During the November chapter meeting, Marsha Stephens provided a preview of the new Texas Nature Trackers project for a statewide survey of bats. The Advanced Training webinar on January 23 will provide the formal introduction to the project, and chapter members who are interested in volunteering with Marsha for the project are encouraged to participate in the webinar. For more information, contact Marsha at waymar@centurylink.net.

Gaining a better understanding of the distribution of more than 30 species of bats across a state the size of Texas is a daunting challenge.  However, with the power of community science and Texas Master Naturalists, we can make headway in a significant and important way.  Join TNT Biologist Craig Hensley for an introduction to the bats of Texas, their challenges and this new effort to better understand these flying mammals through acoustic monitoring.  We are looking for Master Naturalists chapters and individuals interested in surveying bats in your area using acoustic monitors beginning this May.  Specifically, we are looking for one individual in each participating chapter to help coordinate the effort within their respective chapter, members willing to put an acoustic monitor on their property, and sharing those results with TPWD, and generally, individuals across the spectrum of TMNs interested in helping with data storage and analysis.

About the Speaker

Craig Hensley is one of two Texas Nature Tracker Biologists. He has served TPWD as a Wildlife Biologist and Park Interpreter/Resource Specialist at Guadalupe River State Park and Honey Creek State Natural Area. He has spent the majority of his career engaging audiences in outdoor learning from Minnesota and Nebraska to Missouri, Kansas, and Texas. Craig holds degrees in Fisheries and Wildlife Management (BS) and Zoology (MS). He is an avid naturalist and grower of native plants.

Link to Register

To register:
(1) Go to: txmn.tamu.edu/tmntuesdays
(2) Click on “2024 Registration”
(3) Select the event from the display list

Date

Tuesday, January 23, 2024

Time

11:00 am – 1:00 pm

Location

Virtual

VMS Code

Time devoted to this webinar should be logged as AT: TMN Tuesday: TMN AT, with “TNT Mini-Series Acoustic Monitoring of Texas Bats” in the Description Box.