News

USA Today 10Best has announced the nominees for Best National Wildlife Refuge, and Aransas is on it. There are some great refuges on the list, but we all know how special Aransas is. The contest runs through March 30th, at 11:59 a.m. You can vote every day until then. You can vote here.

Rockport's Whooping Crane Strut will be Saturday, March 7th.  It will feature a 5 K run, a 10 K run, and a 2 mile walk. This year, $5 of each registration fee will be donated to our Water for Wildlife Fund. We will have an outreach table, and refuge staff will be there to talk with people

 

 about the importance of reliable fresh water sources for Whooping Cranes and other wildlife, answer questions about the cranes, and give out information about Aransas National Wildlife Refuge. The refuge whooping crane mascot will also make an appearance.

 

If you'd like to volunteer to help for a couple of hours during the race by staffing a drink station or pointing runners in the correct direction, email us your contact information. Volunteers will receive a race T-shirt.

 

To learn more about the event, or to register, visit the race website.

 

Hope to see you there! 

 

 

If you're in the Texas Coastal Bend area, be sure to come to Port Aransas & check out the Whooping Crane Festival. We will be in the Bird Nest Trade Show 9:00 a.m. - 6:00 p.m. Friday 2/20 & Saturday 2/21, and 10:00 a.m. - 3:00 p.m. Sunday 2/22.

 

We'll have a great selection of books for all ages, including a brand new book, Birdology: 30 Activities and Observations for Exploring the World of Birds. Written for budding naturalists, it's full of fun ways to learn about birds. For adults, we have Pete Dunn's The Art of Bird Identification. Not a field guide, it gives tips on how to observe key factors in identifying birds. We also have new t-shirt designs, including 2 featuring drawings by David Allen Sibley. There are new canvas totes, educational games, and much more. 

 

As always, we'll have free information and people to answer your questions about Aransas NWR. There's lots going on there, with shuttle bus tours, new boardwalks, etc.

 

Come by to shop, or just to say hello. Hope to see there.  

There's a beautiful new boardwalk at the refuge towers, and now a new boardwalk & viewing platform at the end of Big Tree Trail. The workers, staff & volunteers, did an excellent job & they should last for many years. For more photos, click here for our Facebook Page. You do not have to register for Facebook to look at our page. If you are registered, though, please "like" our page.

Friends of Aransas has pledged $5000 to a reward fund for information in the death of a whooping crane found dead January 4th in Aransas Bay. Through pledges, Friends of Aransas,  International Crane Foundation, San Antonio Bay Foundation,  Aransas Bird and Nature Club, Audubon Texas, & Whooping Crane Conservation Association will offer a combined amount of $14,000. Added to the $2500 offered by the U. S. Fish & Wildlife Service, and $1000 by Texas Parks & Wildlife Department, the total reward will be $17,500. 

The reward will be issued if the death of the whooping crane is determined to be a criminal act and the information provided leads to the criminal conviction of the person(s) responsible. Anyone with information about the whooping crane’s death is urged to come forward. Information can be provided to the Fish and Wildlife Service’s Houston Office of Law Enforcement at (281) 876-1520, or Operation Game Thief at 1-800-792-GAME (4263). Callers may remain anonymous.

Aransas National Wildlife Refuge will be offering free tours of the refuge this winter. The tours will be led by refuge staff & trained volunteers, and are sponsored by Friends of Aransas. They are scheduled to begin February 5 and run Thursdays-Sundays. The tours last about 2 hours, and no reservations are needed. This winter, the refuge has the use of a handicapped accessible shuttle bus for the tours.

You can see more photos on Facebook.

For more information on the tours, phone or email Aransas National Wildlife Refuge.

The San Antonio Bay Foundation will be conducting an organized crab trap removal effort in San Antonio Bay 2/20 - 3/1/2015. They can still use a few volunteers with boats to help. During the last two annual crab trap closures, they collected 264 traps. Abandoned, or "ghost" traps, are hazardous to a variety of wildlife. If you can help, or want more information, contact Dan Alonso at (830) 660-4429.

 

 

 We would like to invite you to attend one of two Conducted Activity and Shuttle Tour trainings.  Examples of conducted activities would included guided walks and informal refuge talks (typically out on the refuge).  Shuttle tour training will provide you the tools to lead refuge tours using our refuge shuttle bus.  

 

The morning session will be an Introduction to Conducted Activities and a demonstration tour by Ron Smudy. Coffee and muffins will be provided starting at 8:00. Training will get underway at 8:30.  Following lunch, we’ll go over some logistical details, allow you time to familiarize yourself with the shuttle and the “tool” box, have some time to work on your own tours and have some time to ask questions.

 

When:   Saturday, January 24, 2015

            8:30 a.m. to 3:00 p.m.

            (Potluck lunch 12:30-1 pm; bring something to share).

      OR

            Monday, January 26, 2015

            8:30 a.m. to 3:00 p.m.

            (Potluck lunch 12:30-1 pm; bring something to share).

Where:  Commons building located in the housing area

 

Who:  You must attend this training if you want to lead a tour or guided hike in the Refuge.  We also need shuttle drivers!!! For safety reasons, tour leaders should not be driving.  So this is an opportunity for those of you who want to contribute but not lead programs. We would like to encourage you to come to the entire training but you are only required to be there for the afternoon.

 

To RSVP, please call (361-286-3559 x236) or e-mail Laura 

 

Fundamentals of Interpretation for Aransas National Wildlife Refuge Staff, Volunteers and Partners

Friday, January 23, 2015, 1:00 - 4:00 p.m. in the Aransas Visitor Center

This three hour training will be led by Vicki Overholser Penwell, Aransas National Wildlife Refuge Volunteer and former District Interpreter at Wrangell-St Elias National Park and Preserve in Alaska, and by Laura Bonneau, Aransas National Wildlife Refuge Visitor Services Manager.

Vicki and Laura will provide a general overview of the fundamentals of interpretation and introduce the best practices for having successful informal visitor contacts in the Visitor Center, while roving the refuge or while spending time on the tower.

At the end of our time together you will have new tools to help you go beyond sharing your passion for this special place to inspiring connections in visitors that will last a lifetime.

Who should attend: Required for anyone working in Visitor Services at the Visitor Center, roving or at the tower. This training covers basic skills needed for the Refuge Bus Tour. Specific Refuge Bus Tour training will be offered separately. We welcome anyone to join us if you are interested in learning ways to improve your contacts with Refuge visitors. Please RSVP to Laura (361-286-3559 x236 or email her).

 The U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service announced the opening of a 60-day comment period for public input on managing non-federal oil and gas development on National Wildlife Refuge System lands.

 

On many Service lands, including wildlife refuges, the federal government does not own the rights to subsurface minerals. Instead, mineral rights are owned by private individuals or other entities, which have the legal authority to develop their oil and gas resources.

Based on the Service’s best data, more than 200 refuges have oil and gas operations, including more than 5,000 wells, almost 1,600 actively producing oil and gas wells, and almost 1,300 miles of pipelines. 

The rulemaking effort is part of the Service’s ongoing commitment to avoid or minimize adverse effects on natural and cultural resources and wildlife-dependent recreation, ensure a consistent and effective regulatory environment for oil and gas operators, and protect public health and safety.

The Advance Notice of Proposed Rulemaking was published in the Federal Register on February 24. Comments must be received on or before April 25. The Service will post all comments on http://www.regulations.gov. The Service cannot accept email or faxes.

Written comments and information can be submitted by one of the following methods:

·         Federal eRulemaking Portal: http://www.regulations.gov. Follow the instructions for submitting comments to Docket No. [FWS–HQ–NWRS–2012–0086]; or

·         U.S. mail or hand-delivery: Public Comments Processing, Attn: [FWS–HQ–NWRS–2012–0086]; Division of Policy and Directives Management; U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service; 4401 N. Fairfax Drive, MS 2042–PDM; Arlington, VA 22203.

“Throughout the process, the Service will work with the public, the oil and gas industry and conservation groups to ensure we are using the best management practices and other industry standards for the conservation of fish, wildlife, plants and their habitats,” said Director Dan Ashe.

Since this is a formal rulemaking process with subsequent National Environmental Policy Act support, the Service anticipates the effort will take at least three years to complete.

 

Comments and materials, as well as supporting documentation, will be available for public inspection at http://www.regulations.gov under the above docket number. In addition, more details on the kinds of information the Service is seeking is available in the notice and will be posted online at http://www.fws.gov/refuges/oil-and-gas/