TEXAS MASTER NATURALIST ELM FORK CHAPTERtxmn.org/elmfork/files/2012/06/June12NL.pdf · Texas Master...

Texas Master Naturalist, Elm Fork Chapter Newsletter

June 2012

Volume 12 Issue 6

Special points of interest:

Bird banding at LLELA

Learning about LISDOLA—June meeting

In this issue:

Rob’s Ramblings 3

Learning about LISDOLA 4

May meeting highlights 5

May service awards 6

Announcements 7

AT- pollinators 8

Bird banding at LLELA 9

Another Master Naturalist 10

Butterflies are free 11

Field notes in focus 13

Clear Creek kiosk 14

AT—importance of pollinators

Clear Creek kiosk completion

TEXAS MASTER NATURALIST ELM FORK CHAPTER

Texas AgriLIFE Extension

AgriLIFE Extension Service

Elm Fork Chapter

Newsletter

TM

JUNIOR MASTER NATURALIST PARTICIPATE IN FIRST SUMMER

NATURE CAMP AT CLEAR CREEK

T he Junior Master Naturalist project has many names: Kids ‘N Nature, Kids In Nature, Preschool Naturalist, EnviroKids, and Nature Club just to list a few. The name doesn’t matter

as much as the goal of teaching kids environmental science. I start-ed working with kids in 2006 with an information table at an Earth day school event. I guess that’s when I caught the bug of working with kids. Each year since then, I have added subjects to my list of programs. Most programs last 1 ½ - 2 hours and include activities, educational crafts, and hands on exploration.

In September, I finally gave up on the state coming up with a Junior Master Naturalist program and came up with my own. I developed a simple book-let for the kids to track classes they attend and community service. When they complete 16 hours of instructor lead environmental classes and 8 hrs of service they will receive a certificate and a pin. They can repeat the program. I have several kids that are close to completing 16 hrs of class.

Cont’d

The wonder of it all!

Photos—Sherrill Campbell

From Jan Hodson


This year we are offering our first Denton Parks and Rec-reation summer nature camp program at Clear Creek, June 11-15, 8-noon, M-F, ages 6-11. Subjects included: TX eco-regions, native plants, insects, spiders, water, fish, reptiles, amphibians, birds, and mammals. I will also be a volunteer instructor for several day camp classes. Dates and subjects have already been selected for fall and winter Denton P&R programs.

There are a lot of opportunities to assist with the JMN project.

Please contact Jan Hodson [email protected], 940-637-2702

if you are interested in helping.

JUNIOR MASTER NATURALIST PARTICIPATE IN FIRST

SUMMER NATURE CAMP AT CLEAR CREEK

“When one tugs at a single thing in nature,

he finds it attached to the rest of the world.”

― John Muir

goodreads.com

Photos courtesy Alex Lieban

mailto:[email protected]

http://www.goodreads.com/author/show/5297.John_Muir


Rob’s Ramblings – June 2012

On Monday, June 4th, I was in deep woods in Wood County. The next day I was on the AT visit to the LBJ

Grasslands in Wise County with some of our members. The two counties are in different eco regions of

Texas with a very different look to the casual observer. Wood County is at the edge of the Post

Oak savannah/piney woods interface with a lot of hardwoods and pine trees with pastures in-

terspersed among the woods. The Grasslands were in “grasslands” with some wooded areas.

Yet when one looks closely the two

areas have a lot of things in common

besides being in Texas. While the

soils were different, some of the trees,

vines, shrubs, and grasses were the

same. Vultures were soaring in the

sky, hackberry butterflies abounded as

did others, grasshoppers were every-

where, and the sun and heat were very

present. It reminded me again of the

great diversity within our state and, at

the same time, how many things are

common to many of our areas.

Be careful when outdoors, especially in the

heat. Follow the lead of those who lived in

Texas in earlier years. They started their

day at or before sunrise. But after lunch

they rested in the afternoon and didn’t go

back into the fields until later in the day.

Drink plenty of liquids, especially water.

Dress appropriately, use protective sun-

screen, and take breaks to rest.

Have a great summer!

Clip art

LBJ Grasslands—

photo Susan

Pohlen LBJ Grasslands—photos

Susan Pohlen

More of our state’s

flora/fauna diversity

— Dragonfly photo —

Susan Pohlen,

observed at her home


LEARNING ABOUT LISDOLA—June 21 Chapter Meeting

OOOur June 21 Chapter meeting will feature Suzanne Barnard, who will give us an

update of the programs and needs of the wonderful site at the foot of the Lewisville Lake dam.

SSSuzanne has been with Lewisville Independent School District in various teaching and

administrative roles for many years, and is now enjoying being Instructor/Site Manager/Environmental Learning Administrator for LISD Environmental Learning programs. Su-

zanne says that the exciting part about her current position is the opportunity to work directly with students and teachers in early elementary years through high school at LISDOLA as well as at other outdoor

sites in the local area where LISD students engage in environmental experiences (such as LLELA/LAERF and Briarwood

Retreat in Argyle).

SSSuzanne’s goals for LISD Environmental programs:

provide opportunities for students of any age to experience natural sights and sounds, and connect with classroom

experiences.

conduct research that adds to the body of knowledge about local flora and fauna.

improve LISDOLA site (trails, prairie areas, ponds, etc) to better facilitate learning activities for children and adults in

keeping with conservation goals of local, state, & national organizations (in particular, water & soil conservation).

grow new naturalists by making environmental projects and opportunities relevant, fun, and 'do-able'.

IIIn her presentation to our chapter, Suzanne will outline some of the things she hopes to accomplish in collaboration with

the Elm Fork Chapter of Master Naturalist:

better trail interpretation with student groups that visit LISDOLA.

keeping up with seasonal site maintenance (pruning, replanting, blazing new trails, etc).

rework and expand the bird feeding/observation station; add information about birds so that it is accessible outdoors.

connect students and community members with experts electronically-'Ask a Naturalist'.

design/construct a practical composting station geared to reducing landfill 'deposits' from groups that visit LISDOLA.

rework the water harvesting cisterns to make them usable.

integrate alternative energy options where possible (for example: solar powered deer cams).

rework the small pond near the office so that it is usable by groups visiting LISDOLA.

find a way to use McWhorter Creek for aquatic studies after the Fish Hatchery Rd. bridge is rebuilt.

expand programming to include night hikes, National Walk in the Woods Day, etc.

Suzanne Barnard

From Peg La Point

Instructor/Supervisor, LISD Environmental Learning

LISDOLA Career Center East 2553 FM 544

Lewisville, TX 75056

sheisdallas.com/lisdola-lewisville-isd-

outdoor-learning-area/

sheisdallas.com/lisdola-

lewisville-isd-outdoor-

learning-area/


At May Meeting, Master Naturalists Learn About Applying Paleozoology

At our May chapter meeting, UNT students Amy Hoffman and Jonathan Dombrosky

gave us a very interesting introduction to paleozoology and explained how prehisto-

rians can assist with wildlife management and conservation biology. The goal of

wildlife management is to manipulate populations, while conservation biology at-

tempts to maintain biodiversity in an ecosystem. While wildlife management deals

primarily with game species, conservation biology tries to deal with all taxa.

Paleozoology can be a powerful tool because it can describe the ancient history and

the biogeography of a species. Paleozoologists attempt to discover not just the

location of ancient bones, but how and why they are appear where they do. This

helps put the remains in a broader context. Such information can help us under-

stand such things as the impacts of human activities, climate change, help us pre-

serve and create the habitats needed by animals, and plan for the future.

Jonathan is researching freshwater mussels in North Texas. Freshwater mussels are a sentinel species. They feed by filtering

water, so they are immediately impacted by disturbance or contamination. Of the 297 identified species native to North Texas,

12 percent have recently become extinct and 23 percent are threatened or endangered. Mussels reproduce by ejecting millions

of tiny young, called golchidia, into the water column. The golchidia lodge in the gills of fish that disperse them throughout the

watershed. One of the reasons for the sharp decline in mussels in North Texas is the impoundment of water behind dams. This

has changed the quality of the water and has prevented fish from traveling throughout the watershed. Jonathan showed us how

the ancient remains of mussels help us put current conditions in perspective.

Amy addressed the subject of the California Condor, which arose 2.6

million years ago in the Pleistocene era. Condors were plentiful be-

cause the continent was populated by megafauna such as mam-

moths, camels and giant ground sloths. Paleozoologists have shown

that with the demise of the massive animals 12,000 years ago, the

Condor began to die out. By 10,000 years ago, they only inhabited

what is now the southern tier of the country. After Europeans arrived,

habitat destruction, hunting and lead poisoning from ammunition

eliminated Condors from everywhere but the western coast. The re-

cent attempt to save the species has only been partially successful

because the birds are largely dependent on humans for food and pro-

tection. The historical evidence provided by paleozoology prompts

debate about the wisdom of trying to keep alive a species whose time

for extinction may have been at hand, even without the impact of hu-

man activities. Some argue that resources could be better used for

species that have a better chance at survival.

Amy also discussed the study of ancient DNA, which can be obtained from million-year-old bones. Learning the DNA structure

of ancient animals can help us learn about adaption to past climate changes, genetic diversity, population bottlenecks, extirpa-

tions and extinctions, and the effects of husbandry and domestication of animals.

Paleozoology helps us know about the past and helps us deal with pressing issues such as urbanization and changing climate.

It helps with wildlife management decisions and preservation of biological diversity.

By Peg La Point

President Rob Roy thanks Amy and Jonathan

Amy Hoffman and Jonathan Dombrosky

Photos courtesy Owen Richards


Kudos to all who received service awards presented by President

Rob Roy at May chapter meeting—Congratulations!

Photos from Owen Richards


FROM THE BULLETIN BOARD—INFORMATION AND OPPORTUNITIES

Texas Bluebird Society—Information from C.J. Solberg

The Texas Bluebird Society is an all-volunteer grassroots organization helping bluebirds and other native cavity-nesting birds through increasing nesting sites while sustaining and increasing their food supply (insects and berries of native plants). TBS presents two educational events each year: our Season Kickoff in February and our Summer Symposium in August. Come join us for great information from our presenters, enjoy the outstand-ing camaraderie of other bluebirders, and participate in our FUNdraising auctions. We promote bluebirds by serving as knowledgeable presenters and by organizing bluebird booths at various events across the state throughout the year. Check the Events tab to see our activities at: At the heart of TBS efforts is the construction, distribution, and sale of a "well-suited for Texas" bluebird nestbox,* known as the "Texas Nestbox." We have built over 8000 nestboxes since 2002. This is quite an accomplishment. Think of the difference TBS is making in preserving, studying, and promoting these beautiful birds.

Come, learn and work and enjoy with us. Join us in our efforts to promote "Bluebirds across Texas . . . one nestbox at a time! Ken Stiegman is scheduled to be one of the presenters. *a "nestbox" may be called "birdhouse" or "nesting box."

http://texasbluebirdsociety.org

Photo Alex Lieban

If you have an idea for, or information about a speaker,

please send your suggestions, with all contact infor-

mation, to Peg La Point, programs chairperson.

[email protected] 891-4984

Contact Information Changes

If you have any changes in your contact information (name,

address, telephone number or numbers, and/or email ad-

dress) you want the chapter and members to know about

please send the changes to:

Monica Chaffin [email protected]; Donna Wolfe

[email protected]; & Susan Pohlen

[email protected]

http://texasbluebirdsociety.org/Events.php

http://texasbluebirdsociety.org/Sales.php

http://texasbluebirdsociety.org






ADVANCED TRAINING: THE IMPORTANCE OF POLLINATORS

On July 11, Troy and Martha Mullens will present a program on native pollinators. They will discuss the importance of pollinators and how much we rely on the ecological services they provide. They will address how pollinators and other insects are threatened by the very humans that rely on them. It will be a very informative program, illuminated by their wonderful photographs.

Place: AgriLIFE building on Loop 288 Date: Wednesday, July 11

Time: 1:00 – 2:00 p.m. with discussion afterward

Troy and Martha Mullens are both retired scientists and Martha

earned her Masters of Science in Biology. They are lifelong natural-

ists and environmentalists. They are volunteer specialists at the Fort

Worth Nature Center. Both are members of the Native Plant Socie-

ty, BRIT (Botanical Institute of Texas), Texas Master Naturalists,

Audubon Society, Nation Wildlife Federation, Wilderness Society,

the Sierra Club, Texas Invaders, and Xerces Society.

From Peg La Point—photos from Troy Mullens

Swallowtail (Papilio palamedes) —

USFW Nat’l Digital Library

The palamedes swallowtail was spotted in southern Dallas county a few weeks

ago; and this is rare since its usual habitat is the Piney Woods of East Texas. The

palamedes swallowtail is hard to miss because of its coloration of dark brown to

black with a broad band of yellow across a 4 1/2 inch wingspan. It will probably

not hang around for long, however, since it needs red bay or sassafras on which

to lay its eggs and neither of these trees are commonly found in the north Texas

area. Nevertheless, what a treat for the lucky few who caught sight of this beau-

tiful butterfly. DMN May 2012

RARE SIGHTING

w. odum

No pre-registration is required.


More on Bird Banding at LLELA — follow up from May Newsletter

A group of instructors and students, along with Dr. Ken Steigman from LLELA, and Master Naturalist, Andy Krofina, banded the birds at LLELA while Owen Richards and Larry Brennan observed, took lots of pictures and helped with locating birds in nets; and they as-sisted with opening and closing the 10 mist nets that are used. Birds are carefully extricated from the nets and placed in bags for their safety and comfort. They are weighed, measured (wings and tail) and then their age, gender, and fat are determined. After the band has been put on their leg and all the measurements done, they are released. The bands are different sizes and in sequential order. All information is recorded. The information gathered is given to a national organization to be used for research where migration patterns are determined and populations are studied to see chang-ing patterns.

From Andy

Krofina —

photos Owen

Richards

Photo—

www.pwrc.usgs.gov

Photo—www.pwrc.usgs.gov


ANOTHER MASTER NATURALIST AT WORK (not a MN project, but promoting MN with

her badge, of course!)

O n Friday, June 8, this orange T-shirt clan was bused to Shiloh Field Community Garden in

Denton for a vegetable garden tour. After a short introduction about the property and the evolution of the community garden, we walked through the130 individual, personal garden plots, which are 15x15 ft, and talked about plants, insects, blooms, buds, flowers, vegetables, soil, and mostly the value of tending to the earth and learning to volun-teer. The kids were in awe since most of them had never been exposed to gardening nor seen squash attached to the plant, or onions growing up on top of the soil, or ears of corn pointing skyward, with silk streaming from the tops, attached to a stout, straight, leafy, 6 ft. stalk.

G ene Gumfory, Denton Bible Church Garden Coordinator, es-corted them thru the community

acreage to view multiple rows of vegetables, and, informed them that volunteers had har-vested 1,000 pounds of red and white pota-toes only two days prior to their visit. Im-pressed? They were.

S ome kids were visually impaired; some more than others. I picked herb leaves for them to touch and smell, yarrow wildflow-

er leaves for medicinal use, pointed out beneficial and destructive insects on the garden plants, crushed basil leaves to appreciate the unique aro-ma, etc., It was a delightful group of campers who thoroughly enjoyed the garden tour, and who were accompanied by a wonderful group of staffers who were hyper with joy after learning about Shiloh Field garden, the value of volunteering to the com-munity, and learning the amount of produce that is harvested and donated to 7 entities around Denton. Their unexpected rave reviews were jewels to our ears.

Article and photo from Dorothy Thetford—

pictured 2nd from left, 2nd row

T his group came from Texas Woman's University's (TWU) 3-day encampment named CAMP EYE CAN. The camp is a

collaboration between TWU Adapted Physical Ed-ucation Department, Denton ISD Program for Stu-dents with Visual Impairments, Denton Public School Foundation and the Division of Blind Ser-vices. Lisa Hanson, Camp Coordinator, along with Dr. Nancy DiMarco, Director, Institute for Women's Health, TWU, orchestrated the visit to Shiloh Field, and were assisted by a staff representing each of those entities. All were overwhelmed with the gar-den, the guided tour, and the responses from the kids.


BUTTERFLIES ARE FREE –by Dorothy Thetford

Yes they are, plus they're also beautiful. But their unique life cycle of going through a complete metamorphosis makes them one of the most interest-ing insects in our environment. And this life cycle event is truly an eye-opener for children. Thus a short story about an extemporaneous Master Naturalist project. No, no game plan, no sign-up sheets, and no AT hours.

In late April, I received a phone call from a friend named Will, who informed me that one of his plants had been completely defoliated, and asked if I could come to his house and identify the worms crawling around the plant. I immediately cut a few stems of my Green milkweed (Asclepias viridis) and carried along with me, even though he had not described his worms to me. Sure enough, the four plant stems were naked but, upon closer inspection, the flower pot rim and ground below were fully clothed with small, crawling caterpillars... Monarchs, no less! What a find, I thought to myself. However, that was not the same thought that Will had!

My concern was to protect and preserve the caterpillars, whereas, Will's concern was to protect and preserve his plant which, by the way, was A. curassavica, a tropical plant that is commonly called Mexican milkweed or Bloodflower or Butterfly Weed. It is not our native perennial Butterfly weed (A. tuberosa), but is an annual that is sold through the nursery trade that normally doesn't survive our winter weather. However, Will had over-wintered his plant in his greenhouse and, thus, had a very robust plant available when the Monarch butterflies made their earlier-than-usual northbound migration. You might say that his plant appeared to be the perfect Maturnity Ward, and 'got a hit' by several female Monarch butterflies, to say the least. We gathered and counted 36 caterpillars. Yep, 36.

After we identified the 'worms' and the plant, we made a sketchy plan whereby I left ten of the small caterpil-lars with him, along with the milkweed foliage as he containerized them for monitoring. I took remaining 26 caterpillars with me to provide nourishment to get them through metamorphosis so that they could continue their journey northbound.

The big game plan evolved shortly whereby I shared 3 to 5 caterpillars each with McNair, Sam Houston, Evers and Hodge Elementary schools, and several to the Special Ed teacher at Strickland Middle School. The teach-ers were ecstatic as they pulled out their dusty caterpillar cages and provided front row seating so their stu-dents could witness the munching caterpillars devouring Green milkweed leaves, then pupating, then forming their chrysalis, and finally revealing themselves, miraculously via metamorphosis in their new wardrobe, as a butterfly. [By the way, as the early Monarchs hatched, we added Pipevine Swallowtail caterpillars to the pro-ject, which extended the science project to the end of the school year.]

I had the necessary plants for the caterpillars, thus, I provided Meal-on-Wheels periodically, since they do not (as yet) have Green milkweed growing in their Outdoor Learning Center (OLC) gardens. Plus, I shared the ex-citing emails among the teachers as each reported on pupation, hatching and releasing. The teachers reported only praise with the in-classroom science experience as they watched their students' new awareness of the life-cycle process.

Monarch caterpillars


BUTTERFLIES ARE FREE cont’d–by Dorothy Thetford

Dorothy Thetford

MN Class 2001

These pictures were shared with me, taken from Evers and Strickland Volunteer Appreciation Week activities. It was truly a pleasure working with these enthusiastic teachers: Jill Colture, Michelle Rainer, Sandy Taylor, Kim Hope, Sha-ron Betty, and Strickland Principal, Kathleen Carmona. And, as a happy ending, you might say that, with their help, our Butterflies Are Now Truly Free!

L. Sandy Taylor, 5th grade Science Teacher, Evers Elementary School (w/Dorothy Thetford)

L. Kim Hope, Special Education Teacher, Strick-land Middle School (w/Dorothy), and

R. Kathleen Carmona, Principal, Strickland Mid-

dle School

Another view of Monarch caterpillars

Pipevine Swallowtail

hatched in the cage


MISSED A SPOT! From the gallery of Susan Pohlan

“FIELD NOTES IN FOCUS”

Featuring Master Naturalist photographers—flora and fauna as you see them


CLEAR CREEK STRUTS ITS STUFF!

Many hours of planning and

hard work of a number of Master

Naturalists over the past several

months has hit pay dirt — the

kiosk, shown here, is finished at

last. Visit soon!

Photo courtesy Jan Thompson

...pick them. As we gather our tools and toys for outdoor events in city or state parks and other natural areas, remember to leave everything just as you found it. That is, look or take photos but, without permission, do not pick or dig flowers, collect rocks or fossils, gather seeds, remove bird nests or any other item from private or public property. Be good stewards of the land — nature will reward you for it!

“PLEASE DON’T EAT THE DAISIES” or...


We’re on the Web

TEXAS MASTER NATURALIST

ELM FORK CHAPTER

Texas AgriLIFE Extension

306 North Loop 288, Suite 222

Denton, TX 76209-4887

Education, Conservation, Preservation, Restoration

www.txmn.org/elmfork

OUR MISSION . . .

“to develop a corps of well-informed volunteers who

provide education, outreach, and service dedicated to

the beneficial management of natural resources and

natural areas within our community”

Monthly Chapter Meetings

9:30 a.m. preceded by a social time at 9:00 a.m. on the

third Thursday of each month.

Chapter meetings are open to the public.

Next meeting: June 21, 2012 — Suzanne Barnard

will give an update on LISDOLA.

Location: Steven E. Copeland Govern-

ment Center, 1400 FM 424, Cross Roads,

TX 76227

http://dentoncounty.com/Locations/

GetLocationMap.asp?BCode=51

Board Meetings

The Board meets each second Thursday of the month

at 9:30 a.m., Denton County AgriLIFE Extension Office.

The Board last met June 14, 2012. Next meeting is

July 12, 2012

Board meetings are open to members.

Members of the Board

PRESIDENT—Rob Roy

IMMEDIATE PAST PRESIDENT—George Kragle

VICE-PRESIDENT—Susan Pohlen

SECRETARY—Diane Kohlhase

TREASURER—Kay Crowe

CLASS REPRESENTATIVE—Dale Meyer

MEMBER-at-LARGE—Doug Chadwick

COMMITTEES:

Communications:

ADVISORS:

Janet Laminack, Extension Agent

Patrick Schutz, TP&W

Newsletter—Wanda Odum (chair rotation

with Sharon Barr & Monica Chaffin)

Projects: Marian Kester

Publicity: Jan Deatherage

Training: Van Elliott

Alex Lieban—

Indigo bunting

July 19, 2012 general meeting — Mary Anne

Graves, President Dallas Historic Tree Coalition

http://www.txmn.org/elmfork

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