WOLF MOON TONIGHT!

Tonight's full moon will be the biggest and brightest full moon of the year. It will appear 14 percent wider and 30 percent brighter. As the first full moon of the year, it is known as the wolf moon, a name bestowed up on it by Native Americans.

Not to be outshone, Mars will also appear at its biggest and brightest in the past 780 days. It won't be of wolf moon proportions, but by way of comparison, astronomers say it will appear nearly as bright as Sirius, the star with the highest apparent brightness in the night sky.

More here.

PLATEAU SEMINARS BEGIN AGAIN IN 2010

Plateau's Wildlife seminars are starting up again in February! For places and times, check the left column for the latest seminar opportunities.

ROBERT BURNS, WILDLIFE, AND TIMING IS EVERYTHING

To celebrate the poet Robert Burns (born January 25, 1759), and in the spirit of our last post on the impact of our activities on wildlife at particular times of the year, here 'tis Burn's To A Mouse. In this poem, a ploughman accidentally turns up a fieldmouse in her nest. The poet apologizes to the mouse and expresses dismay at what he inadvertently brought up on the mouse -- destroying her home at a time when it is impossible to rebuild. It is winter and no grass about to build a new nest. This poem is also the origin of the famous turn of phrase "the best laid plans of mice and men...". For more poem analysis, click here.

Wee, sleeket, cowran, tim'rous beastie,

O, what panic's in thy breastie!

Thou need na start awa sae hasty,

Wi' bickering brattle!

I wad be laith to rin an' chase thee,

Wi' murd'ring pattle!

I'm truly sorry Man's dominion

Has broken Nature's social union,

An' justifies that ill opinion,

Which makes thee startle,

At me, thy poor, earth-born companion,

An' fellow-mortal!

I doubt na, whyles, but thou may thieve;

What then? poor beastie, thou maun live!

A daimen-icker in a thrave 'S a sma' request:

I'll get a blessin wi' the lave,

An' never miss't!

Thy wee-bit housie, too, in ruin!

It's silly wa's the win's are strewin!

An' naething, now, to big a new ane,

O' foggage green!

An' bleak December's winds ensuin,

Baith snell an' keen!

Thou saw the fields laid bare an' wast,

An' weary Winter comin fast,

An' cozie here, beneath the blast,

Thou thought to dwell,

Till crash! the cruel coulter past

Out thro' thy cell.

That wee-bit heap o' leaves an' stibble,

Has cost thee monie a weary nibble!

Now thou's turn'd out, for a' thy trouble,

But house or hald.

To thole the Winter's sleety dribble,

An' cranreuch cauld!

But Mousie, thou are no thy-lane,

In proving foresight may be vain:

The best laid schemes o' Mice an' Men,

Gang aft agley,

An' lea'e us nought but grief an' pain,

For promis'd joy!

Still, thou art blest, compar'd wi' me!

The present only toucheth thee:

But Och! I backward cast my e'e,

On prospects drear!

An' forward, tho' I canna see,

I guess an' fear!

TIMING IS EVERYTHING: LAND AND WILDLIFE MANAGEMENT JANUARY - MARCH

A timing reminder from Plateau's Seasons newsletter...

Brush Management
While the cool of spring might be the most enticing time of year to fire up a chainsaw to clear brush, this type of "spring cleaning" might actually be detrimental to the wildlife you are trying to protect. Spring is a familial time of year for all the mama and the papa animals -- the whine of a saw and the disturbance of brush are not conducive to reproductive activities; nesting may be disrupted and newborns stressed. Rather, it is a much better practice to do your important brush thinning and habitat improvement now, before spring has sprung, or wait until the hot summer months.

Plateau offers selective and ecologically sound brush management which maintains the integrity of the habitat for native wildlife, while enhancing the beauty of your property. Our skilled field technicians (like Lee, above) implement techniques that are tailored to the habitat needs of your property and its wildlife. Contact us for more details.
 
Mowing
Another time-sensitive activity is mowing native meadows, it is important to not do so too early in the season. It is a much more effective practice to let the grass and wildflowers stand undisturbed until they go to seed. If you watch the plants carefully in the late spring and summer, you will actually see the many ways that seeds are formed and dispersed. Occasional mowing at the right time, in the right amount, and correct patterns can be important to the health of a grassland, but allowing nature to run its course is the best possible method of reseeding.

Did you know...Shortly after the Texas Highway Department was organized in 1917, officials noted that wildflowers were among the first vegetation to reappear at roadside cuts and fills. In 1932, the department hired its first landscape architect to maintain, preserve, and encourage wildflowers and other native plants along rights of way. By 1934, department rules delayed all mowing, unless essential for safety, until spring and early summer wildflower seasons were over. This practice has stayed in place for more than 60 years.
 
Fire Ant Control
In the 1930s, as cargo ships from Brazil docked and unloaded goods at the seaport in Mobile, Alabama, a tiny foreign predator slipped from the vessels and crawled into infamy. Today, the imported red fire ant has spread from Alabama to almost every southern state from Texas to Maryland. While it is typically in the heat of the summer when seething fire ant rage really takes hold as mounds of imported red fire ants dot the land -- and pity the poor flip-flopped fool who accidentally stands on one -- Plateau finds the key time for fire ant control actually begins in March and winds down in June, before throes of summer and toes in sandals. Treatment starts up again in September after the hot, dry summer ends, and before the cold, wet of winter. Why this timing? It's a temperature issue. When the ants are cold, or hot, they go deep into the ground for temperature regulation and do not actively forage above ground. They also go deep during dry periods in order to find moisture, and come above ground during wet periods to avoid drowning.

Plateau offers both conventional and organic imported red fire ant treatment. Call or email for more details.

Nest Box Maintenance
Did you know that with just over 600 species, Texas plays host to more kinds of birds than any other state? Thanks to its location in the southern part of the United States, as well as the center of the continent, this central location means that birds from both the eastern and western U.S. are seen in Texas. Because we share a long border with Mexico, Texas also has many bird species found primarily in Mexico. But whether they've arrived from east or west, north or south, with Spring just around the corner they'll all be doing what the birds and the bees (and even educated fleas) do. For some birds, breeding season begins as early as February and for those who do not have Plateau maintain your nest boxes, consider this a friendly reminder that your boxes need to be checked and readied by the start of February. Some birds will not use boxes with abandoned nests in them, plus, removing debris (and other little critters who may have snuggled in for the winter) creates a healthier environment for the next brood of nestlings. If you are interested in having Plateau check and maintain your nest boxes, contact us today. (Zach, left, readies a nest box)

Purple Martin Box Installations
For centuries, Native American tribes attracted Purple Martins to their villages with clusters of hollowed-out gourds. Experts have surmised that the Purple Martins served as village alarm clocks with their early morning singing or, perhaps, they were feathered watchdogs, as the large swallow is well-known for sounding out alarm calls when predators or strangers approach the colony site. Whatever the reason for the attraction, the Purple Martin has been managed intentionally by humans longer than any other North American songbird. Today, whether for their beauty, song, or voracious appetite for pesky flying insects, an estimated 1 million North Americans provide housing for Purple Martins. Due to a decline in natural nesting sites (such as tree cavities) as a result of urban sprawl, farming and logging, as well as competition from the non-native House Sparrow and European Starling, human-provided housing and management has become vital to Purple Martins, especially east of the Rocky Mountains, where they have undergone a complete "tradition shift". Purple Martins are now the only bird species entirely dependent on humans for supplying them with nesting cavities. Purple Martins arrive at their Texas timeshares around the first half of February after spending approximately five months in South America. (Purple Martin information from The Purple Martin and Its Management published by Texas Parks and Wildlife).

Installation of Purple Martin boxes by Plateau's expert field technicians is currently underway and will finish up for the season in February.  Contact us for more details.

TEXAS TRIVIA

To celebrate the release of the 2010-2010 Texas Almanac, Star-Telegram columnist Bob Ray Sanders ran a Texas quiz last Sunday. A couple of his questions had a land and wildlife bent. Do you know the answers?

2. What is the longest river "within" Texas?

4. In what county is the state’s largest (in circumference) live oak tree?

Answers in his answer column today.

COLD-STUNNED SEA TURTLE REHAB

A cold-stunned green sea turtle warms up at the ARK (Animal Rescue Keep) in Port Aransas, Texas, Thursday, January 13, 2010. PHOTO: EARL NOTTINGHAM/ TEXAS PARKS & WILDLIFE DEPARTMENT

PLATEAU'S QUARTERLY NEWSLETTER NOW ONLINE

Seasons, Plateau's quarterly newsletter is now available online by clicking here.

THE UPSIDE OF A HARD FREEZE FOR INLAND WATERS

While a hard freeze such as the one that hit Texas this past weekend can severely damage coastal fisheries, it can be a blessing for inland waters, according to Howard Elder of Texas Parks and Wildlife inland fisheries division. The worst invasive plants that threaten to smother inland waters are natives of warm climates — South America, mostly — and have limited tolerance to cold temperatures. Freezing temperatures kill them — particularly the floating plants such as hyacinth and salvinia. And East Texas, where water hyacinth and giant salvinia have established colonies that cover thousands of acres of water, got a good hard freeze this past week. Read more on Chron.com.

PETITION FILED TO LIST TEXAS KANGAROO RAT AS FEDERALLY ENDANGERED SPECIES

WildEarth Guardians filed a petition yesterday to list the Texas kangaroo rat as a federally endangered species because the sparse brushland where the large, hopping rodent makes its home is being threatened by development and agriculture.

The rat, which can grow more than a foot long from head to tail and hop up to a yard in a single bound, is already listed as threatened in the state. But the Denver-based environmental group wants a threatened or endangered listing through the Endangered Species Act.

Read the full story on ABCNews.com.

STATE -FISH ART CONTEST

The State-Fish Art Contest is part of a conservation education program designed to spark the imaginations of students while providing valuable lessons about fish and the importance of conserving Texas' aquatic resources. This is a nationwide art contest sponsored by Wildlife Forever, a national conservation organization. Students in grades 4 through 12 in public, private or home schools are invited to submit a drawing of an officially recognized state fish and a one-page essay on its behavior, habitat or conservation. For the Texas contest rules and more information, visit the Texas Parks and Wildlife contest information page here.

RARE ARCTIC BIRD SPOTTED IN BEE COUNTY

Earlier this week, Willie Sekula with the Texas Bird Record Committee of the Texas Ornithological Society confirmed the sighting in Bee County of a Northern Wheatear, a bird usually found in the Arctic. The bird was first noted in late December near the community of Clareville, about 50 miles northwest of Corpus Christi.

According to Sekula, the previous confirmed Texas sighting of the Northern Wheatear was in 1994 in the Laguna Atascosa National Wildlife Refuge near Rio Hondo.

Additional photo here:

WINTERIZING YOUR BIRDBATHS

As much of Texas has plunged into a bitter (for Texas) freeze the last few days, many of our feathered friends have found themselves frantically pecking at frozen birdbaths. The National Wildlife Federation has an article on winterizing your birdbaths here.

WILDLIFE AND BOWL GAMES: 25 THINGS YOU SHOULD KNOW ABOUT "HORNED FROGS"

In advance of the TCU and Boise State Fiesta Bowl on Monday, the Fort Worth Star -Telegram offers up 25 things you should know about horned frogs (errr...horned lizards), including:

11. The horned lizard is Texas’ official state reptile.

12. The Texas horned lizard, once found throughout most of the state, basically has disappeared from eastern and central parts of Texas, and its numbers in North Texas are decreasing.

13. The reason for the Texas horned lizard’s decline is considered a mystery, although over-collection for the pet trade, the spread of the red imported fire ant that has reduced the population of the red harvester ant (its dietary preference), environmental contaminants and loss of habitat from agriculture and urban development are often cited as factors.

...

22. Another great reason not to have a horned lizard as a pet: It is illegal in Texas, where the Texas horned lizard is on the threatened species list.

...

24. A mad or scared horned lizard can squirt a 4- or 5-foot stream of blood from the corners of their eyes. (See TCU’s new helmets from Nike for that feature.)

25. Other than Super Frog, of course, the most famous horned lizard was Old Rip, which legend says survived 31 years inside the cornerstone of the Eastland County courthouse. Old Rip became quite the celebrity and, on a national tour, "met" President Calvin Coolidge in Washington, D.C. Old Rip’s remains lie in a coffin at the Eastland County Courthouse.

Read all 25 things on Star-Telegram.com.