The Elusive Ringtail

Dried out basketflowers in Palo Duro Canyon State Park
Copyright (c) 2008 Wendee Holtcamp

My latest article is out! "The Elusive Ringtail: A new study sheds light on a little-known mammal in Palo Duro Canyon" appears in the April issue of Texas Parks & Wildlife Magazine. It is also available online (ie the link above)! And here is a PDF reproduction of the article.

It starts out:

I’m walking through a field of basketflowers — robust, pale stalks that grow to my waist, evidence of a flush season long past, but now they’re brittle as straw. A few mesquite bushes green up an otherwise pale sea of grasses. Pocket
gopher mounds pock the reddish brown earth and tumbleweeds blow periodically across the roadside as if a tumbleweed factory churned them out, just beyond sight. In the midst of this quintessentially Texan landscape typical of the panhandle plains, a massive gash of a canyon slashes its way across the land — 120 miles long, 6 to 20 miles wide, and 800 feet deep.

Carved by the Prairie Dog Town Fork of the Red River, the ruggedly beautiful Palo Duro Canyon arises where it seems it shouldn’t. Its striated rock layers tell history as the Grand Canyon does — covering four major geological periods spanning more than 240 million years. The canyon forms part of the eastern edge of the Llano Estacado, the largest plateau in the United States, which stretches westward into New Mexico. Water has worn caves, pillars, hoodoos, buttes and mesas in the rock, creating an enticing landscape for exploration. But the rocky escarpment and cliff ledges also create ideal habitat for one of Texas’ lesser known but most endearing species — the agile, rock-face-loving ringtail.

I brought Sam & Savannah on this trip which is always fun. We actually flew into Denver, Colorado and then drove to Palo Duro Canyon State Park near Amarillo, Texas which is about 5 hours away if I recall (then we drove back, for Easter last year with the Epperson family and we also went skiing!). We went out in the field with West Texas A&M University Professor Ray Matlack and his grad student Naima Montacer trapping mesocarnivores (meso=middle sized), which include ringtails, foxes and raccoons. Sadly I did not get to see a ringtail, because they are absolutely adorable!! However we did catch a raccoon, which they weighed and measured and Savannah even got to hold (it was anesthetized for that part). I blogged about it all with some other pics last March.

Naima just finished her PhD - yea for her!

During that trip, we also visited with the Epperson family, who were involved in the landmark Epperson v Arkansas court case, and my visit will be a chapter in my book. That is one that is already written! And as soon as I finish this piece on sharks, it's back to the grindstone on the book chapters.

And I'll leave you with this prayer that my pastor offered in church a few weeks ago. It is a modification of a prayer by John Baille from A Diary of Private Prayer which was written in the early 1900s.

God, You are from eternity to eternity, and are not at one time in one place because all times and places are in You; I would now seek to understand my destiny as Your child.

Here I am, weak and mortal, amid the immensities of this world. But blessed are You, Lord God, that You have made me in Your own likeness and breathed into me the breath of Your own life. You have given me your Holy Spirit that I am a new creation in Jesus Christ. So from this place I can lift up my mind beyond all time and space to You, the uncreated One, for the light of Your countenance illumines all my life.

Let me keep in mind that my mortal body is but the servant of my immortal soul;
Let me keep in mind how uncertain is my hold on my bodily life;
Let me remember that here I have no continuing city, but only a place of sojourn and a time of testing and training;
Let me use this world but not abuse it;
Let me be in this world but not of it;

Let me be as one who has nothing yet possesses all things;
Let me understand the vanity of the temporal and the glory of the eternal;
Let my world be centered not in myself but in You. Whatever I myself can do, give me grace this day to begin; through Jesus Christ.
Amen.

climbing mountains

We are in Canyon, Texas and just got finished hanging in the indoor pool and hot tub, and pigging out on pizza. Yum! The kids are watching some ridiculous reality TV show about child TV stars. At one point Savie wanted to be famous, wanted to be on TV, and I was like you know what? No. Way. Not gonna happen. I said, you can act in theatre in school, but I have never seen anything good coming out of child stars. I digress...

This morning, we got up early and went out to check live traps with West Texas A&M University grad student Naima Montacer and Professor Ray Matlack in Palo Duro Canyon State Park. We checked traps in 4 different habitat types - riparian (by the "Prairie Dog Town Fork" of the Red River), escarpment (rock face), mixed-brush-woodland, and mesquite savannah. Escarpment is the only habitat they've ever caught ringtails, but she's studying "mesocarnivores" in general which also includes things like foxes and raccoons. Naima baits the traps with sardines and apples and honey. Unfortunately we didn't catch any ringtails...but we did catch a raccoon which Savannah got to hold (it was anesthetized). Hopefully we will catch one or more tomorrow because they're pulling the traps and that is our last chance!!

After lunch at a Thai place with everyone, the kids and I went first to look at a prairie dog town on the side of the highway then back to the park to explore. I have fond memories of going to this huge prairie dog town outside of Lubbock when I was about my kids' age. My cousin, aunt & uncle lived in Lubbock while my cousin and I were growing up (we're the same age), and we used to go there for holidays. The kids had fun watching the prairie dogs running around, ducking their heads in their burrows, and wiggling their little tails about. There were lots of tumbleweeds rolling across the plain on this very windy windy day.

Back at Palo Duro Canyon, we climbed and bouldered our way up on this cliffside and it was really cool! When we were down at the bottom of the roadside we saw some people waaaay up on top of this cliff and it looked like a million miles up and I thought no way would we make it. But we did! Sam wanted to keep going even further but Savannah was done... we climbed through these cave-like things in the rock. It was just cool. Then we stopped by Wally World and picked up some bathing suits (remember, our luggage is lost... though apparently it was delivered to our friends' house today in CO! Small miracles!). We also picked up some candy... and had dessert before dinner :0)

I took these photos with my cell phone because one of the victims of my lost luggage is my camera... I always pack it in my carry on, but this one time I packed my battery charger in my luggage!! And so the battery is about to die... Hopefully I have enough juice to snap a couple shots of the ringtail we WILL see tomorrow!!! (God willing!!)

snow and ringtails

Yesterday I booked three flights to Colorado Springs, CO for spring break for myself and the kiddos. I figured if I'm going to disappear to Australia for a few weeks I should bring the kids somewhere cool (darn that mommy guilt). Sam told me last year that every time he wishes on his birthday candles or a star or whatnot, he always wished it would snow. Fat chance of that happening in Texas, so I told him within the year I'd get him to see snow since neither he nor Savie have seen it - except in Alaska when they were too young to remember. And except for the snowpack outside of Yosemite National Park last summer, where they did get to make the coolest snowperson ever, and sled down on their behinds, and have a snowball fight (I have pics on my blog of that back in June 07!). At that time, I told them that I did my job, they got to see snow, but Sam said "Nuh uh! No fair!" Are they never satisfied?!

So the plan is to kill three birds with one stone. The real purpose of this trip is that I'm writing an article on ringtails (Bassariscus astutus). Sometimes people call them ringtail cats, but they're really related to raccoons. Graduate student Naima Montacer is researching and trapping them in Palo Duro Canyon State Park (photo above right is from the park - copyright PDCSP) which is near Amarillo in the panhandle of Texas. It looks like a beautiful area from what I can tell. I love my job!! And it's so cool to be able to share this with the kids. We will camp in the park, which the kids may not be thrilled about especially Savie, but tough beans - it builds character! heh heh heh, evil mommee grin....

Flights to Amarillo were about the same price as flights to Colorado, and well Colorado is snowy and awesome and one of my favorite states... so I'll just rent a car and drive the 6.5 hours which really is nothing for me. And bless my mom's heart, she bought the kids a cool DVD player for a car for their Christmas gift so you can be sure it's gonna make it into the luggage! (photo above left is a ringtail, copyright Naima Montacer)

While in Colorado, I will also interview some people for my book Losing My Religion: A Christian Struggles to Reconcile Evolution and Faith. One was involved in the Epperson vs. Arkansas 1968 court case and another is a theologian with the Presbyterian Church which is one mainstream denomination that accepts evolution, as is Episcopal/Anglican, Evangelical Lutheran Church in America, and others. Next summer I plan to get to Seattle to interview some people from the Discovery Institute who promote intelligent design. Which I don't agree with at all. But the book is about discovering all the things Christians believe about science and particularly creation and what it means for your average everyday person trying to figure out their faith - or whether what their kids are being taught in school is fact or heresy?