Bird City Texas

Mini-Grant Updates July 1, 2022

BAS Mini-Grant Program Updates

BAS awarded grants in December of 2021 to fund 14 community initiatives that support the goals of the Bird City program. All of these projects are currently underway and we have received photos and updates from several of the project leaders.

Teresa Craig, Kirchoff Prairie Bird Boxes: The BAS Mini-Grant funding allowed project volunteers to construct 30 bird boxes and make repairs on older boxes at the Kirchoff Prairie. These new boxes, along with several owl and duck boxes contributed by Don Kirchoff, co-owner of Kirchoff Prairie, brought the total number of boxes to 110 on the 200-acre prairie. The $400 Mini-Grant paid for wood-working supplies (hole-saw, raw linseed oil, paint brushes, screws) and lumber (cedar pickets, cedar boards, pine boards).

Joy Tuxhorn, Young Women’s Leadership Academy Pollinator Garden: Grant funds were used for native nectar plants; fruits, vegetables, and herbs; seeds; compost and mulch; lumber for plants beds; bench table supplies; and binoculars.

• Pollinator Garden: We were able to maintain the beds we created last year as well as adding 3 more pollinator beds. We planted native nectar plants, vegetables, and herbs. Along with planting, we were also able to weed, create a drip irrigation system, and add compost and mulch to the beds. We were also able to build 10 convertible bench-tables to create an outdoor garden space.
• STEAM Class: In the 6th grade STEAM class, we were able to research native plants and pollinators to select the appropriate plants and design for our garden. The girls were able to utilize the garden in biodiversity surveys, lessons about our ecoregion, and urban gardening. A favorite activity was making wildflower seed bombs to use around the neighborhood.
• Urban Bird Project: Partnering with UTSA, our students were able to work with UTSA professors to engage our students in bird-focused ecological research and increase cross-cultural understanding of the importance of birds across communities. We were able to go on several bird walks within the community as well as hold a symposium where our students were able to present their research to the community.

Amanda Kingman, South San Antonio ISD: Some of the completed work is an Introduction to the Conservation of Birds with birdhouse construction and decorating with birdseed for attracting more birds and a pledge to create awareness of how to conserve birds in their environment. Also, we had a wonderful presentation about birds and conservation by Erin Magerl from Mitchell Lake Audubon Center. We also asked students to map out a garden including measurements, types and number of plants, and plant locations.

Pamela Ball, Headwaters Sanctuary at Incarnate Word: Funds were awarded ($250) to help pay for printing Headwaters Sanctuary, Upper Field, and Invasive Plant brochures. To date, 500 copies of the Headwaters Sanctuary tri-fold brochure have been printed and 500 more will be printed in October when the brochure is updated. The new Invasive Plant tri-fold brochure will be printed in early July. The Upper Field brochure will be finalized in the third quarter to include the new native grass prairie, the recently added birding corridor, the new garden observation loop, the recently installed Purple Martin eight-gourd station, and the final Circle of the Springs Garden pollinator plant listing.

Herlinda Martinez-Longoria, Columbia Heights Elementary: Bexar Audubon Society awarded Columbia Heights Elementary a mini-grant toward our “Butterfly Kisses and Garden Wishes” project. The goal of the project was not only to beautify our outdoor space, but to provide outdoor learning opportunities. The mini grant allowed us to construct seven new garden boxes in the courtyard, playscape, and garden areas of our campus. Five of our new garden boxes will have a multitude of varieties of flowers to serve as pollinators and bird-friendly habitats. The other two garden boxes were added to our existing garden space to provide additional planting space for fruits and vegetables. Grant funds went toward the purchase of our starter plants, soil, mulch, and some garden tools. Our students and teachers have thoroughly enjoyed our gardens growing. Students did not only use the gardens for study space, they took measurements to track growth, they helped weed the gardens, they harvested vegetables, picked flowers, and helped maintain feeders to attract friends in nature. They also recorded the various birds they saw on the grounds.

Don Kirchoff, Kirchoff Prairie: The BAS grant made possible construction in February of two 50’ X 50’ plots enclosed by 6’ welded steel wire fencing to protect Manfreda seedlings from predation. The seedling population was reduced by a hard freeze in late February and there were a few losses during transplanting. Two transplanting events in March and April resulted in about 200 healthy plants growing in protected areas. Additional seedlings are being grown with plans to transplant them to the existing plots this fall.

Extreme drought conditions require that the transplants be watered. The surviving young Manfreda plants are healthy despite the drought. They are expected to flower and produce seeds in a couple years, eventually expanding the population to at least 500 adult plants, the number needed to support a population of the endangered Manfreda Giant-Skipper.

Becky Etzler, Riverside Nature Center: The purchase of eight Nikon ProStaff 3S binoculars has greatly enhanced both our youth and adult education programs. Binoculars are now available to borrow during our monthly Bird Walk & Talks, averaging 15 birders per month. Visitors are encouraged to use them as part of their experience at our bird blind. Easy check- out is available at the reception desk. A class on beginner binocular use was added to the curriculum for three field trips; Heritage School 4^th grade class of 12 students, Grace Academy K-5 with 23 students, and Adult Advantage Care with 10 clients. The afterschool program with the Doyle Community Center has been put on hold due to staffing changes at the community center. It is our hope to revisit this opportunity next year.

Alfredo P. Llamas, Texas A&M - San Antonio, Visitor Use and Avian Diversity Before, During, and After the Covid-19 Pandemic in San Antonio, Texas.

Along the San Antonio Reach, 18 point counts are spread evenly across three sections of the river. This means we have six point counts in every section of the reach. We have applied this same method with our three rural sites where each site is containing six points inside their property limits. In order to may maximize our chances of no overlap or double counting of individual birds, we have spaced out each count evenly and they are, at a minimum, 250 meters away from each other. It allows us to get a complete picture of what species and number of individuals of said species are inhabiting the San Antonio Reach, and rural sites of Kerr and Kendall County. Once the point count data is complete to measure each site's bird richness and diversity, we will then turn our attention to starting and completing the survey plots of the flora communities of each ecosystem so that we may measure the beta diversity of the study.

At the beginning of December 2021, we were kindly awarded $500 to help with travel expanses to these rural sites. This grant money has been the ultimate difference deciding whether or not we were/are able to complete our research.

So that BAS can continue to support conservation projects like these, we need your financial contributions. You can make a contribution here and designate your funds to be applied to the BAS Mini-Grant Program.