Spring 2009 News

On May 27 at the Austin Airport Marriott South Hotel in Austin, the Texas Parks and Wildlife Department recognized Western Navarro Bobwhite Restoration Initiative (WNBRI) for their conservation achievements.

The goal of the cooperative is to create usable space for bobwhites and other grassland birds through a combination of habitat restoration and habitat improvement practices.  Practices include restoring native grasses and forbs on previously cultivated land, planting native grass field borders on croplands, range seeding with native grasses, brush management, rotational grazing and prescribed burning.

From an initial membership of 12 active landowners representing 15,000 acres, the cooperative has grown to 32 landowners with a cumulative land base of just under 30,000 acres.  Grants from Audubon Texas and Trinity Basin Conservation Foundation have been used to buy seed and equipment to restore grassland habitats. 

Those in attendance representing WNBRI at the Lone Star Land Steward Ceremony were TPWD biologist Jay Whiteside, Sharon Lane, Don and Bennie Green, Jimmy and Deb Stewart, Asa and Deanne Gallup and Gary and Sue Price.