It was a disappointing weekend on the camera-trapping front. I was way overdue on getting my cameras refreshed so I set out to take care of cameras #3 and #4. They are the most remotely placed of the four cameras I have out but are not too far from each other.
I hit camera #4 first. If you have followed this project you will recall that I wasn't too happy with the location of this camera. When I got to the camera it had fired 31 times. This was not too big a total considering how long the camera had been out in the field but, I reasoned, there are only 24 exposures on the roll of film anyway. I pulled the camera from the location as I located a much better looking spot not too far from camera #2 that I want to try.
I left the area and proceeded to the area where camera #3 is located. It was at this point that I realized I had pulled a real bone-headed stunt. I had left my GPS unit at home. The location of camera #4 is, in my opinion, the best location I have found but is difficult to locate. I know I was all around the camera but was unable to locate it without the GPS unit. This means one of two things. It could mean that the location is remote and not easily found. In other words, it is an ideal spot. On the other hand, the fact that I could not find the camera could mean that it was found and has been stolen. As I said, I know I was all around the cameras location. Hopefully, I will be able to get back out there next weekend with the GPS unit and locate it.
Well, I reasoned, at least I have the film from camera #3 to develop and check out. I was to be disappointed, however. Not a single animal was captured on film. I don't really understand it. I had 24 shots of scenery. No deer, no raccoons, or anything else. I can only assume that a slow trigger speed is to blame. I simply must bite the bullet soon and upgrade to some higher end cameras.
So, it was sort of a lost weekend as far as my big cat project goes. The effort was good, however. I will keep plugging away and eventually upgrade my equipment. Once that happens I should begin to see better results. In the meantime, I will just have to hope I get lucky with the 35mm cameras I do have.
Monday, October 19, 2009
Saturday, October 17, 2009
Big Cat Sighted Near Lewisville...Again
A reader sent me an email a little while back detailing a sighting of a large cat in the Lewisville/Flower Mound area recently. His email, minus some details that might have compromised his identity, is below.
Good morning! I personally have seen a large cat in my neighborhood in Flower Mound.
I have dogs, so I am 100% sure that it was not a dog. The body structure was not a dog, and it ran completely different. It size was roughly the same as my lab/rhodesian mix. I cannot say that it was black. It appeared to be light colored, but it was at night. I live near Timbercreek. I have seen a coyote in broad daylight in my neighborhood.
This occurred earlier this year. I was driving home at night. I turned off of Cross Timbers on to Timbercreek Road. As I approached Buckthorn, a large cat ran across Timbercreek Road in front of my car. It took me a second to realize what it was and turned my car onto Buckthorn Court (to the left). It ran across Buckthorn in front of my car again and disappeared up in bushes in front of a home. I was not about to get out of my car, but I drove around Buckthorn and Timbercreek for about ten minutes after this happened. I did not see it again.
When the large cat crossed me the first time, it was coming from the right side of Timbercreek Road. The area has homes but it has a group of homes with acreage and most have horses. I know at least one also has chickens.
On the other side of Timbercreek Road is the creek. It is heavily wooded.
I am not sure if you have received any other feedback regarding the large cat in the area. I did find it interesting that your reader lives in Lewisville and had an experience at night as well. I live right on the border of Lewisville and Flower Mound.
The Texas Parks & Wildlife, as well as most wildlife biologists, scoff at the notion of large cats, like the cougar, living in such close proximity to a large urban area like Dallas-Fort Worth. Sightings continue to be reported from surprisingly populated areas.
I would encourage people living near riparian areas or on the outskirts of urban areas where big cats have been reported to keep a camera handy. It is going to take some pretty strong photographic evidence to convince the authorities that these cats have become acclimated to semi-urban living.
Friday, October 16, 2009
More Native American Perspective
"Nothing that is said, or accused towards the hairy brothers of the forests will cause them to leave their homes, they deal with the round eyes the same as we, they will kill the round eyes to protect their home."
-WarShield, Subchief of the Comanche under Quanah Parker
-WarShield, Subchief of the Comanche under Quanah Parker
Thursday, October 15, 2009
Camera Trapping in Tanzania Proves Fruitful
There is an interesting article on the Eurekalert.org website about how leopards, and large carnivores in general, may be affected by conversion of forested land to agricultural land and other changing environmental factors. While the article itself is interesting to me it was the method by which the Zoological Society of London, Wildlife Conservation Society, and the Tanzania Wildlife Research Institute obtained their data that caught my eye. These organizations conducted the largest survey of Tanzanian carnivores ever undertaken using over 400 camera traps.
"Camera traps provide a fantastic opportunity to gain knowledge on habitat use and spatial distribution of otherwise elusive and poorly known species," said Dr. Sarah Durant from the Zoological Society of London. Dr. Durant went on to call camera trapping a "powerful tool."
In addition to the information on leopards collected by this camera-trapping project, data was collected on bushy tailed mongooses. In fact, the first documentation of this species in one of Tanzania's most populated areas was obtained.
This study further validates the use of game cameras as a viable method of documenting rare and elusive species in a given area. This is exactly why the Texas Bigfoot Research Conservancy has undertaken Operation Forest Vigil, their camera-trapping project, in an attempt to document the sasquatch. This is also the reasoning behind my, albeit much smaller, camera-trapping project by which I am hoping to document the presence of large cats such as cougars in Central Texas. I just do not understand how anyone can discount this method as a waste of time and money. Rare and endangered species such as the Sumatran rhino, Sumatran tiger, the snow leopard of the Himalayas, the Okapee, and many others have been documented in areas where it was feared they might have become extinct. A prime example of the latter is the documentaion of jaguars in Arizona. Camera-trapping is here to stay and has been proven effective.
The trick is having enough cameras in the field to saturate a large area. The organizations working together on the Tanzanian leopard project placed more than 400 cameras in the field. Having a large number of cameras in the field is critical. With only a handful of cameras it truly becomes a crap-shoot as to what you are able to photograph. This is precisely the difficulty individuals and/or private organizations like the TBRC face when trying to put together a successful game camera project. The high end cameras needed to do the job right can cost anywhere from $300-$600 each. Add in the cost of gasoline burned traveling to and from camera locations, batteries, memory cards, protective boxes, chains, and locks (needed to discourage bears and thieves) and a large scale camera project gets pricey very quickly.
Critics claim that camera traps have failed to produce any photos of the sasquatch therefore either the method is flawed or the species simply does not exist. I would counter with two simple points. First, nearly all game cameras in the U.S. are pointed at deer feeders. They are not placed out in the most remote areas of the country where the sasquatch is most often encountered. Secondly, there has simply never been a camera-trapping project anywhere close to the scale of the Tanzanian leopard study conducted anywhere in North America. It is my opinion that if a major university or private donor stepped forward with the funding the sasquatch would likely be documented within a 1-3 year period. I truly believe that.
Here's hoping that funding will become available for such a project in the not too distant future.
"Camera traps provide a fantastic opportunity to gain knowledge on habitat use and spatial distribution of otherwise elusive and poorly known species," said Dr. Sarah Durant from the Zoological Society of London. Dr. Durant went on to call camera trapping a "powerful tool."
In addition to the information on leopards collected by this camera-trapping project, data was collected on bushy tailed mongooses. In fact, the first documentation of this species in one of Tanzania's most populated areas was obtained.
This study further validates the use of game cameras as a viable method of documenting rare and elusive species in a given area. This is exactly why the Texas Bigfoot Research Conservancy has undertaken Operation Forest Vigil, their camera-trapping project, in an attempt to document the sasquatch. This is also the reasoning behind my, albeit much smaller, camera-trapping project by which I am hoping to document the presence of large cats such as cougars in Central Texas. I just do not understand how anyone can discount this method as a waste of time and money. Rare and endangered species such as the Sumatran rhino, Sumatran tiger, the snow leopard of the Himalayas, the Okapee, and many others have been documented in areas where it was feared they might have become extinct. A prime example of the latter is the documentaion of jaguars in Arizona. Camera-trapping is here to stay and has been proven effective.
The trick is having enough cameras in the field to saturate a large area. The organizations working together on the Tanzanian leopard project placed more than 400 cameras in the field. Having a large number of cameras in the field is critical. With only a handful of cameras it truly becomes a crap-shoot as to what you are able to photograph. This is precisely the difficulty individuals and/or private organizations like the TBRC face when trying to put together a successful game camera project. The high end cameras needed to do the job right can cost anywhere from $300-$600 each. Add in the cost of gasoline burned traveling to and from camera locations, batteries, memory cards, protective boxes, chains, and locks (needed to discourage bears and thieves) and a large scale camera project gets pricey very quickly.
Critics claim that camera traps have failed to produce any photos of the sasquatch therefore either the method is flawed or the species simply does not exist. I would counter with two simple points. First, nearly all game cameras in the U.S. are pointed at deer feeders. They are not placed out in the most remote areas of the country where the sasquatch is most often encountered. Secondly, there has simply never been a camera-trapping project anywhere close to the scale of the Tanzanian leopard study conducted anywhere in North America. It is my opinion that if a major university or private donor stepped forward with the funding the sasquatch would likely be documented within a 1-3 year period. I truly believe that.
Here's hoping that funding will become available for such a project in the not too distant future.
Tuesday, October 13, 2009
Giant Snakes in Texas?
This past summer several large Burmese Pythons were captured in South Florida. It is a 
well-established fact that many owners of these exotic serpents have turned them loose in the Everglades and other areas of Florida once the snakes became too large and too dangerous to handle. Many snakes have been captured over the last decade but all were identified as former pets that had been released into the wild by irresponsible owners. What caught my eye on this news story is that the 17 ft. 206 lb. python captured this past summer was wild. This confirms that these pythons have become acclimated to the swamps of Florida and have begun to breed successfully. A large population of Burmese Pythons in Florida could wreak havoc on the delicate Everglades ecosystem. You can access the news story here.
The article got me thinking about the similarities between the Everglades of South Florida and swamps and bayous of Southeast Texas. A little research reveals how similar these two areas of the country really are. For the sake of this article I compared Okeechobee, Florida, where the wild python was captured this past summer, and Beaumont, Texas, which lies just outside the borders of the legendary Big Thicket.
Beaumont lies at a mere 16 ft. above sea level. Okeechobee sits at a towering, by comparison anyway, 29 ft. above sea level. These two areas are also very close in latitude. Beaumont comes in at a latitude of 30.08 degrees North while Okeechobee sits at 27.74 degrees North latitude. This is a difference of a mere 2.34 degrees. Based on these facts, a reasonable assumption would be that the two areas would have similar climates. A little more digging reveals that to be the case. The following two graphs show the average temperatures of Okeechobee (top) and Beaumont (bottom).
Rainfall patterns proved to be similar as well. See the charts below showing annual precipitation in Okeechobee (top) and Beaumont (bottom).
The similarities between the two areas lead me to think that exotic snakes, like the Burmese Pythons being seen in Florida, would do just fine here in the Lone Star State. This could be an ecological disaster for indigenous species of our state. Everything from birds, to mammals (large and small), to alligators would be on the menu for these giant constrictors. I fear it is only a matter of time before reports of giant snakes begin to come in from Southeast Texas. It may become an even larger problem, however. The USGS recently published a graphic (below) showing just how much of the continental United States would be considered suitable habitat for pythons. The graphic is sobering.
I would ask any readers who sight what they believe to be one of these snakes or who come across any news articles documenting their presence in Southeast Texas / Southwest Louisiana to alert me. I hope I'm wrong but it is my opinion that we will begin having to deal with the problem of giant snakes in Texas sooner rather than later.
ADDENDUM - Ok, I had not seen the recent article from Texas Fish & Game about giant snakes in Texas when I wrote the above article. However, the article confirms my suspicions as it mentions a 13 ft. long Burmese Python captured in a ditch in Port Arthur, Texas. Give the article a look here.
well-established fact that many owners of these exotic serpents have turned them loose in the Everglades and other areas of Florida once the snakes became too large and too dangerous to handle. Many snakes have been captured over the last decade but all were identified as former pets that had been released into the wild by irresponsible owners. What caught my eye on this news story is that the 17 ft. 206 lb. python captured this past summer was wild. This confirms that these pythons have become acclimated to the swamps of Florida and have begun to breed successfully. A large population of Burmese Pythons in Florida could wreak havoc on the delicate Everglades ecosystem. You can access the news story here.
The article got me thinking about the similarities between the Everglades of South Florida and swamps and bayous of Southeast Texas. A little research reveals how similar these two areas of the country really are. For the sake of this article I compared Okeechobee, Florida, where the wild python was captured this past summer, and Beaumont, Texas, which lies just outside the borders of the legendary Big Thicket.
Beaumont lies at a mere 16 ft. above sea level. Okeechobee sits at a towering, by comparison anyway, 29 ft. above sea level. These two areas are also very close in latitude. Beaumont comes in at a latitude of 30.08 degrees North while Okeechobee sits at 27.74 degrees North latitude. This is a difference of a mere 2.34 degrees. Based on these facts, a reasonable assumption would be that the two areas would have similar climates. A little more digging reveals that to be the case. The following two graphs show the average temperatures of Okeechobee (top) and Beaumont (bottom).
Rainfall patterns proved to be similar as well. See the charts below showing annual precipitation in Okeechobee (top) and Beaumont (bottom).
The similarities between the two areas lead me to think that exotic snakes, like the Burmese Pythons being seen in Florida, would do just fine here in the Lone Star State. This could be an ecological disaster for indigenous species of our state. Everything from birds, to mammals (large and small), to alligators would be on the menu for these giant constrictors. I fear it is only a matter of time before reports of giant snakes begin to come in from Southeast Texas. It may become an even larger problem, however. The USGS recently published a graphic (below) showing just how much of the continental United States would be considered suitable habitat for pythons. The graphic is sobering.
I would ask any readers who sight what they believe to be one of these snakes or who come across any news articles documenting their presence in Southeast Texas / Southwest Louisiana to alert me. I hope I'm wrong but it is my opinion that we will begin having to deal with the problem of giant snakes in Texas sooner rather than later.
ADDENDUM - Ok, I had not seen the recent article from Texas Fish & Game about giant snakes in Texas when I wrote the above article. However, the article confirms my suspicions as it mentions a 13 ft. long Burmese Python captured in a ditch in Port Arthur, Texas. Give the article a look here.
Sunday, October 4, 2009
Big Cat Project Update
I had a disappointing weekend in some respects in regard to my camera trapping project. I was due to refresh Cameras #1 and #2. Yesterday (Saturday) I was not able to get out at all due to some pretty heavy thunderstorms. This pretty much killed any chance I would have to get both cameras refreshed this weekend.
Today's weather wasn't much better but I was itching to get out and do something positive (watching the Cowboys on television sure wasn't a positive experience today). So, I loaded up with some fresh bait, film, and new batteries and set off to get Camera #1 refreshed. If you have been following this project, you will recall that the location of Camera #1 is very near my home. The location was chosen due to an alleged sighting of a large long-tailed cat crossing the road nearby. The camera is set near a dry creek bed and is usually not too difficult to access. However, today the "dry" creek was anything but dry. The creek was overflowing and the surrounding area was a virtual bog. I should have taken one look at this mess and turned around and gone home. However, I decided to plunge into the brush and get the job done. I slogged through the slop, at times sinking ankle deep in mud, and made my way to the camera. I was pleased to see that 20 shots had been taken. However, since the film I've been using has 24 exposures, I needed to manually rewind the film. The camera refused to rewind. I tried everything I could think of to no avail. So, I pulled the camera completely and trudged through the thorny brush and mud back to my truck.
I guess I will take the camera into my photo processor and ask them to remove it in their darkroom. This will probably not be a big deal this one time but will not be a practical solution long-term. It could be that this camera is done.
So, today there was a lot of walking, rain, mud, and frustration. Hopefully, the camera is not dead and will continue to be useful. If not, well, my birthday is coming up. Maybe I can upgrade to a digital model. I will update again once I have the pictures developed.
Today's weather wasn't much better but I was itching to get out and do something positive (watching the Cowboys on television sure wasn't a positive experience today). So, I loaded up with some fresh bait, film, and new batteries and set off to get Camera #1 refreshed. If you have been following this project, you will recall that the location of Camera #1 is very near my home. The location was chosen due to an alleged sighting of a large long-tailed cat crossing the road nearby. The camera is set near a dry creek bed and is usually not too difficult to access. However, today the "dry" creek was anything but dry. The creek was overflowing and the surrounding area was a virtual bog. I should have taken one look at this mess and turned around and gone home. However, I decided to plunge into the brush and get the job done. I slogged through the slop, at times sinking ankle deep in mud, and made my way to the camera. I was pleased to see that 20 shots had been taken. However, since the film I've been using has 24 exposures, I needed to manually rewind the film. The camera refused to rewind. I tried everything I could think of to no avail. So, I pulled the camera completely and trudged through the thorny brush and mud back to my truck.
I guess I will take the camera into my photo processor and ask them to remove it in their darkroom. This will probably not be a big deal this one time but will not be a practical solution long-term. It could be that this camera is done.
So, today there was a lot of walking, rain, mud, and frustration. Hopefully, the camera is not dead and will continue to be useful. If not, well, my birthday is coming up. Maybe I can upgrade to a digital model. I will update again once I have the pictures developed.
Saturday, October 3, 2009
The "Hairy Man" of Round Rock
My friend, and fellow TBRC member, Jeremy Wells alerted me to an interesting article on the Texas Tripper website. The article discusses the legend of the "Hairy Man" of Round Rock. I live in Central Texas and try hard to stay up on local legends and folklore but this is one story with which I was unfamiliar. The legend goes that the "Hairy Man" lived along Brushy Creek and harassed travelers there until being run over by a stagecoach and its team of horses as he tried to block the road one fateful night. One version of the story claims the "Hairy Man" was an old hermit who, as a child of early Texas settlers, had been separated from his parents. He grew up alone along the banks of Brushy Creek and came to view that area as his own. Locals still claim the ghost of the "Hairy Man" is seen and heard from time to time along the lonesome stretches of the road adjacent to Brushy Creek.
The "Hairy Man" was said to be covered in hair from head to toe. The locals seemed to believe this was an adaptation that became necessary as the lost child outgrew his clothing. To make the leap from hair covered hermit to the sasquatch is not too difficult. Could the early Texas settlers of the Round Rock and Brushy Creek areas have been seeing a sasquatch all those years ago? I guess we'll never know.
Apparently, this is a pretty big deal in Round Rock. There is a Hairy Man Road in Round Rock and a yearly "Hairy Man Festival" held in October. The article is really more about the festival than the legend but does give the basic background of the legend albeit in a tongue in cheek manner. You can access the story here. You can also access the "Hairy Man Festival" website here.
So, if you aren't doing anything this month and find yourself in Central Texas you might want to stop by and see what the "Hairy Man Festival" is all about. I might have to make that short drive myself.
The "Hairy Man" was said to be covered in hair from head to toe. The locals seemed to believe this was an adaptation that became necessary as the lost child outgrew his clothing. To make the leap from hair covered hermit to the sasquatch is not too difficult. Could the early Texas settlers of the Round Rock and Brushy Creek areas have been seeing a sasquatch all those years ago? I guess we'll never know.
Apparently, this is a pretty big deal in Round Rock. There is a Hairy Man Road in Round Rock and a yearly "Hairy Man Festival" held in October. The article is really more about the festival than the legend but does give the basic background of the legend albeit in a tongue in cheek manner. You can access the story here. You can also access the "Hairy Man Festival" website here.
So, if you aren't doing anything this month and find yourself in Central Texas you might want to stop by and see what the "Hairy Man Festival" is all about. I might have to make that short drive myself.
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