Conservation Education at Texas Parks and Wildlife

Texas Waters Webinar: Tues May 12 @ 6:30 PM CT
River Systems Impacted by Floods
Register: https://attendee.gotowebinar.com/register/8928444987570177878
Flooding in July significantly impacted fisheries resources across Central Texas, including the Guadalupe River, Colorado River, and the Highland Lakes. This webinar will highlight observed flood impacts to fish communities, such as Guadalupe bass, the state fish of Texas, and discuss ongoing fisheries research, monitoring, and management efforts supporting system recovery. Presenters will provide an overview of post-flood conditions in riverine and reservoir systems, management plans for impacted waterbodies and conservation best practices aimed at promoting fisheries resilience.
Patrick Ireland & Mitch Nisbet: District Biologists – TPWD Inland Fisheries
All current and previously recorded Texas Waters webinars: https://tpwd.texas.gov/education/water-education/texaswatersprogram/texaswatersspecialist

Texas Waters Webinar: Wed. April 15 @ 6:30 PM CT
21st Century Texas: Climate, water, science, and society
Register: https://attendee.gotowebinar.com/register/183046048804850773
Climatological and geopolitical forces converge in Texas to place our natural resources and public health at risk. Climate science is used to project the consequences of increasing greenhouse gases in Earth’s atmosphere for our state. Reconstructing past climate changes in Texas provides context for unprecedented drought and heat risks to come, and associated impacts on our economy and well-being. Are there paths forward to a resilient Texas?
Speaker: Jay Banner - F.M. Bullard Professor & Director at the University of Texas at Austin
All current and previously recorded Texas Waters webinars: https://tpwd.texas.gov/education/water-education/texaswatersprogram/texaswatersspecialist

Texas Waters Webinar: Thur. March 12 @ 6:30 PM CT
Duck Walk: A Birder’s Improbable Path to Hunting as Conservation
Register: https://attendee.gotowebinar.com/register/6514373750155725660
In fall 2016, lifelong birdwatcher, naturalist, and esteemed Texas artist Margie Crisp decided to take up a shotgun and start hunting ducks.
As a nature enthusiast, Crisp thought she understood conservation. Yet with many bird species in a precipitous decline, duck and geese populations continue to rise steadily year after year. Why? Who was responsible for the conservation of wildlands and wetlands essential to waterfowl, shorebirds, wading birds and raptors?
Here, Crisp goes beyond birdwatching to challenge her notions about hunting. Could duck hunters be considered conservationists? Could she overcome a life-long aversion to guns and learn to shoot birds? And could doing so help conservation of habitats for ducks and other migratory bird species? In writing her experiences, Crisp explores these questions and illustrates to both communities—hunters and naturalists—that one woman can be a birdwatcher, a bird hunter, and above all, a conservationist devoted to preserving habitat for birds and other wildlife.
Readers journey with the author as she learns to hunt—to experience the emotional impacts of killing, cleaning, cooking and eating birds. First-hand accounts are seamlessly integrated with information about conservation history as well as interviews with hunters, biologists, and birdwatchers. Along the Central Flyway from the Texas coast to Canada, this revealing personal narrative traces hunting and birdwatching trips, and even a solo road trip following the birds’ migration, all through the eye of an artist whose words and drawings bring her journey to life.
Margie Crisp - Naturalist, writer, & artist
All current and previously recorded Texas Waters webinars: https://tpwd.texas.gov/education/water-education/texaswatersprogram/texaswatersspecialist

Texas Waters Webinar: Tues. February 24 @ 6:30 PM CT
The Creek in My Backyard – A Guide to Understanding Stream Regulations in Texas
Register: https://register.gotowebinar.com/register/7590862704101654367
Become a steward for Texas rivers and streams! Learn the basics of the regulations affecting streams and rivers, and how they impact projects from dams to restoration to fossil collection. We will discuss how agencies do this work, and how you can participate as a neighbor, community member, or landowner. Plus, learn best management practices for riparian and aquatic habitats.
Speakers: Beth Bendik & Sue Reilly, Texas Parks and Wildlife Department
All current and previously recorded Texas Waters webinars: https://tpwd.texas.gov/education/water-education/texaswatersprogram/texaswatersspecialist

Texas Waters Webinar: Tues., January 13 @ 6:30 PM CT
Exploring Native Aquatic Plants: Identification, Benefits and Installation
Register: https://attendee.gotowebinar.com/register/4187539964507346780
This presentation will provide an overview of native aquatic plants, focusing on their identification, uses, and benefits in ponds and lakes. We'll discuss how to select the right plants, the proper methods for installation and the key considerations for promoting a healthy aquatic ecosystem. Whether you're a landowner, environmentalist, or nature enthusiast, this session will equip you with the knowledge to incorporate native plants effectively into aquatic settings.
Speaker: Ryan O’Hanlon @ Stonefly Aquatic Nursery LLC

Texas Waters Webinar: Wed., August 13 @ 6:30 PM CT
The Future of (One)Water in Texas
Register: https://attendee.gotowebinar.com/register/7514586278788831830
As water resources become scarcer and demand for water increases, integrated water resources management, including the use of the built environment as a source of water, will be critical for meeting Texas’ future (and current) water needs. This presentation focuses on the frailties of our current water supplies; the need for drought-proof water; and how individuals, communities, and water providers can build robust water supplies for the future.
Speaker: Robert Mace

All current and previously recorded Texas Waters webinars: https://tpwd.texas.gov/education/water-education/texaswatersprogram/texaswatersspecialist