Things I'm Looking Forward To

The Den of Blogniquity at MBS

This fall's Midwest Birding Symposium has given me tons of reasons to be excited, but one of them is our line-up of official bloggers. These men and women have already been writing about the MBS prior to the event, but during the weekend they will spend part of their time in the Den of Blogniquity. What is the Den of Blogniquity, well, it's like a giant comfy bloggers' cave with all the comforts of home, including WiFi and a large projection screen streaming all the updates from our band of bloggers and other MBS attendees. This is going to be pretty cool!



Oh, and you can join the bloggers inside the Den of Blogniquity, or you can stand outside the large windows of Wesley Lodge (location of the DOB) and watch them through the safety glass—like some rare species at the zoo.



West Virginia Fall Birding Weekend

My pals who run the New River Birding Festival have put together a fall birding event that's smaller and more personalized than their May gathering (which is an annual favorite of mine). I'm one of the leaders for this weekend, which is limited to 12 people. West Virginia is always beautiful, but we'll spend much of our time searching for migrant raptors in the sky and looking for migrant warblers in the fall foliage. Details are here. Nothing but fun.







The Big Sit!

Late on the night of Saturday, October 8, I'll be racing back north from the New River to my farm in southeastern Ohio for our annual Big Sit on Sunday, October 9! The Big Sit has been called many things, including "the world's most sedentary birding event", and "a tailgate party for bird watchers." A big mess of our birding pals (and even some folks who don't know it yet that they are birders) will come by the farm and join us in the Indigo Hill birding tower for The Big Sit. Basically we stay in the tower for as much of 24 hours as we can stand and have fun watching birds—trying to rack up a big list. Many comestibles are consumed and there is much jocularity in the crisp autumn air.



You can have your own Big Sit. Here's a link for the inside dope on The Big Sit! (which is a registered trademark of the New Haven Bird Club, in case you were wondering).







The NEW Young Birder's Guide to Birds of North America

My next book, due out early next spring (late March/early April), is actually an expanded version of a previous book. The Young Birder's Guide to Birds of North America has 100+ western bird species incorporated into the 200+ species that the original Young Birder's Guide to Birds of Eastern North America had. The result is a book that (I hope) will turn young people on to the beauty, joy, and utter ossumness of birds. This is the book I wish I'd had when I started watching birds in Iowa in the late 1960s, but I'm as thrilled as can be that it's here now and that I get to share my love of birds with others in this way.



It's going to be 320 pages of fun and it will cost just $15.95. Now, you can order it from Amazon.com et al and save a few bucks maybe. OR you can pre-order it from us at Bird Watcher's Digest and I can add a personalized autograph for the young birder in your life. To pre-order, call us at 800-879-2473 and ask for Susie.

=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=

I could keep going on and on about other things I'm revved up for, but I'd better stop now. I just saw a migrant warbler shoot by the door here at my home office, reminding me that it's time to get outside for some bird watching.

Swarm Traps and Bait Hives, The Easy Way to get Bees for Free

Many of you that follow my blog have seen that I have been working towards becoming a beekeeper. I feel that as many of us as possible should either become beekeepers or at least set up a bee box as a natural home for bees just to help them survive. They are having a hard time making it right now and a large amount of our food is pollinated by the bees. I have assembled two hives and am preparing to obtain bees this coming spring. One thing that a beginning beekeeper becomes painfully aware of is the expense of getting into beekeeping. Hives are expensive, equipment is expensive and bees are real expensive if you buy them. When I say expensive they start at around $70.00 plus shipping for just a small package of bees and queens are around $20.00 each and up. I have had several people that wanted to help me get started offer me bees for $125.00 to $250.00 here in the Central Texas area. I was not quite sure how much they really wanted to help me get started or if they just wanted to sell me bees. One real friend generously offered to give me a split off of one of his hives this spring, but the drought may make sure there are not enough bees to split off of many hives.


I have been hearing about people that trap wild bees and set them up in hives but it sounds like a hit and miss chance of trapping a swarm and it must be at just the right time, just the right trap and you need to use these special expensive pheromone baits etc. Some have tried to be very helpful with information and others have acted like it was some sort of black magic and that only special people should know the secrets.  I have been reading all sorts of books trying to learn everything I can before I get my own bees and also trying to find out how all this really works and why this hobby can be so expensive. I was at our recent Williamson County Area Beekeepers Association Meeting and heard this guy talking about a new book he had written about trapping bees. I did not get a chance to talk with him as there were around 120 people there and I had to be elsewhere, so I filed the information in the back of mind. Later I contacted McCartney Taylor by email and inquired about doing a book review of his new book. McCartney graciously supplied me an eBook copy to review and I found the answers to inexpensive bees are right there in the pages along with the facts and secrets to make sure one is successful in obtaining a wild swarm. In fact McCartney calls it “The Easy Way to get Bees for Free”. They might not be totally free but it is as close as you will ever come to free bees. The book covers the how-to of building your own swarm traps, where to put them, what to bait them with and what time of year to have them set and in place. The book even covers just setting the bees up to pollinate your gardens and flowers if you do not wish to be an involved beekeeper. Below is a copy of the Contents of the book and gives you an idea of how complete and involved is the information included in the pages of this book. I would class this as a must have book for both the amateur and professional beekeeper.

The book is available in EBook or a printed version and can be purchased at the following links. Tell McCartney that Wild Ed sent you.

Printed Version

https://www.createspace.com/3631331


EBook

http://learningbeekeeping.com/beekeeping-articles/beekeeping-books/swarm-trapping-bait-hives/


Both available here http://learningbeekeeping.com/swarm-trap-book-done/

The book can also be purchased through Amazon.com and other book stores.


Table of Contents

Copyright

Foreword

   What Is in It for You?

1. Why Trap Swarms?

2. Trees

3. Biology of Swarming

4. Swarm Names

5. History

6. Alternatives to Traps — Catching Swarms

7. Building a Swarm Trap — The Hanging Box Type

   Dimensions

   Buy an 8 Frame Deep

   Bonus Nuc

   Scrap Wood Option

   Re-purpose Broken Equipment

   Safety

   Top Bar Hive Option

8. Baiting a Swarm Trap

   Lemon Grass Oil: Our Secret Weapon

   Commercial Swarm Lures

   Use Old Comb

   QMP

9. A Note for Non-Beekeepers: The Hands-Free Beekeeping Method

10. Times for Swarms .

   When to Build Your Traps

   When to Deploy Your Swarm Traps

   How to Hang Swarm Traps



11. Safety 3

   Africanized Bees

   Ladders

   Checking Swarm Traps

   Pests

   Removal Methods

12. Using GPS

13. Legality

   Trespassing

   Ownership

14. Disease

15. Location, Location, Location!

   Sun Is Bad

   Fence Lines

   Lone Trees

   Building Roofs

   Tree Lines

   Deep in Forests

   Urban Terrain

   Abandoned Houses

   Adapt

17. All Good Things Must End

18. GUTS!

19. Advanced Topic: A Business Model

20. Swarm Trapping for Public Service

21. Questions and Answers

22. Feedback!

   Want to Be in My Upcoming Swarm Trapping DVD?

23. Disclaimer


For those of you that have made it this far I have a special surprise. McCartney Taylor also has a website and blog with tons of free information on beekeeping. Stop by and take a look it will be worth your while. The information available there would take many years of experience to obtain so take advantage of McCartney’s hard work. You can even sign up to have beekeeping videos sent to your email for free.

http://learningbeekeeping.com/

McCartney also has numerous YouTube videos for the beginning beekeeper that will put you way ahead on your knowledge as a beekeeper.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=LO7Ob86lX7c&feature=iv&annotation_id=annotation_273426

Vinyl Siding for Prairie Chickens

Did the title of this post make you wonder for a moment? I hope so. Sounds pretty weird, doesn't it? But it's true. Let me explain.



Out on the wide-open expanses of the Oklahoma prairie (and in a few nearby states) the lesser prairie chicken is holding onto its existence, barely. But the species' population is a fraction of what it once was. Prairie chickens were once so abundant that they fed pioneer families for entire seasons. Market hunters shot them until the hunters' arms were too sore to shoot anymore. And over the last two centuries, the species has decline significantly from hunting pressure, but more recently as a result of habitat loss and habitat alteration.



Native short-grass prairie is the specific habitat that the lesser prairie chicken prefers. Plow it up for wheat or soybeans or any other crop and the chickens have to go elsewhere. When trees naturally seed and grow up tall enough to cast a shadow, the chickens, feeling the trees might be ideal for a perching or hiding predator, go elsewhere. Plop down an oil derrick or a line of wind turbines—same result: move along LPCs.



All of these factors have contributed to the decline of this very special prairie species. But lurking just above ground level was another culprit in the lesser prairie chicken's decimation: barbed wire. Researchers in the field had discovered what farm hands and ranchers had known for a long time: prairie chickens often fly just above ground level, and because they often fly in to lekking grounds well before daylight, this flying style made them especially prone to colliding with barbed wire fence. The fence is essentially invisible in low light: rusty wire against sere-brown grass.



That's where the vinyl siding comes in. Field researchers looking for a way to reduce fence-chicken collisions landed on a seemingly ingenious solution. Small, three-to-four-inch sections of vinyl siding, with its interlocking channels, snapped perfectly into place on strands of barbed wire. The white hunks of hard vinyl fluttered slightly in the prairie wind, but held fast to the wire. Unlike pieces of white flagging, the vinyl siding lasted through the intense hot and cold and high winds of the Oklahoma seasons. Best, though, they made the wire fence strands visible to flying lesser prairie chickens, even in low light conditions.



My reason for being in Oklahoma was to deliver a keynote talk to the Lesser Prairie Chicken Festival in Woodward, Oklahoma. This festival offers the expected field trips to temporary viewing blinds set up adjacent to known display leks so attendees can see the chickens in action. Since the LPC was a life bird for me, I was excited to make the trip to Woodward. But the festival also offers something that I found to be even more meaningful—a chance to do something to actually help the lesser prairie chicken: by placing strips of vinyl siding on barbed wire fences in habitat adjacent to known lesser prairie chicken habitat.



One of the prairie chicken experts I got to meet in Oklahoma was Dr. Dwayne Elmore (above). He knew the location of most of the active LPC leks in the area.





We met a guy from the Oklahoma Department of Natural Resources who selected a section of fence for us to mark. He demonstrated how to mark the fence for the chickens, pointed to several large burlap sacks of cut-up vinyl siding, then pointed to a long stretch of as yet unmarked barbed-wire (locals call it "bobwire") fence.





We set to work.

The idea was to stagger the siding pieces every two feet or so on the top two strands of wire. This seems to be the most effective use of this collision deterrent, since it's right at the height at which LPCs do much of their flying at dawn and dusk.



Here's a piece of vinyl siding snapped into place. The channels in the siding are just the right size to snap down over a strand of wire, between the barbs/bobs.





As you can see, the white siding pieces present a visual image that's easy to notice.



After the fence was marked and we ran out of siding pieces, we felt a real sense of accomplishment. Here's hoping the fence-marking program results in greatly lower mortality from fence strikes, which could in turn mean more chickens dancing on the prairie.



I've got at least a couple more posts in mind about this wonderful part of the world and the great birds and people there. I'll try to get back for a BOTB visit to the big wide open of Oklahoma sometime soon.

Texas Drought Hard on Bees Too

A lot of what I think are feral bees have been mobbing our humming bird feeders in the back yard so I decided to put out a feeder just for the bees. They have been hitting the sugar syrup like nobody's business. I guess this drought is extremely hard on all creatures. If you have the chance to help out until it rains with food or water do what you can. Here are some pictures of the bees you might like. I put out a small hive just in case they decide they need a new home. Wild Ed

 

New Podcast Episode!

Hey kids! Episode 32 of my podcast, "This Birding Life" is now available for your listening/viewing pleasure over at Podcast Central and in the iTunes store's podcast section (search under Hobbies). This episode is called "Trekking for the Philippine Eagle" and it's an account of an adventure I had while in The Philippines back in March of 2009.



Here's a photo by famous bird photographer David Tipling of the same Philippines eagle you'll hear about in the podcast. And the image below is another one of Dave's. It's a shot of me crossing one of the last rivers on our way back down the mountain on the day after our eagle trek.



I hope you enjoy this new episode. According to our website statistics, our podcast episodes are downloaded many thousands of times each month, so it seems that "This Birding Life" has an audience. If that audience includes you, let us know what you think. Please feel free to add some comments about TBL to this post.



Until next time, I'll see you out there with the birds!

—BOTB

Reflection Time

We've had a nice stretch of beautiful sunsets recently. The good ones call us out onto the back deck, which faces west, to ogle and sigh. The truly wonderful sunsets send us sprinting up the tower stairs two-at-a-time, wanting not to miss a single second of color as the sun's fading light plays across the clouds.



While up in the tower for a tower-worthy sunset a short time ago, we found a new way to enjoy the spectacle. The top rails on our tower are made of cedar and the years of weathering have made them cup slightly. This cupped shape retains water (and further ages the wood, peels off the paint, etc).



Phoebe noticed that the water that pools on the rails catches the sky color quite nicely, and she called it to our attention. So we spent a happy hour trying to capture this interesting reflection with our cameras. Here are the results:







It used to drive me nuts to see that water pooled on the rails. In fact there's a squeegee stowed in the tower cabinet to push the water off. Now I find the reflections to be a perfect excuse not to do this small maintenance chore.



I guess what I'm taking away from this reflection time is that the only thing that beats a good sunset is....more sunset!

Times of the Signs

I encountered this sign outside a fire station in a small Caribbean country. Talk about a buzzkill. Most everyone I know would be in violation of this dress code. However, now that I think of it, most birders would be completely in compliance, which is troubling.

Texas Dove Opener Right around the Corner

The question this year is will we even have any dove in our area to hunt? If it does not rain there will not be any stock ponds to hunt over. There are very few grain or sunflower patches that have enough seed to draw in the birds. It almost always rains just before the opener or the first week and scatters the birds. Let us hope it rains and maybe, just maybe it will draw some birds. If not, remember that the best part of dove hunting is the chance to get together with friends and share the outdoors. Don’t let the drought stop that tradition, just get a few clay birds, a thrower and have a shoot. I promise the fun will still be there and you can still sit around, tell stories and have a cook out whether there are dove are not.  In fact it is a whole lot harder to say how many shells it took you to hit a bird when you're shooting clays in front of everybody.  To all my hunting buddies across this great State of Texas, remember shoot to miss in front and stay focused.  If you miss, do something different.




I spent many years shooting competitive Sporting Clays and also as a National Sporting Clays Association Level II gunning instructor teaching others to hit more targets. I have helped lots of shooters to improve their shooting skills. In this article I want to give you some tips to make you a better wing shot and to help you have more fun in the field. Dove hunts in Texas are often a social event and a chance to be among friends. It is always more fun if you can out shoot your buddies. Here are a few ways that can help you drop more dove with fewer shells fired.


1. Practice: Do not just go out and blast away, have someone that is a better shooter than you watch your style and help you along. A professional lesson or two are well worth the investment. If you have no one to help you, get a good video or book to help you along. Practice your mount in front of a mirror until you become smooth and fluid. Always remember speed is not fast, smooth is fast.


2. Focus: Learn to focus on the eye of the bird or front of the target. Too many people focus on the whole target or on bird’s tails as they are easily seen. Have you ever shot at a bird and it leaves a trail of floating tail feathers. I wonder why? Focus on the head or eye of the bird; I have had people call me when they see a dove blink for the first time. It will happen if you focus on the eyes or beak of the bird and you will be amazed as your bird count goes up.


3. Mount on the target or just in front: Many people practice the old style of pass through shooting where they come from behind the target and try to brush it out of the sky. No one with this method wins major competitions anymore. Your shot string is approximately six foot long, if the first pellet in the string goes behind the target guess where the rest of them go? If half of the shot string goes in front of the target you still get a kill. What does all this mean? It means you should always mount in front of the target and never get behind it in your swing and follow through. Shoot to miss in front of the bird and watch the dove hit the ground.


4. Move, Mount, Shoot: This phrase should be engraved in your mind. Move with the flight of the bird. This means move the gun with the flight of the bird in the ready to mount position (NOT MOUNTED) when the bird reaches the area where you wish to shoot simply mount the gun on the front of the target pull out in front of the target and pull the trigger. I see hunters every year that spot a dove coming in from a long way off and mount the gun and track the bird, shoot and miss. Yet when someone yells BIRD and they look up, see the bird and shoot, they crush it. If you track the bird you will almost always try to aim and miss the bird.


5. Do Not Aim: The bead on a shotgun is not to aim with unless you hunt turkeys or shoot slugs. Compare it to the hood ornament on a car; it is simply there for your subconscious to know you are on target. Focus only on the target so you can swing smoothly and stay in front of the target. If you feel like your swing is jerky in movement it means you are changing focus from the target to the front bead and back to the target. A shotgun swing is not jerky, only your focus back and forth. This is one of the most important tips I can give you. Consider the shotgun bead the "miss me bead" and stay focused on the bird.


Remember that most misses are behind so increase your lead if you are not connecting on previous shots. If you are missing don't keep shooting the same way. Change the amount of lead, choke or swing but change something. If you miss the first shot and do the same thing on the second shot you will miss it also.


All of the above tips will help you be a better shot but there are also other tools and methods that you can use to bring the dove in closer to you and that will help you get more shots at those flighty dove.


Clothing: White or bright clothing is definitely out as it will scare the birds. Camo or dark earth tones that will match the terrain you are hunting in. As it is super hot this time of year remember to keep the clothing light in weight for coolness. Put on a good insect repellent as ticks and chiggers are out in force this time of year.


Decoys: I often carry a few plastic decoys that clip on to tree limbs or barbwire fences. It is amazing how many dove coming down a field will fly by and check the decoys. The new decoys with the moving wings are very effective in drawing dove within range.


Eye Wear: During the early and late shooting hours I like to wear amber shooting lenses as the contrast gives me better target acquisition. During the bright part of the day I wear brown, green or smoke lens colors to kill the glare.


Choke Choice: Unless you are shooting high flying pass over doves you should leave the modified and full chokes in the case. Improved cylinder will help most hunters increase the number of birds in the game bag. If I am sitting at a small tank or a feeding area I will shoot a skeet or cylinder choke for the more open pattern.


Shot size: I carry two sizes with me to change the density and distance. I mostly shoot 8 shot as it has good distance and a dense pattern without many holes. If I need to extend my distance just a bit I will use 7 ½ shot. The pattern has a few more holes in it but it will get me another 10 yards of kill distance.


Barrel length: I am a fan of longer shotgun barrels as I find it is harder to mess up a good swing and follow through with a long barrel. A short barrel tends to increase poking or spot shooting. Remember to insert the barrel in front of the bird pull out and shoot while keeping the gun moving until the target falls. Follow through is very important and hard to maintain with short barrels.


Hydration: The temperatures this time of year can be extremely hot so drink lots of water or sport drinks. Keep the alcoholic beverages locked away until after the guns are cased for the day. Don’t forget to keep fluids in your canine buddy as dogs can get heat stressed easily this time of year.


I don’t want to be a person that harps about safety, but in teaching Shotgunning classes in the last year I have seen two shotguns discharged accidentally. Both were mechanical failures and not caused by the shooter. In both cases no one was hurt because those involved were safe gun handlers and always made sure their guns were pointed in a safe direction. These two instances have let me know just how quick a life could be taken. Just a reminder to always point your firearm in a safe direction and never bet your life on a mechanical device.


Be safe and have a great hunt, Wild Ed



DOVE ZONES AND BAG LIMITS

North Zone

That portion of the state north of a line beginning at the International Bridge south of Fort Hancock; thence north along FM 1088 to State Highway 20; thence west along State Highway 20 to State Highway 148; thence north along State Highway 148 to Interstate Highway 10 at Fort Hancock; thence east along Interstate Highway 10 to Interstate Highway 20; thence northeast along Interstate Highway 20 to Interstate Highway 30 at Fort Worth; thence northeast along Interstate Highway 30 to the Texas-Arkansas state line.

Central Zone

That portion of the state between the North Zone and the South Zone.

South Zone

That portion of the state south of a line beginning at the International Toll Bridge in Del Rio; thence northeast along U.S. Highway 277 Spur to U.S. Highway 90 in Del Rio; thence east along U.S. Highway 90 to State Loop 1604; thence following Loop 1604 south and east, then north, to Interstate Highway 10; thence east along Interstate Highway 10 to the Texas-Louisiana Line.

Special white-winged dove area

That portion of the state south and west of a line beginning at the International Toll Bridge in Del Rio; thence northeast along U.S. Highway 277 Spur to U.S. Highway 90 in Del Rio, thence east along U.S. Highway 90 to State Loop 1604 in Bexar County; thence south and east along Loop 1604 to Interstate Highway 35; thence south along IH 35 to State Highway 44; thence east along State Highway 44 to State Highway 16 at Freer; thence south along State Highway 16 to FM 649 at Randado; thence south along FM 649 to FM 2686; thence east along FM 2686 to FM 1017 at La Gloria; thence east along FM 1017 to State Highway 186 at Linn; thence east along State Highway 186 to the Mansfield Channel at Port Mansfield; thence east along the Mansfield Channel to the Gulf of Mexico.


North Zone:


Regular

Daily Bag Limit: 15*

Possession Limit: 30

Falconry

Daily Bag Limit: 3

Possession Limit: 6



Central Zone:

Regular

Daily Bag Limit: 15*

Possession Limit: 30

Falconry

Daily Bag Limit: 3

Possession Limit: 6



South Zone:

Regular

Daily Bag Limit: 15*

Possession Limit: 30

Falconry

Daily Bag Limit: 3

Possession Limit: 6



Special White-winged Dove Area

Special Season(Shooting hours: noon to sunset):

Daily Bag Limit: 15 white-winged, mourning and white-tipped doves in the aggregate, to include no more than 4 mourning doves and 2 white-tipped (white-fronted doves).

Possession Limit: Twice the daily bag limit.

Regular Season:

Daily Bag Limit 15*

Possession Limit 30

Falconry Season (Statewide) - Dove:

Daily Bag Limit: 3

Possession Limit: 6

*In all zones, the daily bag limit can include no more than 2 white-tipped (white-fronted doves). The possession limit on white-tipped doves is twice the daily bag limit.

Texas Alligator Gar Being Studied

One of the most controversial topics around these days is the limits placed on Alligator gar by Texas Parks and Wildlife department. The limit has no effect upon the catch and release fisherman but it does keep bow fisherman from killing more than one of the big gars per day. Many including myself believe that gar over 4 feet should even have stricter limits placed on them until TPWD can determine for sure what it needed to preserve the population. Some believe there are plenty of the big fish just as fisherman in other states did before their populations were decimated by loss of habitat and over harvest. Here is a link to my first article on the Alligator gar which drew lots of response and email.

http://wildedtx.blogspot.com/2010/08/texas-alligator-gar-deserve-better.html



The following is an update by Texas Parks and Wildlife. I hope that in the future we will see more protection for this great Texas Game fish. Wild Ed


Alligator Gar Research in Texas Helps Protect Trophy Fishery


ATHENS — Despite being one of the largest freshwater fish species in North America, scientists knew little about alligator gar until relatively recently. In the last two decades, knowledge about the species has grown tremendously in response to evidence that alligator gar populations are declining in many areas.

The primary reasons alligator gar have declined throughout much of their historic 14-state range are loss of floodplain habitats necessary for reproduction (from reservoir construction and river channelization) and overfishing. As a result, the American Fisheries Society has considered alligator gar “at risk of imperilment” since 2008.

Texas is fortunate to still have many of the best populations of large alligator gar in the world. The Trinity River has become one of the most popular locations to fish for the species. Susceptibility to habitat loss, coupled with increased fishing pressure, prompted Texas Parks and Wildlife Department (TPWD) to adopt a one-fish per day bag limit on September 1, 2009. This made Texas the eighth state to adopt harvest regulations for alligator gar.

Alligator gar longer than six feet are considered to be more vulnerable to angler harvest due to their more desirable “trophy” size. Although alligator gar may reach three feet in length in three years, their growth rate slows with age, and the fish may take 20 to 30 years to reach a length of six feet.

Biologists have discovered that alligator gar can live more than 50 years and take about a decade to become sexually mature. It could take several decades to restore their numbers if depleted. Many states are already in the process of stocking and attempting to reestablish alligator gar populations. By setting a one-fish per day regulation, Texas inland fisheries biologists hope to prevent the decline in alligator gar populations seen in other areas.

A number of research initiatives have been completed or are underway to better understand gar populations throughout Texas. TPWD biologists have conducted studies to evaluate growth rates and life span, understand their reproduction, and track the seasonal movement of alligator gar. Biologists have also conducted studies to evaluate angler harvest rates of alligator gar and estimate population sizes.

Efforts to increase age data for alligator gar from waters throughout the state are underway by collecting otoliths from angler-caught alligator gar. Otoliths are pairs of small bones in the inner ears of fish which contain annual growth rings similar to the rings in a tree. Age data make it possible to determine how fast fish grow, how long they are capable of living, and compare historical river conditions to the year the fish were hatched.

By comparing age data with historical water levels, biologists observed high river flows during late spring can result in strong alligator gar reproductive success. For example, high river flows in 2007 resulted in a very strong year-class of alligator gar in the Trinity River. In the current drought year, alligator gar may produce few to no offspring at all. Knowledge about which environmental conditions produced the most fish will allow biologists to better predict strong and weak year classes. Biologists may also be able to work with river and reservoir controlling authorities to help provide the conditions necessary for successful reproduction.

From October 2008 through July 2010, a study on the Trinity River used acoustic tags to track the movements of alligator gar between Lake Livingston and Trinity Bay. Biologists found alligator gar were concentrated in deep pools in the main river channel for most of the year but moved to tributaries and protected backwaters during flooding. Biologists also found that although some fish moved more than 100 miles, most of the alligator gar remained within 15 miles of their tagging locations. There was little interaction between fish tagged in different parts of the river, suggesting that alligator gar near Trinity Bay may be a separate population than alligator gar near Lake Livingston Dam. Further research is needed to determine if these populations should be managed separately.

A mark-recapture study in the river between Dallas and Lake Livingston (about 200 river miles) was also conducted with the help of fishing guide Kirk Kirkland. Captain Kirkland tagged alligator gar, and TPWD recorded the number of tagged fish he and other anglers caught.

With these data, biologists estimated that this portion of the river contained about 9,200 alligator gar 42 inches long or longer and about 1,400 fish 78 inches or longer. It was determined that about three to four percent of these alligator gar were harvested annually with most (73 percent) of the harvest occurring between April and July of each year. Biologists also estimated that only about 5 percent, or 400 fish 42 inches or longer, could be harvested each year from this portion of the river and still sustain this trophy fishery.

Since 2009, 130 harvested alligator gar have been collected and aged from anglers at Trinity River bowfishing tournaments. Using information obtained from tournaments, biologists were also able to estimate harvest rates of alligator gar at the events. Only about one alligator gar was harvested for every four bowfishers at the Trinity River tournaments, and it took an average of 50 angler-hours to harvest an alligator gar at a tournament. Angers harvested an average of 21 fish each year 42 inches or longer during the three studied tournaments, or about 5 percent of the sustainable annual harvest of 400 fish. This level of harvest from tournaments alone is well below estimated sustainable levels; however, biologists still need more information to determine what total percentage of alligator gar are harvested annually outside of bow fishing tournaments and using other methods like rod and reel.

While the Trinity River is a well-known stronghold for alligator gar in the state, many Texas reservoirs, such as Choke Canyon Reservoir and Lake Amistad, also support healthy populations. TPWD began a tagging study of alligator gar in Choke Canyon Reservoir in 2011. Tags returned by anglers will provide biologists with information on harvest, abundance, size structure, and survival. In addition, recaptures of tagged fish during the spawning season will provide clues to number of spawning locations, how often fish spawn in the reservoir, and if fish return to the same locations to spawn each year.

Through the various research projects throughout the state, biologists plan to refine management objectives specific to certain rivers and reservoirs around the state to better maintain or enhance the alligator gar fisheries. Future research needs will involve further assessments of alligator gar populations around Texas to better understand fishing pressure and harvest. A population study of alligator gar in the Brazos River below Waco is currently in the planning stages. TPWD’s goal is to study and manage Texas alligator gar populations to sustain excellent fishing opportunities for this species for present and future generations to enjoy.

Listening to the Predawn Morse Code

Red-eyed vireo.

The leaves may still be green, and the insects in full voice. The bluebirds are still feeding nestlings, the meadow is still dotted with blooming wildflowers, and the kids have yet to head back to school, but the seasons are changing.

I was up very early this morning—before light—and when I stepped outside, the still morning darkness was broken ever so slightly by the Morse code of migrant birds overhead, whispering their contact calls to their fellow travelers.

Nashville warbler.

I'm sure there were thrushes, and some sparrows, perhaps a vireo or two. And I'm positive I heard a warbler. I wish I knew these small, little-heard vocalizations better.

Dawn arrived yet none of the passerines dropped into our trees. So the mystery lingers. But tomorrow is another day with another dawn. And I plan to be up and out and listening expectantly in the darkness.

Caption Contest #19 Winner!

"Birding the Grassland" is brought to you in part by Sure deodorant and antiperspirant - wetness protection for men and women. When you are celebrating that life bird, never let the other birders see you sweat.

Our winner is Robert over at Birding is Fun! Congrats Robert!

It was really hard for our judges to pick just one winner. So we went with the one that gave us the biggest initial laugh.



Other strong entries:



Kate said...Oh Baird's Sparrow Gods, we beseech you. May you provide us with many close looks and breeding displays!

Kelly Hendrix said...Bill and friends trying to lure in a rare bird by doing a fancy mating display to the song "YMCA".

Erik (perennial contender) said...The "airing of the pits" made the next 7 hours in the van more bearable.

CrystalsCozyKitchen said...How the bird got the gun to hold up the birdwatchers, we may never know.

Thanks to all who played! Robert, you can pick up your winner's loot at The Midwest Birding Symposium in one month!

Until next time!

Texas Heat Fries Game Cameras

The last week has been straight 100 degree plus temperatures with no cloud cover and no rain in sight. My brother and I have kept game cameras going at the feeders to see how the wildlife are handling the drought and heat. We usually have several hundred game camera pictures to sort through with three cameras deployed around the place. This trip my Bushnell Trophy Camera and my Tasco 5mp camera had no pictures. They simply just had not functioned in the extreme heat. My brother's Primos however kept on taking pictures but did so with large gaps of skipped time. It took one picture where dog food Mike puts out for the grey foxes and other predators was still on the ground and the next picture taken a day later was all gone and nothing had set the camera off. We were having a hard time figuring out what was wrong until we noticed the temperature readings that the primos takes and prints on the bottom of each picture. The temperature in the camera box reached a high of 147 degrees Fahrenheit. The camera box is on a stump in a bare caliche flat with no shade right out in the direct sun most of the day. My Bushnell and Tasco were on oak trees with shade so the Primos has performed the best for us but still had problems. We plan to build a shade to put around the Primos for the future. As you can see the cameras are having a hard time performing at all in this heat. Stay cool, Wild Ed

Wildlife Pictures from the Last Few Weeks

I thought you guys might enjoy some pictures taken from my brother Mike's game camera. A few shots of a hummingbird I took at our camp site along with some wildlife pictures sent to me by my nephew, Nathan. Have a great week and get outdoors, Wild Ed