Brenda Clark, 2021 – “My other passion is photography and the places where I volunteer offer great opportunities to take photos of wildlife and plants/ flowers.”
Shaking of the Trees Post
Indian Mounds Wilderness: Journey to a hidden realm
By Greg Tonian, 2017
Indian Mounds Wilderness beckoned,
Edward Fritz had inspired me to go for 37 years
In “Realms of Beauty he wrote of a marvelous,
Untouched and rare forest,
With towering trees: Beech, ash, pine, oak,…”
Preservation of Remnant Smiley-Woodfin Prairie
Rick Travis, 2018 – The article tells the story of how the remnant Smiley-Woodfin Prairie will be preserved versus being eliminated by the construction of a solar power farm. The company, Orsted developing the solar farm and the Nature Conservancy recently reached an agreement that will preserve about 1000 acres of the prairie.
Native Bees of Texas Illustrations by Katie McElroy
Michelle Connally, 2018 – There was a bonus at the end of the January 2023 Chapter meeting, like icing on a cupcake. Everyone was handed a tri fold hand out of the Native Bees of Texas, Illustrated by Katie McElroy, this was her project instead of a presentation. Katie used her artistic skills to demonstrate what she learned about Native Bees. She did such a great job, I wanted to share her work with everyone not at the meeting as well as Texas native bee seekers in the future.
Clyde Camp’s Screech Owl (Megascops asio) Cam Footage
Clyde Camp, 2010 – reprint from Shaking of the Trees Newsletter First Edition dated April 12, 2020.
Clyde Camp has a nest cam of his screech owl inhabitants
Our Tribe’s Fortune 1,000 Hours – Sarah Densmore
Sarah Densmore, 2021 – I’m currently working on a Master in Science in Wildlife Science, and being a TMN (with so many volunteer hours in one year) was a key reason as to why I was accepted into the masters program.
Our Tribe’s Fortune 500 Hours – Charlise Hill-Larson
Charlise Hill-Larson, 2019 – My interests as a Master Naturalist includes birding, native landscapes and helping others to experience the wonder, beauty and healing power of the natural world. I spend the majority my volunteer time as a trail guide and a birder, though to be honest, serving as the Chapter VP is the volunteer work that has helped me to reach 500 hours.
Our Tribe’s Fortune 250 Hours – Lisa Runyon
Lisa Runyon, 2015 – I’ve stayed involved in BPTMN because our chapter does two things well. First, our chapter excels in providing quality advanced training opportunities including the speakers at our monthly meetings. They have raised my awareness and inspired me in so many ways. Because of advanced training, I continue to grow as a naturalist. Secondly, our chapter does a great job of providing a wide variety of volunteer opportunities to choose from.
LLELA’s Big Sit on November 5th, 2022
Scott Kiester, Elm Fork Chapter – November 5, 2022 6 AM: On one of the first really chilly mornings of the fall intrepid birders from across the Metroplex gathered in the predawn hours at LLELA. Why? To count the birds of course.
Texas Master Naturalists, Blackland Prairie Chapter
Rick Travis, 2018 –
2022 was an eventful year for the Blackland Prairie Master Naturalist Chapter! The Covid scourge FINALLY began to loosen its grip on us, and as the year progressed, we began transitioning back to in-person chapter meetings, classes, and volunteer activities. Online meetings helped keep us stitched together in 2020 and 2021, but (in my humble opinion) there’s no substitute for in-the-flesh gatherings.