Register Now
$50.00/Person
Plan on joining your fellow coastal prairie enthusiasts and managers at the Fourth Annual Coastal Prairies Restoration Practitioners Forum on Wednesday, April 9, and Thursday, April 10, in Port Aransas, TX. The forum is co-hosted by the University of Houston Coastal Center and the Texas Parks and Wildlife Department.
We will have an optional Tuesday (April 8) evening field tour at the Port Aransas Nature Preserve at Charlie’s Pasture for early arrivals. There will also be facilitated prairie restoration discussions during tours of Mustang Island State Park, the Welder Wildlife Refuge, and the Fennessy Ranch Reserve.
Presentations and discussions are planned to engage people who manage and restore coastal prairie, so sessions are structured to allow presenters time for an in-depth discussion with attendees in the auditorium and in the field.
If you decide to arrive early, our early bird guided tour of the Port Aransas Nature Preserve at Charlie’s Pasture is from 5–7 PM on Tuesday, April 8. Be sure to bring your favorite pair of binoculars. After the tour, we will gather at the Sip Yard in Port Aransas to eat.
Day 1 presentations will be held at the Port Aransas University of Texas Marine Science Institute, located at 750 Channel View Dr., Port Aransas, TX 78373. Registration begins at 11 AM, with presentations starting at noon. Topics include drone vegetation mapping and herbicide application, soil analysis utilizing drones, how coastal prairie restoration has both ecological and economic benefits, and coastal prairie restoration case studies. After a catered dinner, we will have a sunset tour and discussion over grassland restoration at Mustang Island State Park.
Day 2 will be entirely in the field. We start the day with tours and discussions at St John’s Prairie and Miguel Lake within the Fennessey Ranch Reserve. Then, we will have a half hour drive to the Welder Wildlife Refuge where we will have a sandwich buffet lunch, followed by tour and discussion of its restoration activities. Registrants will receive detailed instructions for the Day 2 field site visits.
Registration will be capped at 50 people to facilitate effective field tours and ensure successful interaction between presenters and attendees.
The registration fee of $50/person includes registration for the optional April 8 early arrival tour, April 9 and 10 forum, field site visits, Wednesday Social & Dinner, Thursday lunch, and break refreshments.
5–7 PM
Bonus field trip for early arrivals to Charlie’s Pasture at Port Aransas Nature Preserve by Rae Mooney, Nature Preserve Manager, City of Port Aransas. Gather together for dinner later at Port Aransas Sip Yard!
Day 1 at UT Marine Science Institute, Port Aransas, TX and Site Visit to Mustang Island State Park
11:00 AM–NOON
REGISTRATION and Beverages and Snacks
Bring lunch or eat beforehand.
NOON–12:50 PM
WELCOME by Forum Planners and Precision Agriculture for Coastal Prairies: UAV Options for Vegetation Mapping and Spot Herbicide Delivery
Ubaldo Torres, Ph.D. Candidate, Soil and Crops Sciences Department, Texas A&M University
12:50–1:35 PM
Using UAVs for Advanced Mapping and Monitoring
1:35–1:50 PM
BREAK for Refreshments
1:50–2:35 PM
Case Study: Public Lands Coastal Prairie Restoration at Powderhorn Wildlife Management Area
Daniel Walker, Texas Parks and Wildlife Department
2:35–3:30 PM
Nexus of Landowner Economics, Ecology, and Ecotourism
Dr. Yuri Calil, Texas Agrilife Extension Center Specialist; Loy Sneary, Sneary Cattle, Gulf Coast Green Energy, Former Matagorda County Judge; Katie Swanson, Fennessey Ranch/Mission-Aransas Reserve Manager, UT-Austin Marine Science Department
3:30–3:45 PM
BREAK for Refreshments
3:45–4:30 PM
Realities of Aligning Incentive-Based Restoration Programs with Landowner Needs
Trey Barron, Wildlife Diversity Biologist, Texas Parks and Wildlife Department and Shannon Barron, Natural Resources Specialist, Texas Parks and Wildlife Department
4:30–5:00 PM
Barrier Island Grassland Restoration at Mustang Island State Park
Kristen Eggers, Natural Resources Specialist, Texas Parks and Wildlife Department
5:00–6:00 PM
DINNER at UT Marine Science Institute
(A Vegan or Vegetarian option can be selected during registration.)
6:00 PM
Departure and Site Visit to Mustang Island State Park restoration area led by Scott Taylor, Park Superintendent, Kristen Eggers, Naturalist Resources Specialist, and Ben Taylor, Park Interpreter
Day 2 in the field at Fennessey Ranch and Welder Wildlife Refuge restoration sites – BRING YOUR BINOCULARS
8:00–8:30 AM
REGISTRATION at gate of Fennessey Ranch and Coffee, Juice, and Pastries
8:30–8:45 AM
Carpooling to departure site at Fennessey Ranch pavilion
9:30–11:15 AM
Two rotating groups tour and discuss restoration at (a) St. John’s Prairie by trailer hayride and (b) Miguel Lake on foot by Katie Swanson, Ranch Manager
11:14–11:30 AM
Board personal vehicles, and leave for Welder Wildlife Refuge
NOON–1:00 PM
Sandwich Buffet Lunch at Welder Wildlife Refuge and Orientation by Ty Higginbotham, Executive Director
1:00–3:00 PM
Tour of Welder Wildlife Refuge by trailer hayride
3:00 PM
End of forum
Hosted by the University of Houston Coastal Center (Evelyn L. Merz) and Texas Parks and Wildlife Department (Tim Siegmund)
All the Day 1 presentations will be held indoors at the Port Aransas University of Texas Marine Science Institute located at 750 Channel View Dr, Port Aransas, TX 78373.
All registrants will be emailed maps for the optional Early Bird tour of Charlie’s Pasture at Port Aransas Nature Preserve, the Fennessey Ranch Reserve, and the Welder Wildlife Refuge.
Lodging accommodations are plentiful in the Port Aransas area. You will need to decide if you want to stay on the island of Port Aransas or the mainland. You will have to take the ferry to get to the Port Aransas University of Texas Marine Science Institute. Generally, the wait for the ferry is shorter on weekdays. For timing purposes, it will be a shorter trip on Thursday morning to our first field trip location at Fennessey Ranch if you stay on the mainland. If you stay on the island, you will be close to your lodging after the Mustang Island State Park field visit and sunset on Wednesday evening.
We understand that these Port Aransas lodging options have government rates, but there are other options on the island or on the mainland at Aransas Pass:
Best Western
400 E. Avenue G
Port Aransas, TX 78373
361-749-3010
Holiday Inn
727 S. 11th Street
Port Aransas, TX 78373
361-749-5222
Hampton Inn
2208 State Highway 361
Port Aransas, TX 78373
361-749-8888
If you have questions about the Coastal Prairie Restoration Practitioners Forum, please contact either of the organizers below:
Evelyn L. Merz
Program Director
UH Coastal Center
elmerz@central.uh.edu
Tim Siegmund
Private Lands Program Leader
TPWD - Wildlife Division
Tim.Siegmund@tpwd.texas.gov
