Friends of Padre: News

Corpus Christi, Texas)– Padre Island National Seashore will offer a variety of fun and educational activities on Saturday, June 14, 2014 from 10:00 a.m to 2:00 p.m. for National Get Outdoors and Junior Ranger Day. Other than the park entry fee, there is no charge to participate in any of the activities. National Get Outdoors Day is an annual event to encourage healthy, active outdoor fun. In addition children may earn their Jr. Ranger badges by completing a short booklet of educational activities. Participating partners including the Texas State Aquarium, the South Texas Botanical Gardens and Nature Center, and Texas Sea Life Center will offer opportunities for families to experience traditional and non-traditional types of outdoor activities. We will have sand sculpting lessons, kite building, live animals, education programs for families and much more! Feel free to bring a friend or make it a family outing, and enjoy the experience! For additional information contact the Malaquite Visitor Center at (361) 949-8068. --NPS--

With permission from Dr. Donna Shaver Update: Yesterday, 2 additional Kemp’s ridley nests were documented on the Texas coast, on South Padre Island. So far today, 1 Kemp’s ridley nest was found in Texas, also on South Padre Island. KEMP'S RIDLEY TURTLE So far this year, 76 nests have been confirmed on the Texas coast including (north to south in state): 1 Bolivar Peninsula 0 Galveston Island 0 Brazoria County, N. of Surfside 0 Surfside Beach 0 Quintana Beach 0 Bryan Beach 0 Brazoria County, N. of Sargent Beach 0 Sargent Beach 0 Matagorda Peninsula 2 Matagorda Island 0 San Jose Island 2 Mustang Island 52 North Padre Island, including 48 at Padre Island National Seashore 18 South Padre Island 1 Boca Chica Beach Data presented here are preliminary. Do not cite or quote without permission. Contact Donna Shaver for further information. Updates regarding nesting are also posted at the Padre Island National Seashore website: www.nps.gov/pais -- Donna J. Shaver, Ph.D. Chief, Division of Sea Turtle Science and Recovery, National Park Service, Padre Island National Seashore Texas Coordinator, Sea Turtle Stranding and Salvage Network Telephone (361)949-8173, ext. 226; fax: (361)949-9134; pager (361)851-4255 E-mail: donna_shaver@nps.gov http://www.nps.gov/pais/ Facebook: Padre Island NS Division of Sea Turtle Science and Recovery Address for mail: Padre Island National Seashore P.O. Box 181300 Corpus Christi, TX 78480-1300 Address for express mail services: Padre Island National Seashore 20301 Park Road 22 Corpus Christi, TX 78418

Posted with permission via Dr. Shaver Yesterday, 13 Kemp’s ridley nest was confirmed in Texas (two of these were reported earlier in the day). The 13 included: 1 on Mustang Island, 1 on North Padre Island north of Padre Island National Seashore, 7 at Padre Island National Seashore, and 4 on South Padre Island. Five additional track sites located in Texas yesterday will be investigated further today. KEMP'S RIDLEY TURTLE So far this year, 61 nests have been confirmed on the Texas coast including (north to south in state): 1 Bolivar Peninsula 0 Galveston Island 0 Brazoria County, N. of Surfside 0 Surfside Beach 0 Quintana Beach 0 Bryan Beach 0 Brazoria County, N. of Sargent Beach 0 Sargent Beach 0 Matagorda Peninsula 1 Matagorda Island 0 San Jose Island 1 Mustang Island 45 North Padre Island, including 41 at Padre Island National Seashore 13 South Padre Island 0 Boca Chica Beach Data presented here are preliminary. Do not cite or quote without permission. Contact Donna Shaver for further information. Updates regarding nesting are also posted at the Padre Island National Seashore website: www.nps.gov/pais -- Donna J. Shaver, Ph.D. Chief, Division of Sea Turtle Science and Recovery, National Park Service, Padre Island National Seashore Texas Coordinator, Sea Turtle Stranding and Salvage Network Telephone (361)949-8173, ext. 226; fax: (361)949-9134; pager (361)851-4255 E-mail: donna_shaver@nps.gov http://www.nps.gov/pais/ Facebook: Padre Island NS Division of Sea Turtle Science and Recovery Address for mail: Padre Island National Seashore P.O. Box 181300 Corpus Christi, TX 78480-1300 Address for express mail services: Padre Island National Seashore 20301 Park Road 22 Corpus Christi, TX 78418 -- Donna J. Shaver, Ph.D. Chief, Division of Sea Turtle Science and Recovery, National Park Service, Padre Island National Seashore Texas Coordinator, Sea Turtle Stranding and Salvage Network Telephone (361)949-8173, ext. 226; fax: (361)949-9134; pager (361)851-4255 E-mail: donna_shaver@nps.gov http://www.nps.gov/pais/ Facebook: Padre Island NS Division of Sea Turtle Science and Recovery Address for mail: Padre Island National Seashore P.O. Box 181300 Corpus Christi, TX 78480-1300 Address for express mail services: Padre Island National Seashore 20301 Park Road 22 Corpus Christi, TX 78418

We received this nice letter from Padre Island National Seashore Superintendent, Mark Spier and thought we would share it.

Today the first Kemp's ridley nest was confirmed on the Texas coast for 2014. It was located at Padre Island National Seashore. Another set of tracks was also found there, but was quite blown away and continues to be investigated. Yesterday, a set of turtle tracks was found on North Padre Island, north of Padre Island National Seashore, but they were much too narrow for nesting Kemp's ridley and there was no nest located there. -- Donna J. Shaver, Ph.D. Chief, Division of Sea Turtle Science and Recovery, National Park Service, Padre Island National Seashore Texas Coordinator, Sea Turtle Stranding and Salvage Network Telephone (361)949-8173, ext. 226; fax: (361)949-9134; pager (361)851-4255 E-mail: donna_shaver@nps.gov http://www.nps.gov/pais/ Facebook: Padre Island NS Division of Sea Turtle Science and Recovery

Go Wild for Padre Island National Seashore! Celebrate National Park Week with Free Admission and Educational Programs. Go wild for the beaches, birds, sea turtles, camping and fishing on Padre Island National Seashore during National Park Week, April 19 through 27, 2014. To get the celebration going, Padre Island National Seashore will waive entrance fees on April 19 and 20. A variety of free educational opportunities await those wanting to learn more about the Texas coast. The most popular are birding tours that take visitors to various stops and provide a chance to learn about the many resident and migratory species that can be seen during the spring. Tours depart daily on Fridays, Saturdays, & Sundays through April 27. Departure times are 9:30 a.m. & 2:30 p.m. on Friday and Saturday and 9:30 a.m. only on Sunday. Reservations are recommended and can be made in person or by calling the park visitor center at (361) 949-8068. Other programs are also offered, so be sure to ask about them. “Corpus Christi is fortunate to have a great playground and so much important wildlife habitat within a short drive. Everyone is invited to take advantage of the upcoming fee free days on April 19 and 20 in order to see for themselves how beautiful and enjoyable the park is”, said Superintendent Mark Spier. Note that National Park Week will continue until Sunday, April 27. However, only April 19 and 20 are fee free. Visit www.nationparkweek.org for more information about what is going on at Padre Island National Seashore and other National Park Service sites throughout the country. You can share your park experiences and photos on the website. www.nps.gov/pais

From Jody Mays at Padre Island National Seashore (Corpus Christi, Texas)- The National Park Service continues to monitor the clean-up work taking place along the beach at Padre Island National Seashore. While the portions of the park’s beach that are normally open to vehicle traffic are still closed, Bird Island Basin boat ramp, all park campgrounds, and the Malaquite Visitor Center remain open for use. On Tuesday, a twenty-person hand crew made good progress in cleaning Malaquite Beach, the park’s most popular visitor beach access area. School and education programs are continuing at the visitor center; however, beach goers are being advised to check their footwear for tar when returning from the beach. The size of the work forced doubled on Wednesday as partner agencies brought additional personnel and equipment into the park to handle the work load. Other staff members continue to watch for oiled wildlife and are working to get the injured birds or other animals to decontamination facilities. If no significant amounts of additional oil wash ashore, the park is optimistic that we can begin reopening cleaned areas to regular beach use as soon as is practical. As soon as those decisions are made, another press announcement will occur so that businesses and visitors can resume their normal activities.

(Corpus Christi, Texas)- The National Park Service, in an effort to prevent additional clean-up issues caused by vehicle traffic pressing oil into beach sands, has temporarily closed park beaches to driving. The beach driving closure will remain in effect until the clean-up has reached a satisfactory level to minimize further risks to park resources. The park will remain open to visitors wanting to access Bird Island Basin boat ramp, park campgrounds and the Malaquite Visitor Center. Hiking and swimming along park beaches are strongly discouraged due to hygiene reasons. Visitors to area beaches are advised to carry baby oil and paper towels to remove oil from the skin or shoes. The vehicle beach closure is to allow clean-up in the most efficient manner possible. As long as oil is on the surface of the sand it may be readily lifted off. Continued above average tides this week will mean that vehicles would be forced to drive through the mix of algae and oil droplets found at the high water line. This would serve to "plow" the oil down into the sand and make for much more difficult clean-up. That would then potentially keep the beaches closed for an even longer duration. As soon as the beach clean-up has reached a satisfactory level, the park will send out an additional press release to update area visitors and residents. For additional information, please call the Malaquite Visitor Center at 361-949-8068.