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Texas Country Reporter
September 29, 2022
Guardian of the Whooping Cranes
One of our most important TCR stories involved a surprise encounter with an early advocate of whooping crane conservation efforts.
Wildlife
Stories and updates on some of the state’s many animals
Texas Country Reporter
July 22, 2022
Quinta Mazatlan Is a Mansion With a Mission
The 1930s estate in McAllen is home to a fifteen-acre wildlife sanctuary that invites visitors to foster conservation corridors in their own backyards.
Texas Country Reporter
May 31, 2022
He’s an Urban Birder, Photographing Birds of Prey in Downtown Austin
Chris DuCharme is self-taught, armed with a telephoto lens and words of encouragement from his late wife.
Texas Country Reporter
May 13, 2022
Viva la Guadalupe Bass! The Comeback Story of the Texas State Fish
Decades of conservation have helped save the native fish, now iconic to Central Texas anglers.
Texas Country Reporter
March 3, 2022
A Small-town Texan Keeps an Ancient Japanese Art Form Alive
Dinah Bowman is a world-renowned artist specializing in a fish printing technique. The results are rich, textured, and colorful. You have to see it for yourself.
Travel & Outdoors
December 8, 2021
The Man Who Can Survive Almost Anything
Survivalist expert Bob Hansler found YouTube fame by testing his skills in the Texas wilderness. His biggest challenge was yet to come.
By
Wes Ferguson
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Meanwhile in Texas
May 10, 2021
A Brief History of Tigers on the Loose in Texas, 2021 Edition
Joe Exotic has a lot of competition. The big cat seen roaming a Houston neighborhood this week is just the latest.
By
Dan Solomon
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Critters
April 15, 2021
A DNA Zoo Maps the Mysteries of All Creatures Great and Small
Scientists at a Baylor College of Medicine lab in Houston are sequencing the genomes of the world’s animals, one strand at a time.
Books
April 5, 2021
How the Elephants at the Houston Zoo Helped an Austin Author
S. Kirk Walsh used her time with the animals and their caretakers for her new book, ‘The Elephant of Belfast.’
Critters
March 10, 2021
Do Thousands of Bat Deaths Mean Texans Will Face a Mosquito-Ridden Summer?
Last month’s winter storm decimated the state’s populations of the winged mammals, which may have lasting ecological effects.
Critters
February 28, 2021
Axis Deer Had Overrun the Hill Country. The Winter Storm Devastated Them.
Exotic species brought to Texas from Africa and Asia fared poorly in freezing temperatures.
By
Wes Ferguson
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Critters
January 27, 2021
Muscovy Ducks Are Protected in Parts of Texas. A Houston Subdivision Is Debating Their Slaughter.
The birds have been waddling around the Copper Grove neighborhood for years, but now some residents are crying fowl.
The Stand Up Desk
January 20, 2021
From the Editor: Wild Wes
Whatever your views are on hunting, I think you’ll find senior editor Wes Ferguson a clear-eyed guide to this timely topic.
By
Dan Goodgame
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Wildlife
January 20, 2021
How Texas Hunting Went Exotic
Sprawling ranches. Rare animals. Rich folks with guns. Welcome to the state’s booming business of stalking wildlife from around the globe.
By
Wes Ferguson
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Best Thing In Texas
November 24, 2020
The Best Thing in Texas: Hundreds of People Are Knitting Tiny Sweaters for a Hairless Possum in Lubbock
Are possums ugly? Not when they’re wearing tiny purple sweaters, they’re not!
By
Dan Solomon
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Critters
November 20, 2020
Meet the Carrion-Craving Falcon That’s Taking Over Texas
Crested caracaras used to range no farther north than Texas’s southern tip, but now they’re expanding across the state—perhaps because of climate change and habitat loss.
By
Wes Ferguson
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Critters
August 19, 2020
A Texas Program Has Achieved Remarkable Success in Protecting Rare Sea Turtles. So Why Does the National Park Service Want to Defund It?
The world’s most endangered sea turtle has made an impressive comeback, attracting thousands of visitors to North Padre Island, but now advocates say it may be at risk again.
Critters
August 11, 2020
Sit, Stay, Wait: What Training a Puppy Taught Me About Pandemic Life
Rewarding and ignoring are the two key tenets of dog training. They’ve helped me get through this summer, too.
Critters
July 23, 2020
Why Black Bears Are Returning to Texas
Contrary to what a viral video suggests, it’s unrelated to the pandemic.
Critters
May 20, 2020
Meet the Ocelot Whisperer
Documentarian Ben Masters tracks some of the few Leopardus pardalis that are left in Texas.
Critters
May 7, 2020
New to Backyard Chicken-Keeping? Here’s Some Eggspert Advice
As Texans flock to the hobby in record numbers, we convened a virtual staff roundtable to share tips.
By
Rose Cahalan
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Critters
May 5, 2020
As the Pandemic Inflames Old Fears, Texas’s ‘Bat Man’ Urges: Don’t Blame Bats
Merlin Tuttle has spent his career dispelling myths about bats. Now he’s defending them once again.
Critters
December 30, 2019
Feral Hogs Are Invading Yankeeland. Northern Friends, Here’s What You Need to Know.
Tips from Texans who trap, kill, and study wild pigs.
By
Wes Ferguson
![Wes Ferguson's Profile Photo]()
Outdoors
September 24, 2018
Meet the Next Generation of Texas Hunters
Austin’s Greater Calvary Bible Church believes the sport is a training ground for essential life lessons. Here’s how the congregation’s efforts defy hunting trends across the state.
Outdoors
September 21, 2018
Behind the Lines: How to Hunt Like a Texan (and Talk Like One Too)
Emily McCullar on hunting's place in her life, plus a tour through her glossary of hunting terms.
Outdoors
September 21, 2018
The Best Deer Hunts in Texas
Whitetail season is nearly upon us. Here are the destinations that belong at the top of every hunter’s bucket list.
Outdoors
September 21, 2018
How to Talk Like a Hunter
A brief primer so the next time you get an invite to your buddy’s deer stand, you won’t booger things up.
Outdoors
September 21, 2018
Notes on Life, Death, and Family From a Hill Country Deer Blind
"We both watch the blood and steam spill out into the winter air. At this point, it is not unusual for at least one of us to cry."
Outdoors
September 21, 2018
Jack Brittingham and the Obsessive Quest for Ever-Bigger Trophy Deer
The gear is better, the antlers are grander, and the price of admission has shot way up. Welcome to the new world of Texas hunting.
Outdoors
September 21, 2018
Has Hunting Become a Rich Man’s Game?
The deer industry is booming. Participation in the sport is not.
Country Notes
April 18, 2018
The Snakebite That Almost Killed My Cat
My cat was a fearless hunter who stalked the countryside—until she squared off with a rattlesnake.
Travel & Outdoors
March 21, 2018
North Texas Hikes That Will Take You to Another World
These North Texas hikes will take you to spots that have helped shape our state’s history.
Travel & Outdoors
March 21, 2018
South & Central Texas Hikes That Will Take You to Another World
These hikes, through the Edwards Plateau and the Coastal Plains, will take you to quiet spots in some of the state’s most popular parks.
Travel & Outdoors
March 21, 2018
East Texas Hikes That Will Take You to Another World
These hikes will take you on a tour of the towering forests behind the Pine Curtain.
Books
October 18, 2017
The One-Question Interview: Nate Blakeslee
We sat down with our former staffer to talk about his new book, 'American Wolf: A True Story of Survival and Obsession in the West'.
Critters
September 26, 2017
Record-Setting Longhorn, Cowboy Tuff Chex, Sells for Six Figures at Fort Worth Auction
That is some expensive steak.
Critters
September 14, 2017
Meet the Baby Beavers, Squirrels and Ducklings Saved During Harvey
Just look at these little guys.
Health
September 12, 2017
How to Clean Up Flooded Homes Without Getting Sick
Despite health risks, volunteers have stepped up to help in Harvey’s aftermath. Here’s a guide to safe mucking.
September 4, 2017
Creature From the Green Lagoon
Caddo Lake is being consumed by the world’s most monstrous weed. Herbicides, kitchen strainers, and even blowtorches have failed to stop it. Now a local band of volunteers is making a last-ditch effort to save these treasured wetlands.
Health
September 4, 2017
Houston Braces for a Mosquito Swarm
Are mosquito-borne illnesses Hurricane Harvey's next threat?
Critters
July 14, 2017
Man Who Killed Whooping Cranes Sentenced to 11 Months in Federal Prison After Breaking Probation
So much for second chances.
Being Texan
April 19, 2017
The Hungry Tide
On the coast, nothing is permanent.
The Daily Post
March 6, 2017
Hunting Pokémon in Galveston
Discovering that hunting Pokémon is a lot like fishing—except a lot less tasty.
Travel & Outdoors
February 24, 2016
Bloom of the Century
Big Bend roared back to life last year after spring rains unleashed a bounty of ocotillos, bluebonnets, and yuccas. Thankfully, photographer James H. Evans was there to capture it in living color.
By
John Spong
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Critters
November 18, 2015
We’ve Got the Monk (Parakeet)
An (extremely) amateur ornithologist’s examination of the monk parakeet and its time in Texas.
Travel & Outdoors
August 13, 2015
Bird’s-eye View
The Laguna Atascosa National Wildlife Refuge is a world-class site for birding and . . . ocelotting?
Critters
May 13, 2015
Our Toad to Ruin
Can we save our beloved ant-eating, blood-spurting, quickly disappearing state reptile?
Country Notes
October 13, 2014
Wild in the Streets
The year we gave thanks—at least at first—for the turkeys in our town.
The Daily Post
August 15, 2014
Amazing Pictures of the Houston Zoo’s Big Cats From National Geographic and Photographer Vincent J. Musi
Your move, cat pics people.
By
Dan Solomon
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Critters
July 2, 2014
How Do We Feel About The Texas Tech Cheerleader Who’s Also A Big Game Hunter?
Kendall Jones is a Texas Tech cheerleader who became the flashpoint of Internet controversy this week for posting numerous pictures of herself with felled African creatures. Is the controversy fair?
By
Dan Solomon
![Dan Solomon's Profile Photo]()