Texas Highlights

• Not just a fly-by: Scientists from the USGS Fort Collins Science Center (Colorado) are studying migration stopover ecology of western land bird populations to identify geographic patterns of distribution and habitat use during migration in southwestern North America. This project synthesizes existing data from many studies and is an initial step in identifying regions important to “en route” western birds. The information can help managers to prioritize habitat management activities in the region to benefit these visitors.
  
  

• The Conservation Reserve Programis the largest environmental program administered by the U.S. Department of Agriculture, with enrollment exceeding 34 million acres across all 50 states. In Texas, almost 4 million acres on 17,750 farms are in the CRP. Based on average rental payments, the CRP brings in more than $139 million per year to the Texas farm economy. Improvement in program performance is an enduring goal of CRP administrators. For the past 9 years and continuing today, scientists from the Fort Collins Science Center have been working in partnership with the USDA Farm Service Agency to help inprove program by evaluating program performance both socially (how is it working for CRP contractees) and ecologically (how is wildlife habitat improved?). In June 2004, FORT and the FSA sponsored a national meeting for more than 200 participants and presenters to address and present research on these issues as well as future CRP directions. FORT published the proceedings, The Conservation Reserve Program: Planting for the Future, in early 2006.
  
  

• Tracking bird migration with radar: Through a cooperative agreement, scientists from the Fort Collins Science Center and the University of Southern Mississippi are initiating a collaborative study using Doppler weather radar to understand bird migration patterns in the borderlands of the arid Southwest (Brownsville, Texas, to San Diego, California). The project will look at migrant densities during flight, migrant-habitat associations, migrant flight elevation and direction of travel, and the effects of topographic obstruction (e.g., mountains) on radar capabilities. This information will be valuable to resource managers and others for habitat protection and management, as well as for addressing issues related to the siting and permitting of communication towers and wind power turbines that pose hazards to birds in flight.
  
  

• Protecting Playas: Playas are small, isolated wetlands found throughout the central and southern High Plains that support a significant portion of the region's biodiversity. They are also believed to play a vital role in recharging the Ogallala Aquifer. Agricultural activities in the Playa Lakes Region, including the Texas panhandle, have led to severe degradation and loss of playas due to sedimentation. Contaminants in runoff such as nutrients and pesticides also threaten playas. Buffer strips of native grasses can protect playas from runoff that contains sediments and contaminants. The Playa Lakes Joint Venture asked the USGS Fort Collins Science Center to develop a literature synthesis and annotated bibliography summarizing what is known about grass buffers and their protective capabilities for isolated wetlands. Both reports are helping decision makers determine optimal buffer design for the region, assess the potential for buffers to prevent runoff from filling playas, and better understand avian use of grass buffers.