KYLE, Texas — Across Texas, a seismic shift in land ownership is transforming the landscape. Bigger ranches are giving way to ranchettes, resulting in loss of open range and fragmentation of wildlife habitat. One solution is landowners banding together for common benefits, which is the focus of the Texas Organization of Wildlife Management Associations (TOWMA) annual conference Feb. 1-2 in Kyle south of Austin.
AUSTIN, Texas — If you love the outdoors and are looking for a job where you can make a difference in conserving Texas’ natural and cultural resources, the Texas Parks and Wildlife Department may have just the job you’re looking for.
AUSTIN, Texas — Dangerous. That’s the word fire officials and rangeland management specialists use to describe the combination of heavy grass growth and dry conditions that exist now over much of Texas. Big rains in 2007 produced a lot of grass and other vegetation, which now amounts to dry tinder in much of the state.
AUSTIN, Texas — For the fifth year, the Texas Parks and Wildlife Department will host two Flat Out Fishing seminars to help anglers start the new year with an edge. The first event, in Corpus Christi, kicks-off at 8 a.m., Sat., Feb. 2, at Texas A&M University-Corpus Christi. The event will be held at Bay Hall, Room 103, at TAMU-CC’s Ward Island campus. The second event will be in Lake Jackson at the Lake Jackson Civic Center Feb. 9.
EDITORS NOTE: In this issue of TPWD News, we forsake our usual format for the most part and provide a summary of the top news stories of 2007. Details about these topics can be found in the department’s online news archive. Please note that TPWD will not be distributing weekly news during the coming holidays. Weekly news distribution will resume on Jan. 14, 2008. Happy Holidays!
PILOT POINT, Texas — An international resort company that owns Dallas’ famed Southfork Ranch was the highest bidder last week at an auction to take over of Ray Roberts Lake State Park’s Lantana Lodge. The previous concessionaire at the park, Nature Leisure Times, LLC, had been in bankruptcy for more than a year.
AUSTIN, Texas — Texas game wardens this month concluded an investigation into an illegal deer hunting ring in Southeast Texas, filing 247 criminal charges against 20 offenders.
The following are excerpts from recent Texas Parks and Wildlife Department law enforcement reports.
AUSTIN, Texas — State fisheries biologists have set a January series of public input meetings in Port Arthur, Dickinson, Port Aransas and Port Isabel to discuss possible changes to the way fishing and fisheries are regulated along the Texas coast.
SAN ANTONIO, Texas — Carter Smith was named executive director of the Texas Parks and Wildlife Department on Dec. 5 at a special meeting of the TPW Commission in San Antonio. Smith will be leaving the helm at The Nature Conservancy of Texas to take the top job at TPWD.