Category: Habitat Management

The overabundance of unwanted or undesirable brush is one of the biggest factors plagues Texas landscapes. Brush uses water, decreases grass cover and can be costly to maintain. It is, however, good for wildlife for both food and cover, but it still is only valuable in moderation. Too much of anything always becomes a problem. Property owners and habitat managers have a chance right now to enroll in the latest webinar discussing the management of brush.

Brush Management: Unintended Consequences & Habitat Management

Class Description: Since the inception of removing unwanted vegetation from rangeland there have been unplanned responses, both positive and negative. These unintended consequences have accompanied the evolution of vegetation manipulation through the eras of eradication, control, and management. Applications, as well as methodology, has had it’s surprises. The manager needs to learn from history, understand the ramifications of his actions, and to properly plan management systems.

Presenter: Dr. Wayne Hanselka
Date: Thursday, November 7, 2013
Time: 12:00 PM – 1:00 PM CST

Credit: 1 TDA Pesticide CEU – Integrated Pest Management

Interested landowners and property managers can register for the brush management class here. It should be a chance to get some great information about range and wildlife and habitat manipulation.

There is no secret to good land management. It takes time, hard work and perseverance and the rewards can be awesome. Good land management means implementing the propert wildlife habitat management practices or livestock grazing practices, often both, to keep both plants and animals in optimal shape. For landowners interested in learning more about land management in Texas, the Texas Grazing Lands Conservation Initiative (GLCI) will host the Texas Grazingland Conference: Solutions for Healthy Land and Profitable Ranching in Fort Worth, Texas on July 15-17, 2013, at the Radisson Hotel Fort Worth Fossil Creek. (Packet attached)

The conference will feature four concurrent sessions with 16 full-time and part-time ranchers sharing their knowledge, insight and experience on the cow-calf and stocker industry. The sessions will include profitable ranching management; wildlife management with and using livestock; risk management and marketing strategies. Through this peer-to-peer information sharing, attendees will have an opportunity to learn successful management strategies that can help them improve their land and their business. Continue reading Habitat Management for Land, Livestock & Wildlife

Wildlife habitat management is a good thing for wildlife, but hard work can pay off for landowners, too. Though most landowners involved in wildlife management do so for their own satisfaction, it never hurts to be recognized for a job well done. Revitalization efforts on two Texas ranches in two different ecological regions of the state have earned a Houston couple the 2013 Leopold Conservation Award, Texas’s highest honor for private land conservation. Recognized for their stewardship were Jack and Jan Cato, who in 2004 and 2006 received regional Lone Star Land Steward awards for what they have done to restore their two properties – the Buckhollow Ranch in Uvalde and Real counties on the Edwards Plateau and the Stockard-Sirianni Ranch in Frio County. That ranch is located in the South Texas Plains ecoregion.

The Leopold award, given in honor of renowned conservationist Aldo Leopold, is conferred each year by Sand County Foundation, an international non-profit organization devoted to private land conservation, in partnership with the Texas Parks and Wildlife Department (TPWD) as part of its Lone Star Land Steward Awards program. In Texas, the Leopold award is sponsored by the Lynde and Harry Bradley Fund for the Environment, Silver Eagle Distributors and the Lee and Ramona Bass Foundation. Continue reading Texas Landowners Awarded for Wildlife and Habitat Management

It looks like there will be a chance for land managers in Kerr County and Brown County to learn more about wildlife management. The focus of the trainings will focus on habitat enhancement for wildlife.Two interagency range and wildlife management field days for landowners, land managers and brush control contractors operating in possible endangered species habitat have been scheduled in late May. The Texas A&M AgriLife Extension Service will conduct the meetings in cooperation with the Texas Parks and Wildlife Department, the U.S. Department of Agriculture-Natural Resources Conservation Service, Texas Grazing Lands Conservation Initiative and the Texas Section Society for Range Management.

“Both field days will follow a similar agenda but are tailored for their specific site,” said Brian Hays, AgriLife Extension associate director, Texas A&M Institute of Renewable Natural Resources, Gatesville. “Registration for each site will last from 7:45 – 8:15 a.m. followed by the programs which should conclude by 4:15 p.m. The first field day is set for May 29 at the Muse Wildlife Management Area located on County Road 478 about a mile and a half north of Farm To Market Road 1467 in northeastern Brown County. Continue reading Wildlife Management in Kerr County, Brown County

Landowners interested in habitat management for wildlife and/or range management for grazing animals should consider attending the Holistic Management International (HMI) field day that will take place in Boerne, Texas, on May 10. This is for Texas landowners that are interested in long-term, sustainable grazing of livestock into the future. Since proper grazing management go hand-in-hand with habitat for wildlife, you can’t go wrong here if you want to do good for the critters found on your property, too!

Habitat Management – Spring Creek Ranch Day Announcement

HMI: Our Spring Creek Ranch day is part of HMI’s new Open Gate On-Farm Learning Series. Open Gate is an action-based approach to learning. You — and the group — have the opportunity to identify common problems and discuss common solutions in a friendly atmosphere. With experienced facilitators and producers on hand, the goal of the day is to identify and solve a current problem — and to create a forum for sharing practices, ideas, advice, and solutions to that problem. The process: small groups of people come together to work on something that is real and current, and each person gets individual time from the others. When you leave at the end of the day, you’ll take away practical ideas on how you can increase profit, production and performance for a sustainable ranch operation. These strategies will also help with whitetail deer management and improve habitat. Continue reading Range & Habitat Management to Mitigate Drought

Texas landowners who have property located along streams, known as riparian areas, may benefit from a free riparian habitat management workshop being offered by the Guadalupe-Blanco River Trust (GBR Trust) and the Comal-Guadalupe Soil and Water Conservation District (SWCD) on Wednesday April 3, 2013, at Guadalupe River RV Park in Spring Branch and on Thursday April 4, 2013, at the Texas Agricultural Education and Heritage Center in Seguin.

Experienced natural resource specialists familiar with habitat management practices will deliver the program that features both a classroom session and a site visit to a riparian area. Functional streamside, or riparian, areas provide a wide range of benefits to both people and wildlife, and interest in function and management of these areas has been growing steadily throughout the state. Continue reading Riparian Habitat Management – Comal & Guadalupe Rivers

Landowners interested in learning more about prescribed burning as a wildlife management tool or gaining experience with prescribed fire in the Central Texas area are invited to attend a workshop in the Bandera area. A private landowner would like to invite anyone who is interested in learning more about how to conduct of prescribed burn, to his ranch in Tarpley. Larry Stark of the Natural Resources Conservation Service (NRCS) will be assisting with the planning stages of the burn. The prescribed burning for wildlife management class is open to anyone of any experience level and a meal will be supplied afterwards.

If you do not live close by, the landowner will be providing his camp house to anyone wishing to overnight, all you need is a bedroll and personal items. Please contact any of the below individuals in advance if you will be staying overnight and/or staying for the meal. Continue reading Prescribed Burning for Habitat Management – Workshop