Nature-based fun abounds for Texas families, from diverse and outstanding state parks to programs and workshops that teach fishing, camping, paddling and much more. But alongside this good news, a growing body of books and studies reveals a serious issue: today’s kids are losing touch with nature and that’s taking a toll.

Three previous Bassmaster Classic champions are separated by 11 ounces of each other after the opening day of the Evan Williams Bourbon Dixie Duel on Wheeler Lake. 2008 Classic champ Alton Jones of Waco, Texas, bagged 17 pounds, 12 ounces, to lead the field of 100 anglers on the third stop of the 2009 Bassmaster Elite Series.

Despite welcome rains in late March, much of Texas remains parched by prolonged drought of historic proportions, and wildlife die-offs of whooping cranes and deer have been reported. However, experts say native wildlife evolved to bounce back from drought, and a bigger issue is how human water use is changing the equation, and how drought underscores the need for water planning and conservation.

Corporate-sponsored teams from across the USA that include some of the nation’s birding elite will once again take part in what organizers call the world’s longest, wildest birding competition along the entire Texas coast April 26-May 3. The Great Texas Birding Classic raises funds to protect bird habitat and promotes the fun and excitement of one of nature’s great spectacles, but it also highlights a growing concern: the decline of migratory songbirds.

SCI Austin is now in our 6th year, and what a great 6 years it has been! As many of you already know, we are the Austin Chapter of Safari Club International, the world's largest organization for international conservation, sport hunting / hunters' rights, educational and humanitarian services.

Proceeds from sales of the Federal Duck Stamp are used to purchase and protect waterfowl habitat across the country. Since its inception in 1934, sales from the stamp have topped $700 million and have conserved more than 5.2 million acres of habitat.

The Recreational Boating & Fishing Foundation (RBFF) is kicking off year two of the State Direct Mail Marketing Program, a nationwide effort designed to identify and target lapsed anglers and increase fishing license sales. Thirty-two states will launch their programs over the coming weeks with two separate mailings, aiming to bring lapsed anglers back to the sport.

Nature-based fun abounds for Texas families, from diverse and outstanding state parks to programs and workshops that teach fishing, camping, paddling and much more. But alongside this good news, a growing body of books and studies reveals a serious issue: today's kids are losing touch with nature and that's taking a toll.

Texas Parks and Wildlife Department officials and partners from the Texas Parks and Wildlife Foundation, the Police Activities League and the Texas Game Warden Association will break ground April 9 on the first phase of a planned $20 million training complex in Hamilton County.