John W. Garbutt, Class of 2019- There alone, was an approximately three-week-old nestling Night-Heron on the ground.
Current News
Summer Mothing with TPWD’s Sam Kieschnick At Oak Point Park
Leah Justice, Class of 2021 – It was a typical hot and humid summer night at the recent mothing event at Oak Point on June 15th. Sam Keischnick spoke to the crowd of park visitors and master naturalists about insects that we might see. The kids in the audience were very excited to interact with a Common Green Darner dragonfly that showed up on one of the screens early in the evening.
Friends of Hagerman NWR – Little Sit Bird Count – July 6, 2024
Patricia Crain, Class of 2018
Earn VH by participating in this monthly bird count. Meet Jack and the Bird Census Team while learning how to identify the birds of North Texas, and enjoy the beautiful sunrise over Lake Texoma! Modeled after Cornell’s national “Big Sit” event, a group of dedicated birders invite you to join them at sunrise to conduct a bird count as multiple species fly to the water and the surrounding land to feed. Leaders will bring spotting scopes and will provide tips for identification of the many species you will see.
Emerald ash borer confirmed in four more North Texas counties. Texas A&M AgriLife is collecting data, asking for TMN help.
Submitted by: Leah Justice, Class of 2021 – Local media articles about the Emerald Ash Borer and have you spotted an emerald ash borer? Texas A&M AgriLife wants to know….
Community Engagement – Sustainability
Marla Layne, Class of 2023 and 2024 Community Engagement Director – BPTMN Bryan Beck educated an engaged group of eight-year-old students on environmental issues on January 20, 2024 at the M.T.O. Shahmaghsoudi Dallas First Junior and Teens Sustainability Seminar.
Food Instincts of the Orange-crowned Warbler
Balaji Devarajan, Class of 2022 – A Yellow-bellied Sapsucker made a few cuts on the Willow tree to consume the tree sap. It was perched at the same spot for more than two hours. At some point it had enough sap and decided to move on; and almost immediately an Orange-crowned Warbler came out of nowhere to the holes made by the Sapsucker.
Leah Justice’s Interesting Finds and Factoids –
Leah Justice, Class of 2021 Submitted a NBCDFW5 News article by Lucy Ladis – TPWD Foundation releases new album ‘Texas Wild’
News Article – Trees Are Stressed. Now They Can Tell Us Why
Leah Justice, Class of 2021 – Submitted Bloomberg Article by Todd Woody – TreeTag sensors, developed by startup ePlant, can give homeowners, farmers and forestry managers early warning when trees are water stressed or in danger.
2023 October ONLINE DEEP DIVE with Dr. Tom Stevens | “The impacts of urbanization on wildlife in the Great Trinity Forest”
2023 October ONLINE DEEP DIVE with Dr. Tom Stevens | “The impacts of urbanization on wildlife in the Great Trinity Forest”
Continued Observations of a Yellow-crowned Night-Heron Colony
John W. Garbutt, Class of 2019 – On May 1st I set out to observe the herons hunting along the edge of the pond. I anticipated that with mouths to feed in the colony, I would find a lot of heron activity at sunrise. I laid on the ground using a Bald Cypress as a blind and its roots as a tripod as I awaited a heron to work its way toward me.