The Texas Parks and Wildlife Department has been awarded $813,068 for the first year of a potential three year grant totaling $2.4 million from the United States Department of Agriculture to improve public access to wildlife recreation on private land. The grant is funded through the USDA’s Voluntary Public Access and Habitat Incentive Program, or VPA-HIP.

A couple with East Texas roots – Arthur “Buddy” Temple and his wife Ellen – have been presented the 2011 Leopold Conservation Award for Texas for their transformation of an over-grazed, over-hunted South Texas ranch into a haven for wildlife and valuable research venue.

Native habitat restoration and enhancement for the benefit of wildlife is a common thread among the recipients of this year’s Lone Star Land Steward Awards. The Texas Parks and Wildlife Department and Sand County Foundation are recognizing these model land stewards and others, who have shown exemplary efforts to manage their property as ambassadors of conservation.

Thousands of Texas children will explore and learn more about the states’ cultural and natural resources thanks to more than $622,000 in Community Outdoor Outreach Program (CO-OP) grants from Texas Parks and Wildlife Department.

Texas Parks and Wildlife Department (TPWD) biologists are asking hunters and landowners for their support in contributing to this year’s Voluntary Mule Deer Check Stations. Voluntary check stations will be located in six counties in the Trans-Pecos region.

Wildlife biologists at Texas Parks and Wildlife Department are cautiously optimistic about quail prospects this season, which gets under way Saturday, Oct. 30 statewide.