by these feathered wonders.

In every classroom I enter—regardless of whether it’s full of first-graders or adults—I hear stories of how amazingly fast a Peregrine Falcon can fly (more than 200 miles per hour in a dive!), how beautiful a Painted Bunting is, or even how watching hummingbirds hover at a feeder brings a smile to a child’s face. This incredibly diverse group of animals can bring the wonders of the wild into our own backyards.

Kids are used to seeing wildlife on television and in nature documentaries. But nature is not just somewhere far away; it’s right here!

During the “Birds of a Feather” lesson, we cover special adaptations birds have that help them thrive in nearly every habitat on Earth. The kids giggle when I tell them how, if a bird

had teeth rather than a beak, their heads would be too heavy for them to fly. They “ooh” when I show them how water rolls off the fan of a tom turkey’s tail feathers thanks to the natural oils birds spread on themselves to prevent their feathers from being weighed down by rain. recognizable red head and neck. Often called a buzzard (which it is not), the vulture plays a very important role as nature’s garbage disposal. They eat carrion like an armadillo struck by a car while foraging for beetles on the roadside.

“That means it’s a decomposer!” remarks one enthusiastic student. Exactly! This is a great opportunity to talk about the special characteristics of vultures as decomposers.

Vultures are specially adapted to pluck at rotting carcasses. Their bare heads keep bacteria and parasites from hitching a ride after a dive into a deceased deer. They have a very acidic fluid in their stomachs that helps them digest meat that’s past its expiration date without causing illness.

Turkey Vultures have the most well-developed olfactory system of any bird we know. They can easily sniff out their next meal while soaring for hours on end—a feat they accomplish because of the ratio of their extra-long wingspan to body size.

In addition, Black Vultures mate for life. All this information turns the kids’ “ewws” into “awws” and opens their minds to understanding more about something they may see every day.

Like all of our Wildlife by Design programs, a handson activity helps bring our wildlife discussion to life for the students. Younger kids (grades K-2) get to explore bird adaptations for themselves with an activity called Beak Frenzy, while older students (grades 3-8) match models of different bird beaks and feet while studying the functions of the bird parts more closely.

Would a duck’s beak be a good adaptation for a bird that needs to drill holes in trees? Is a woodpecker beak adapted to rip apart prey? Beak Frenzy allows the class to explore these questions by comparing the variety of shapes of bird beaks.

Students attempt to pick up different kinds of “food” with the “beaks” that are provided. The “beak” provided might be a pair of chopsticks (woodpecker beak), some tongs (duck), or a small clothespin Blue Jay). The “food” includes beads and marbles (seeds), pieces of chenille stems inside a PVC pipe (insects

Which beak is best? It depends on what the bird eats, the students learn.

The class gets a chance to compare a hawk’s hook-shaped beak to the long, sharp woodpecker beak used for chiseling into trees. Then come the squeals as I pass around fake turkey poop or “scat.” I tell the group that the presence of J-shaped scat means they're tracking a tom turkey while spiral-shaped scat (just like the poop emoji!) means it's a hen.

The “Birds of a Feather” program not only teaches kids about bird adaptations but engages them in a discussion about the importance of birds in our ecosystems. Birds are consumers. Whether it’s a raptor, like a hawk or owl pouncing on a mouse, a flock of Cedar Waxwings sweetly passing berries from beak to beak, or a Barn Swallow swiftly snatching up insects on the wing, all birds have a place in balancing our environment.

One bird which kids—and many adults—are rarely fond of is the vulture. We have two in Texas: the Black Vulture that has a black head and neck, and the Turkey Vulture with its easily

A woodpecker’s bill wouldn’t work for waterfowl, as students learn in the Beak Frenzy exercise. By trying different hands-on exercises, like using tongs to pick up aquatic plants, students see why a duck’s beak is different than a woodpecker’s.

Who has the longest wing span? Students stretch as far as they can, but have yet to match that of a Great Blue Heron.

inside a tree cavity), or fake plants in a bucket of water. The students try to find the matching “beak” and “food” that represent different birds and the food they eat.

Students also get a chance to compare the wingspan of the birds we have studied to their own “wingspan” by measuring how far they can stretch their arms apart. I have yet to find a student to match the 6 ½-foot wingspan of a Great Blue Heron.

My favorite part of the lesson comes at the end. We talk about the ever-present sounds of birds. While many kids may have heard a Mockingbird’s diverse array of calls, they may not as easily be able to identify our state bird without seeing the bird itself.

However, as any birder can attest, we use our ears more often than our eyes to find our feathered friends. When I play a recording of the Great Horned Owl’s familiar and characteristic low hoots, every hand in the room shoots up to tell me it’s an owl. “But what kind of owl?” I implore. Many hands go down.

“Now what makes this noise?” I ask as I play the call of a Barred Owl. “It sounds like a monkey,” says one boy as many other kids laugh and nod in agreement.

I explain that some bird calls have a mnemonic phrase that can help us recognize and remember which bird makes what sound. In this case, the Barred Owl sounds like it’s saying, “Who-cooks-for-you? Who-cooks-for-y’all?” I play the call again, and the kids’ eyes widen in recognition of the phrase in the bird’s hoots.

Next I play the Northern Bobwhite Quail, which says, “poor-bob-WHITE!” followed by the American Robin (“Cheerup! Cheer-a-lee! Cheer-e-o!”). The kids are fascinated by the numbers of calls a wild turkey can make (28!), and how not all ducks say, “quack, quack!” They are always begging to hear more bird sounds as our time runs out.

I end each session with a challenge to each of the students: observe with your eyes and your ears to find out more about these wild animals to which we have become so accustomed. My hope is, by increasing awareness of our surroundings and the integral roles every living thing plays in our local ecology, future generations may be able to better appreciate wildlife in all places, and not just in a nature documentary on a screen.

TWA WELCOMES NEW DFW AREA EDUCATOR CAROLINE LANGSTON

Hello! My name is Caroline Langston, and I am thrilled to be the new conservation educator for Denton, Parker, Tarrant, and Wise counties in the Fort Worth area.

I grew up in the Fort Worth area, graduating in 2020 from Texas Christian University with a Bachelor of Science in Environmental Science. I’ve spent the past few years in the world of informal environmental education, where I discovered a love for teaching kids and opening their eyes to the natural world around them—a realization that still surprises me, despite coming from a family of teachers.

Behind the scenes, I have a large collection of plants that are quickly overtaking my house and a trio of cats. I enjoy visiting national parks when I have the time, going on hikes in the area, and studying animals.

From childhood, I have always been a nature lover who spent hours each day exploring the outdoors and was never afraid of the insects and animals that sent others running. For a long time, I've dreamed of using my life to help conserve all the outdoor spaces and creatures that I love so much. Teaching the next generation of stewards to share that same appreciation is exactly what I hoped for.

With that said, I’m excited to be a part of TWA. I look forward to working with everyone and delivering our programs to kids across the Fort Worth area.

BORDERLANDS RESEARCH INSTITUTE AT SUL ROSS STATE UNIVERSITY

The Economics of Stewardship

Quantifying Big Game Hunting in the Trans-Pecos

Article by KELLEY MUNDY, LOUIS A. HARVESON, STACEY S. DEWALD, PATRICIA M. HARVESON and BILLY TARRANT Photos courtesy of the BORDERLANDS RESEARCH INSTITUTE

Texas hunters don’t need to trek to the Mountain West to find trophy-sized mule deer. West Texas can grow them just fine.

With the rise in land fragmentation across the state, it has become increasingly important to understand the activities that minimize developmental impacts and keep lands intact. While it is accepted that hunting is an important economic driver for West Texas landowners, it can be difficult to capture the actual economic value in different areas.

We investigated the economic potential for hunting native big game species for 10 counties in West Texas—Brewster, Culberson, El Paso, Hudspeth, Jeff Davis, Pecos, Presidio, Reeves, Terrell, and Val Verde. Specifically, we estimated potential hunting income of four principal big game species—pronghorn, white-tailed deer, mule deer, and desert bighorn sheep.

Each of these species are routinely surveyed by Texas Parks and Wildlife Department (TPWD) biologists and managed within species-specific manage-ment units. For mule deer, white-tailed deer, and pronghorn, we applied a sustainable harvest rate of mature bucks to the long-term average population for each management unit. For desert bighorn sheep, actual ram permit issuance through time was used to provide harvest potential for each occupied mountain range.

We estimated potential hunting income for each species across all management units in the Trans-Pecos based on income estimates from expert opinion (TPWD biologists). We then incorporated the data into spatial layers in a GIS database and excluded state and national parks, as hunting is not allowed at those locations. We then created a cumulative map that represents total estimated hunting income (the sum of all four species).

Total estimated hunting income ranged from $0.24 to $16.17 per acre with highest incomes coming from Pecos, Terrell, and Val Verde counties. Most of the areas that had the highest potential income per acre were in the eastern portion of the Trans-

Potential annual income per acre for the four native ungulate species across the Trans-Pecos region.

Of the big game species that populate West Texas, the pronghorn is perhaps the most unique. Is it an antelope or a goat? It’s a species unto itself. for two of the profiled big game species, thus maximizing potential income. As with precipitation amounts, the farther west you go, the less potential income you can generate.

Based on our model, every location in the Trans-Pecos has economic potential from hunting, even if that amount is as low as $0.24 per acre. The monetization of wildlife can sometimes invoke concerns of ignoring intrinsic values of wildlife, their role in ecosystem function, or the value of nongame species. However, hunting income is a major economic driver for TransPecos landowners that can be utilized for managing habitat improvements to benefit all wildlife species.

Regardless if a landowner wishes to derive income from hunting, grazing, or a combination of both, in this area of the state it is vital that the managed

Pecos and were a direct result of whitetailed deer.

It is no coincidence that these regions also receive the highest precipitation amounts in the Trans-Pecos and have the highest forage production. There was a noticeable decline across the potential income map that demonstrates that economic potential is directly related to precipitation levels.

It is noticeable in the map that the major mountain ranges across the Trans-Pecos also had moderate income potential. The mountain ranges also have higher precipitation levels compared with lowlands and often provide habitat

The big game animal in Far West Texas that likely provides the most potential economic return to landowners is a trophy desert bighorn ram.

tracts of land stay large. This is a direct function of rangeland productivity, and more importantly, precipitation levels. Results from this research can be used as a spatially explicit model to help plan for the development and management of the Far West Texas region.

Lastly, it should be noted that smaller acreages do not typically have the capacity to produce significant revenue from hunting or ranching income. When coupled with the other values that large working lands provide to society—clean air, water, dark skies, biodiversity—it has never been more important to work with landowner partners to ensure sustainability and minimize land fragmentation.