Texas

AUSTIN, Texas — Dr. Larry McKinney, known affectionately as "Dr. Doom" for his candid, outspoken approach to addressing environmental issues, is leaving the Texas Parks and Wildlife Department a legacy not built on despair, but on hope.

ATHENS, Texas-The Budweiser ShareLunker season ended April 30 with a total of 13 fish entered into the program.

While this is below the long-term average of 20 fish per season, the number of spawns was above average. Two fish spawned a total of six times, producing 110,148 eggs. The average number of spawns each season is four.

AUSTIN -- The Gulf of Mexico commercial shrimp season for both state and federal waters will close 30 minutes after sunset on Thursday, May 15 until an unspecified time in July.

The closing date is based on samples collected by the Coastal Fisheries Division of the Texas Parks and Wildlife Department (TPWD) using trawl, bag seine and other information gathered from the shrimping industry.

May 4–11, 2008

Program 1606-R — Originally Aired November 4–11, 2007

Learning to live with the American Alligator; maintaining your tent; enjoying the altitude of Davis Mountains State Park; honoring Doc Shelton; the wild west at Palo Duro Canyon.

HOUSTON — Three priority bird species-the endangered Brown Pelican and threatened Reddish Egret and White-faced Ibis — have been conserved thanks to an erosion-protection project on North Deer Island in West Galveston Bay. Project partners protected the highly populated bird nesting habitat by armoring approximately 1.7 miles of shoreline.

ATHENS, Texas — Winners of the Texas division of the Wildlife Forever State-Fish Art Contest were announced today by officials at the Texas Freshwater Fisheries Center.

The annual contest, open to any Texas student in grades 4 through 12, requires students to draw a picture and write an essay about any officially recognized state fish.

Light Goose Conservation Order: The special season began in the Panhandle Feb. 6. Lots of snows remain in the Etter area, but have been reluctant to decoy with traditional hunting methods. Outfitters are hoping liberal tactics will make a different. Good hunts were posted last year in the High Plains through early March. Along the coast, overcast skies have helped put geese in callable range. Good hunts were posted near Palacios, Anahuac and Seadrift in the fog. A few days last week saw sea fog develop along the coast and hunters took advantage with 70, 80 and 100-bird hunts. On the prairie, geese have been scattered. Some outfitters have said they have had to drive over 250 miles a day to find huntable numbers of birds. Southerly winds have helped decoying action, and most outfitters have been happy with 20-bird hunts. With fewer than normal birds on the prairie, blue-bird, north wind days have been tough. Expect fewer birds daily as snows begin their trek north. Typically,å large waves of birds depart plus or minus a few days around Valentine’s Day. Prospects are fair.

WESLACO, Texas — The birding industry has established universal appeal, but birds and butterflies are not the only winged migrants to attract a crowd. Dragonflies and damselflies are gaining popularity among wildlife enthusiasts, and southern Texas is home to 93 species, making it one of the most biologically diverse regions in the United States.

Dallas, TX (PRWEB) April 15, 2008 -- Natural Environmental Systems, LLC, a Dallas based environmental products supplier, has expanded its 2008 pond supplies portfolio to include more equipment and maintenance supplies to complement its Pond Keeper© brand water treatments.

TPWD will stock 12-inch channel catfish in these lakes the week of April 21 and will continue stocking approximately every two weeks through early November, except during August. The department has not scheduled stockings for that month because of the potential for heat-related water quality problems. All lakes in this program have special regulations for channel and blue catfish: the bag limit is five fish per day, and there is no minimum length limit.