Texas A&M Natural Resource Institute offers online Private Land Stewardship lessons

COLLEGE STATION – The Texas A&M Natural Resources Institute, NRI, has added a series of new Private Land Stewardship lessons to its website.

These lessons, which can be found at http://tinyurl.com/LandStewardLessons, have been developed to bring attention to plant and wildlife management and to support the institute’s efforts in private land stewardship and other areas.

“Our engagement team really did a wonderful job to launch this interactive lesson series,” said Dr. Jim Cathey, NRI associate director. “The team’s goal was to reimagine existing materials and build lessons within their program areas to offer important and useful resources in new ways.”

From animal anatomy to plant identification and land management practices, the lessons are designed for the classroom and the field.

“And thanks to our technology team, we were also able to integrate a quiz component for each lesson to allow for comprehension testing,” Cathey said. “That way it’s possible to evaluate the amount of knowledge gained through this online method of teaching.”

Lessons on the website include:

• Anatomy of a Quail — Teaches about the internal and external anatomy of a quail through an interactive tool.

• About the Western Chicken Turtle — Describes the biological and conservation requirements for the western chicken turtle as well as its identification, habitat and feeding.

• What Do Quail Eat? — Shows the insects, grasses and forbs quail consume, using an interactive tool to test user knowledge.

• Using the Wild Pig Reporting Tool — Describes an easy-to-use reporting tool the institute has developed as a way for landowners to report sightings of wild pigs.

• How to Find Natural Resource Professionals in Texas — Provides information on trusted organizations where natural resource conservation or management information can be found.

• How To Construct Wildlife Ramps — Shows how to build a protective ramp so wildlife can take advantage of watering troughs and tanks typically used for livestock.

• Plant of the Week — Describes Texas plants used by quail for their food and habitat.

“Over time, we will be adding land stewardship lessons to the website,” Cathey said. “Our goal is to continue to actively seek methods to translate our findings into language and tools that lead to smart conservation for both private and public benefit.”

Writer: Paul Schattenberg, 210-859-5752, [email protected]

Contact: Dr. Jim Cathey, 979-458-2565, [email protected]