WEBVTT 1 00:00:00.520 --> 00:00:04.040 Welcome to Morow Outdoors on News Talk five sixty KLVI. 2 00:00:04.280 --> 00:00:08.320 This is Chester Moore. A beautiful herd of longhorned cattle 3 00:00:08.839 --> 00:00:12.800 made their way across a blue bonnet covered meadow, walking 4 00:00:12.880 --> 00:00:16.640 down a trail from an oak thicket. One particularly massive 5 00:00:16.679 --> 00:00:20.359 bull stopped and glared at us, so I felt obliged 6 00:00:20.399 --> 00:00:24.280 to jump out of the truck and shoot photos. Wild 7 00:00:24.359 --> 00:00:27.960 Wishes is our program that grants wildlife and exotic animal 8 00:00:28.039 --> 00:00:31.199 encounters for kids who have a critical illness, have lost 9 00:00:31.199 --> 00:00:34.159 a parent or a sibling, or dealing with other very 10 00:00:34.200 --> 00:00:38.079 serious issues. We were at Wyo Ranch headquarters near Mountain 11 00:00:38.119 --> 00:00:41.119 Home in Kerr County and it just completed a wild 12 00:00:41.200 --> 00:00:43.799 Wish for a little boy named Amos, who got to 13 00:00:43.880 --> 00:00:47.320 encounter a giraffe and many other exotic animals at the 14 00:00:47.399 --> 00:00:51.320 legendary Ranch. This thing was easily in the two thousand 15 00:00:51.359 --> 00:00:54.679 pound range and gave a surreal thrill as buffalo's were 16 00:00:54.719 --> 00:00:58.320 the topic of our conversation riding down the road. Wild 17 00:00:58.320 --> 00:01:02.479 Wishes grants those encounters to give kids hope, and it 18 00:01:02.560 --> 00:01:06.359 was amazing seeing the boys here on this trip, literally 19 00:01:06.439 --> 00:01:09.560 riding down the road talking about buffalo wanting to ride 20 00:01:09.599 --> 00:01:13.480 bareback like Indians back in the day, shooting with primitive 21 00:01:13.599 --> 00:01:18.719 archery equipment and just talking about being alive. You know, 22 00:01:18.799 --> 00:01:21.480 here's the thing. We were out there and we saw 23 00:01:21.519 --> 00:01:24.200 this massive bull under the bushes, and the kids were 24 00:01:24.319 --> 00:01:26.840 so excited, and so was I. I love bison. Bison 25 00:01:26.879 --> 00:01:30.799 are one of my favorite animals. Under this live oak 26 00:01:31.000 --> 00:01:35.000 was this majestic bison. The longhorns were cool, but the 27 00:01:35.040 --> 00:01:38.920 bison was awesome. But then it got better. From behind 28 00:01:39.079 --> 00:01:43.959 another tree stood up something big and white. At first 29 00:01:44.159 --> 00:01:47.040 it looked like a bull. When it turned around, chills 30 00:01:47.120 --> 00:01:49.879 ran up and down my spine. This was no bull. 31 00:01:50.519 --> 00:01:55.040 It was a white buffalo. Yeah, baby, the great white buffalo. 32 00:01:56.000 --> 00:01:59.799 I was absolutely blown away. I mean, this is the 33 00:02:00.040 --> 00:02:02.680 rarest of the rear. We had no idea such a 34 00:02:02.719 --> 00:02:06.079 creature existed on their huge ranch, and we've not seen 35 00:02:06.120 --> 00:02:08.360 it if we had not decided to pull over and 36 00:02:08.439 --> 00:02:12.759 photograph the longhorns. I have no question the Lord had 37 00:02:12.759 --> 00:02:15.560 his hand on this encounter, and so did the kids, 38 00:02:15.560 --> 00:02:19.719 who were excited beyond measure. They had seen something awesome, 39 00:02:20.199 --> 00:02:22.560 and then they locked eyes with a legend, and that 40 00:02:22.639 --> 00:02:26.520 took it just to an entirely different level. I've had 41 00:02:26.560 --> 00:02:29.719 many incredible wildlife encounters, and this one ranks right up 42 00:02:29.759 --> 00:02:33.039 there was seeing great whites in the Pacific. This was 43 00:02:33.080 --> 00:02:36.639 a lifelong dream come true, and I got to share 44 00:02:36.680 --> 00:02:40.240 it with three very special kids and a friend who 45 00:02:40.280 --> 00:02:42.879 is also there and is as big a buffalo fan 46 00:02:42.919 --> 00:02:45.960 as I am. Part of my love of bison comes 47 00:02:45.960 --> 00:02:49.599 from knowing their tragic history and the great conservation efforts 48 00:02:49.599 --> 00:02:53.639 it saved him. According to Texas Bison Association, bison were 49 00:02:53.719 --> 00:02:59.319 hunted in various ways quote quote before Indians had horses, 50 00:03:00.000 --> 00:03:03.319 they would encircle the herd with tribe members on foot. 51 00:03:03.520 --> 00:03:06.439 By getting the animals to meal within the ring they formed, 52 00:03:06.479 --> 00:03:09.680 Indians were able to fire large volleys of arrows into 53 00:03:09.759 --> 00:03:13.240 the herd until they downed an adequate number of animals. 54 00:03:14.000 --> 00:03:16.520 In the sixteenth century, when horses were acquired by the 55 00:03:16.520 --> 00:03:21.120 Plan's Indians, bison hunting became easier. They used other methods 56 00:03:21.120 --> 00:03:24.680 to harvest the mighty buffalo, now by stampeding herds over 57 00:03:24.719 --> 00:03:27.960 a cliff, driving the animal to a large natural trap, 58 00:03:28.280 --> 00:03:32.680 or into bogs or blind canyons. The most famous hunting 59 00:03:32.759 --> 00:03:37.919 technique was the horse surrounded several hundred riders would form 60 00:03:38.000 --> 00:03:41.639 semicircles on two sides of the herd, then move in 61 00:03:41.840 --> 00:03:45.360 until they created a circle around its entirety. As pressure 62 00:03:45.439 --> 00:03:48.520 was supplied by the oncoming riders, the bison would begin 63 00:03:48.599 --> 00:03:52.599 to get confused, start milling around, and eventually stampede into 64 00:03:52.639 --> 00:03:56.199 a frenzied milling mass. At this point, riders would move 65 00:03:56.240 --> 00:03:59.560 in and begin the slaughter with showers of arrows or 66 00:03:59.599 --> 00:04:05.800 plunged lances. Then came the tragic wholesale slaughter of bison 67 00:04:06.280 --> 00:04:10.520 by European settlers. Now, sadly this is a black mark 68 00:04:10.560 --> 00:04:13.520 on our history. This was as much to wipe out 69 00:04:13.520 --> 00:04:16.639 the planes tribes as it was to sell bison parts, 70 00:04:16.680 --> 00:04:19.399 but it was definitely a market thing. What was once 71 00:04:19.439 --> 00:04:22.920 a heard of millions was reduced to just a few 72 00:04:23.040 --> 00:04:27.480 hundred by the late eighteen hundreds recorded to the Texas 73 00:04:27.560 --> 00:04:31.480 Parks and Whileiffe Department. Legendary rancher Charles Goodnight started the 74 00:04:31.519 --> 00:04:34.279 remnants of the herd on his Ja ranch in the 75 00:04:34.319 --> 00:04:38.439 Texas Panhandle in eighteen seventy eight and attempts to save 76 00:04:38.480 --> 00:04:40.480 the animals that had meant so much to him and 77 00:04:40.519 --> 00:04:43.959 his family. Quote it was actually his wife that influenced 78 00:04:43.959 --> 00:04:47.839 the cattle in business tycoon to preserve them before they disappeared, 79 00:04:47.920 --> 00:04:50.800 so that future generations might be able to see and 80 00:04:50.879 --> 00:04:55.000 appreciate these special creatures. It says, somehow, against the odds, 81 00:04:55.040 --> 00:04:58.439 a herd of genetic related Southern bison have managed to 82 00:04:58.439 --> 00:05:01.759 survive the decades since, and now it all benefit from 83 00:05:01.759 --> 00:05:05.160 good Night's vision. When the bison were initially donated to 84 00:05:05.240 --> 00:05:08.680 Texas Parks and wild Department and moved to Caprock Canyon 85 00:05:08.680 --> 00:05:12.120 State Park in nineteen ninety seven, it was discovered that 86 00:05:12.160 --> 00:05:15.720 their DNA was different and featured genetics that are not 87 00:05:15.920 --> 00:05:20.480 shared by any other bison herd in North America. In fact, 88 00:05:20.839 --> 00:05:25.160 the official Texas State Bison herd at CAPROC represents the 89 00:05:25.279 --> 00:05:30.600 last remaining examples of the Southern bison plains variety. And 90 00:05:30.639 --> 00:05:33.240 I think that's just really cool that we have that 91 00:05:33.839 --> 00:05:37.480 happening here in the great state of Texas. Now many 92 00:05:37.560 --> 00:05:40.439 ranches proudly race bison, and they are going in numbers 93 00:05:40.519 --> 00:05:43.079 right in Texas on private land and at places like 94 00:05:43.160 --> 00:05:47.240 Caprock Canyon State Park. Herds in places like Yellowstone, which 95 00:05:47.279 --> 00:05:51.879 I've seen almost eye to eye, are flourishing. I'll never 96 00:05:52.000 --> 00:05:55.959 forget back in twenty sixteen doing this Wild Witch's Encounter 97 00:05:56.560 --> 00:06:01.360 at Wyo Ranch headquarters. Sitting there with these young children 98 00:06:01.879 --> 00:06:06.199 and watching them marvel at nature and realizing because I 99 00:06:06.279 --> 00:06:09.800 knew the history of these animals, if visionary people of 100 00:06:09.839 --> 00:06:13.720 the past had not stepped in, that encounter would have 101 00:06:13.800 --> 00:06:16.560 never even been possible. And I thought that was just 102 00:06:16.560 --> 00:06:20.720 such a beautiful moment. It inspired me to go even 103 00:06:20.759 --> 00:06:23.600 deeper into what we do in our Wild Witsch's program, 104 00:06:23.720 --> 00:06:27.680 and you know that program. At the time in twenty sixteen, 105 00:06:27.720 --> 00:06:31.240 I think we had like fifteen or sixteen kids in 106 00:06:31.279 --> 00:06:34.879 the Wishes program. Now we have two hundred and twenty 107 00:06:34.959 --> 00:06:39.160 five and will likely cross the three hundred mark before 108 00:06:39.279 --> 00:06:41.040 the end of the year, by the grace of God 109 00:06:41.079 --> 00:06:43.959 and a lot of hard work, you know. I remember 110 00:06:44.000 --> 00:06:46.800 walking back the truck with these kids. The moms, their 111 00:06:46.839 --> 00:06:49.439 grandmothers and dads were so excited for the kids and 112 00:06:49.519 --> 00:06:51.839 for this big kid because I was yelling all over 113 00:06:51.879 --> 00:06:56.000 the place, and so excited because they knew we saw 114 00:06:56.160 --> 00:06:59.959 something special. They got to see all of this go town. 115 00:07:00.319 --> 00:07:03.199 But one thing they did not see, and I can't 116 00:07:03.240 --> 00:07:07.720 shake or its eyes. We stared into the eyes of 117 00:07:07.759 --> 00:07:11.560 the white buffalo. None of us may ever be the same. 118 00:07:12.360 --> 00:07:15.759 We locked eyes with a legend that day. A few 119 00:07:15.800 --> 00:07:19.240 years after that, I had a very personal encounter with 120 00:07:19.279 --> 00:07:22.120 the bison. I never forget the sun rising over the 121 00:07:22.199 --> 00:07:27.279 Lamar Valley Yellowstone National Park, the silhouettes of buffalo dotted 122 00:07:27.319 --> 00:07:31.839 the horizon truly wild bison, and it was incredible. And 123 00:07:31.839 --> 00:07:34.800 while slowly driving through this incredible setting, a couple of 124 00:07:34.800 --> 00:07:37.399 beautiful pronghorn caught my attention, so I pulled over to 125 00:07:37.399 --> 00:07:40.800 take some photos. Another gentleman had just stopped to do 126 00:07:40.879 --> 00:07:43.959 the same, and we adjusted our lenses and his wife 127 00:07:44.000 --> 00:07:47.959 shouted from their truck bison. We turned around and found 128 00:07:48.040 --> 00:07:52.000 ourselves nearly eye to eye with a massive bull of bison, 129 00:07:52.560 --> 00:07:56.079 and he looked angry, and I'm talking really angry. We 130 00:07:56.079 --> 00:07:59.040 had obeyed all the safety protocol of Yellowstone, but it 131 00:07:59.079 --> 00:08:01.600 was just one of those moments where we were just 132 00:08:01.680 --> 00:08:04.120 caught off guard, and that happened sometimes. I mean, the 133 00:08:04.160 --> 00:08:08.639 whites of this dude's eyes showed. He was grunting the 134 00:08:08.680 --> 00:08:12.759 distance of about fifteen feet, which meant we were about 135 00:08:12.920 --> 00:08:16.160 one half second away from fifteen hundred pounds of fury. 136 00:08:16.879 --> 00:08:19.959 We gently backed up, and a couple of other bison 137 00:08:20.000 --> 00:08:22.920 that just crossed the road, caused attention, and he ran 138 00:08:23.040 --> 00:08:25.639 at him and slammed into one of them. The other 139 00:08:25.839 --> 00:08:28.800 younger bull struck back, but then ran off, leaving the 140 00:08:28.839 --> 00:08:31.360 big bull on its own. And I'll never forget this. 141 00:08:31.800 --> 00:08:35.080 He proceeded to roll in the dirt, grunt and buck 142 00:08:35.279 --> 00:08:37.879 up and down like a bronco. I'm not kidding. He 143 00:08:37.960 --> 00:08:41.000 bucked up and down like a bronco. Yeah, this was 144 00:08:41.039 --> 00:08:44.000 the same bison that walked right past us a few 145 00:08:44.039 --> 00:08:47.960 seconds earlier. Bison actually hurt more people in Yellowstone than 146 00:08:47.960 --> 00:08:51.600 any other animal, including grizzlies. And I almost saw a 147 00:08:51.679 --> 00:08:54.080 woman get attacked by one doing something goofy, trying to 148 00:08:54.080 --> 00:08:56.720 get a selfie with one. Yeah, for real, people look 149 00:08:56.720 --> 00:08:59.159 at him as large cattle from the dairy farm because 150 00:08:59.159 --> 00:09:02.919 they're unafraid of people in the park. It's called confidence, people, 151 00:09:03.240 --> 00:09:07.799 not docility. And I'll never forget writing a blog about 152 00:09:07.840 --> 00:09:10.080 this from the Bozeman International Airport. You can read that 153 00:09:10.120 --> 00:09:12.399 blog at higher Calling dot and that just search bison 154 00:09:12.919 --> 00:09:15.120 in the search engine there. It's a pretty funny blog. 155 00:09:15.879 --> 00:09:18.879 And thinking, you know, I like getting my boots on 156 00:09:18.960 --> 00:09:22.159 the ground checking out wildlife, but I don't necessarily like 157 00:09:22.279 --> 00:09:25.720 getting so close to a bison that wasn't real happy, 158 00:09:25.799 --> 00:09:28.240 you know. But these are the kind of things that 159 00:09:28.320 --> 00:09:31.919 happen when you're actually out in the field doing wildlife 160 00:09:32.039 --> 00:09:35.279 encounters and research. And I want to start the program 161 00:09:35.320 --> 00:09:39.000 off talking about some amazing encounters that happen, hopefully to 162 00:09:39.039 --> 00:09:41.399 inspire you to get out there and have your own encounters, 163 00:09:41.840 --> 00:09:45.320 although maybe not quite as close as mine was with 164 00:09:45.360 --> 00:09:48.440 the bison. And we come back on More Outdoors, so 165 00:09:48.480 --> 00:09:52.039 we're going to talk about the hidden history of the bison. 166 00:09:52.080 --> 00:09:53.879 I think you're going to find this very very interesting 167 00:09:54.000 --> 00:09:58.000 hidden history of the bison east of Texas. Yeah, baby 168 00:09:58.080 --> 00:10:03.960 bison east of Texas. Welcome back to More Outdoors on 169 00:10:04.039 --> 00:10:08.000 News Talk five sixty KLV. This is chester More. Follow 170 00:10:08.080 --> 00:10:12.399 me at the chester More. That's the chester More on Instagram, 171 00:10:12.879 --> 00:10:16.200 Higher Calling Wildlife on Facebook and Higher Calling dot net 172 00:10:16.240 --> 00:10:18.080 the blog. You need to subscribe to the blog at 173 00:10:18.159 --> 00:10:20.080 Higher Calling dot net. Just go in there and see 174 00:10:20.080 --> 00:10:23.639 your prompt to enter your email address. Award winning blog. 175 00:10:23.919 --> 00:10:26.559 It's really really something that I put a lot of 176 00:10:26.600 --> 00:10:29.240 effort in, So check that out and super excited to 177 00:10:29.279 --> 00:10:32.399 talk about bison in the first part of the show. 178 00:10:32.440 --> 00:10:34.480 If you missed it. Go back and click on KLVA 179 00:10:34.559 --> 00:10:37.639 dot com the podcast link. You heard me talking about 180 00:10:37.840 --> 00:10:41.159 an encounter with a white bison. But I've always been 181 00:10:41.159 --> 00:10:43.720 intrigued by these incredible animals. And you think of them 182 00:10:43.799 --> 00:10:46.960 roaming the Great Planes and up north. But the fact 183 00:10:47.039 --> 00:10:51.679 is there were bison all the way to the eastern seaboard. 184 00:10:51.799 --> 00:10:54.519 Matter of fact, bison once inhabited of the eastern United States, 185 00:10:54.639 --> 00:10:58.440 ranging from Florida to Maine. And they were also in 186 00:10:58.480 --> 00:11:01.360 places like Tennessee and Louisiana. You don't think of like 187 00:11:01.399 --> 00:11:05.600 bison in Louisiana, but they were there. Indigenous people revered them, 188 00:11:06.000 --> 00:11:09.279 utilizing every part of the animal for food, clothing, and shelter. 189 00:11:09.320 --> 00:11:11.960 It wasn't just the Plains tribes, it was other tribes 190 00:11:12.000 --> 00:11:15.720 that had, you know, relationships with these bison. So this 191 00:11:15.759 --> 00:11:18.080 is a very interesting thing. Did a little bit of research. 192 00:11:18.840 --> 00:11:23.919 Historical records indicate bison presence in Florida when early Spanish 193 00:11:24.000 --> 00:11:28.399 explorers encountered them the northern regions of the state. Unfortunately, 194 00:11:28.440 --> 00:11:32.840 by the early eighteen hundreds, European settlement, habitat destruction led 195 00:11:32.840 --> 00:11:36.799 to their extinction. There. French explorers documented bison along the 196 00:11:36.799 --> 00:11:42.159 Mississippi River in Louisiana in the late seventeen hundreds. However, 197 00:11:42.279 --> 00:11:44.960 hunting pressure and habitat loss that kind of wiped them out. 198 00:11:45.440 --> 00:11:49.159 They believe. The last while bison in Louisiana likely disappeared 199 00:11:49.200 --> 00:11:54.120 in the early eighteen hundreds. Now in Tennessee, the tribes 200 00:11:54.159 --> 00:11:56.759 such as the Cherokee and the Shawnee relied on bison 201 00:11:56.840 --> 00:11:59.720 for some of their substance and materials. There's some traditions 202 00:11:59.720 --> 00:12:02.639 about out them there and by the early eighteen hundred 203 00:12:02.759 --> 00:12:06.679 unfortunate that European settlement and the over hunting. Now I 204 00:12:06.679 --> 00:12:08.600 want to talk about the over hunting here. It's not 205 00:12:09.039 --> 00:12:11.799 like we're going sport hunting, buying a license, killing with 206 00:12:11.799 --> 00:12:15.120 the bag limit. This was just slaughter, is what it was. 207 00:12:15.279 --> 00:12:20.519 Just no idea about using any kind of science based conservation, 208 00:12:20.879 --> 00:12:25.000 just slaughter. And you know, sightings of bison from the 209 00:12:25.039 --> 00:12:28.559 eastern seaboards from the Carolinas to Main recorded by early settlers, 210 00:12:29.240 --> 00:12:32.440 and the problem was a lot of fragmented habitat. Things 211 00:12:32.480 --> 00:12:35.679 turned over to agriculture, problems with agriculture and clashing of 212 00:12:35.799 --> 00:12:39.600 bison and just killed out in that region. The last 213 00:12:39.720 --> 00:12:43.320 recorded sighting of a wild bison in Florida encountered in 214 00:12:43.360 --> 00:12:46.519 the eighteen hundreds. There are records of bison all the 215 00:12:46.559 --> 00:12:49.960 way down to the Florida Keys. In twenty nineteen, I 216 00:12:50.080 --> 00:12:54.840 went to a bison conference in Santa Fe, New Mexico, 217 00:12:55.480 --> 00:12:57.600 and it was a really interesting event. It had a 218 00:12:57.639 --> 00:13:00.720 lot of tribal interest, It had like people from the 219 00:13:00.840 --> 00:13:05.879 US Fish and Wildlife Service, it had different state wildlife agencies, 220 00:13:05.960 --> 00:13:09.159 and there's a real move to get more free ranging 221 00:13:09.240 --> 00:13:12.360 bison back on the landscape. And I bought a couple 222 00:13:12.399 --> 00:13:14.519 of different books about bison there and I found it 223 00:13:14.679 --> 00:13:19.000 so intriguing that there were even records of bison as 224 00:13:19.120 --> 00:13:23.399 far south as the Florida Keys. I mean, that's pretty astounding. 225 00:13:23.440 --> 00:13:25.399 You think of a little key deer down there. You 226 00:13:25.440 --> 00:13:28.320 think of manatees around there and the creeks, and you 227 00:13:28.320 --> 00:13:33.960 know the Little Bays bison. Now, we know the slaughter 228 00:13:34.039 --> 00:13:36.679 that happened in the mid eighteen hundreds is responsible for 229 00:13:36.720 --> 00:13:39.759 the bison disappearing from the plains, but you know, we 230 00:13:39.919 --> 00:13:41.759 know that there was some over hunting in the east 231 00:13:41.799 --> 00:13:45.039 and you know, some habitat changes. There's also a possible 232 00:13:45.159 --> 00:13:48.519 link to cattle being brought over and disease from cattle 233 00:13:48.559 --> 00:13:53.120 maybe hurting them. You know, the wild sheep were wiped out, 234 00:13:53.240 --> 00:13:57.200 I mean from two million to about twenty five thousand 235 00:13:57.240 --> 00:14:00.720 in one hundred years. They were wiped out because of disease. 236 00:14:00.759 --> 00:14:03.519 And that disease issue still lingers. So there's some there's 237 00:14:03.559 --> 00:14:08.039 a little bit of controversy over what really eliminated them 238 00:14:08.080 --> 00:14:11.480 from the eastern United States because we know for sure, 239 00:14:12.279 --> 00:14:15.080 by the time the railroad hit and by the time 240 00:14:15.559 --> 00:14:19.240 you know, firearms technology got to where you had repeating rifles, 241 00:14:19.279 --> 00:14:22.120 and there was an agenda there to not only make 242 00:14:22.320 --> 00:14:25.279 money from bison parts and get meat for settlers, but 243 00:14:25.360 --> 00:14:29.080 it was also to cripple the Plains tribe. So, like 244 00:14:29.120 --> 00:14:32.519 I said in the previous segment, definitely a black eye 245 00:14:32.679 --> 00:14:35.879 on our you know, just national history as well as 246 00:14:36.000 --> 00:14:41.159 our natural history because this led to decimated herds. But 247 00:14:41.200 --> 00:14:44.519 it's so awesome and inspiring to see that bison have returned. 248 00:14:45.200 --> 00:14:47.799 You know, we have the Plains bison that we talk about, 249 00:14:47.840 --> 00:14:51.360 but there's also the wood bison. Yes, there're a wood 250 00:14:51.360 --> 00:14:54.360 bison that live in Canada, and they were native to 251 00:14:54.399 --> 00:14:57.480 Canada and Alaska and they literally live in the woods. 252 00:14:57.639 --> 00:14:59.159 You know, you don't think of a bison living in 253 00:14:59.159 --> 00:15:01.679 the woods, but I want you to. I think although 254 00:15:01.919 --> 00:15:06.120 the eastern the United States is definitely thicker with trees 255 00:15:06.159 --> 00:15:07.879 because of the way we grow them now, it was 256 00:15:08.000 --> 00:15:10.279 more open and savannah like in some areas, But it 257 00:15:10.360 --> 00:15:13.200 was definitely a thicker area than it was in the 258 00:15:13.279 --> 00:15:17.080 Great Plains certainly, and even in the West. Bison lived 259 00:15:17.120 --> 00:15:18.960 in the woods there too. But we're talking about the 260 00:15:18.960 --> 00:15:23.679 Canadian Wilderness wood bison. There's a European bison as well. 261 00:15:23.720 --> 00:15:27.600 I mean, just really really neat stuff that's out there. 262 00:15:27.799 --> 00:15:33.320 And my mission here is to share fun, you know, 263 00:15:33.440 --> 00:15:36.399 really interesting wildlife stuff you're not gonna hear anywhere else. 264 00:15:36.960 --> 00:15:40.519 And it's also to inform you about sometimes how the 265 00:15:40.639 --> 00:15:43.840 history meets the present, you know, like we have done 266 00:15:44.000 --> 00:15:46.679 so much to help the bison's I mean, it's incredible. 267 00:15:46.679 --> 00:15:48.200 I got to hunt a bison with a bow and 268 00:15:48.279 --> 00:15:50.399 arrow when I was twenty three years old. It was 269 00:15:50.440 --> 00:15:54.120 a dream come true. One shot in the heart with 270 00:15:54.279 --> 00:15:57.120 my arrow and it went down. Literally when I went 271 00:15:57.159 --> 00:15:59.200 up to the buffalo, I was teared up because of 272 00:15:59.240 --> 00:16:02.759 the beauty of this moment of I would not have 273 00:16:02.840 --> 00:16:05.279 been able to have that happen if it wasn't for 274 00:16:05.360 --> 00:16:08.399 great conservations in the past, like Charles Goodnight and others. 275 00:16:08.879 --> 00:16:10.919 And I thought that was such a cool moment, and 276 00:16:11.360 --> 00:16:16.039 that literally fed my family for a year. I mean 277 00:16:16.080 --> 00:16:18.919 we didn't buy beef for about a year and a half. Actually, 278 00:16:19.240 --> 00:16:24.159 I mean we had bison bergers, bison steaks, we had 279 00:16:24.519 --> 00:16:29.720 bison tacos, we had bison enchiladas, we had all kinds 280 00:16:29.720 --> 00:16:32.240 of bison stuff and it was so so good and 281 00:16:32.279 --> 00:16:35.039 it was so rewarding to eat that. And I think 282 00:16:35.039 --> 00:16:39.720 it's important for those who hunt to connect back to that, 283 00:16:39.799 --> 00:16:41.600 you know, like get in that moment where we learned 284 00:16:41.600 --> 00:16:46.399 about our history, get involved in conservation works, and that 285 00:16:46.440 --> 00:16:50.159 we embraced the harvest of what we do. I don't 286 00:16:50.200 --> 00:16:54.480 apologize for hunting. I will never apologize for hunting. I hunt, 287 00:16:54.879 --> 00:16:57.399 and I do kill stock, and I feed my family. 288 00:16:57.840 --> 00:17:00.399 I mean, whether it's you know, a redfish and red 289 00:17:00.440 --> 00:17:04.720 vista on the halfshell, you know some really good deep 290 00:17:04.759 --> 00:17:08.119 fried blue wing teal breast meat which is incredible, the 291 00:17:08.160 --> 00:17:10.799 sand hill crane and got to harvest are a bison, 292 00:17:10.880 --> 00:17:14.559 It's all something that we cherish, and I think we 293 00:17:14.599 --> 00:17:17.440 need to look more at our wildlife history to not 294 00:17:17.519 --> 00:17:20.440 repeat the mistakes of the past, and also use the 295 00:17:20.480 --> 00:17:22.880 triumphs of the past, the comeback of the bison, the 296 00:17:22.880 --> 00:17:25.519 comeback of the big horn, all of these things to 297 00:17:25.599 --> 00:17:29.599 move forward and do great things for wildlife. You know, 298 00:17:30.640 --> 00:17:33.359 you even think about song like America the beautiful. You 299 00:17:33.359 --> 00:17:36.559 know you're talking about, you know, beautiful, for spacious skies, 300 00:17:36.559 --> 00:17:39.599 for amber waves of grain, for purple mountains. Majesty, I mean, 301 00:17:39.640 --> 00:17:43.079 we're talking about the natural world here, and we've come 302 00:17:43.119 --> 00:17:45.440 to the point in the natural world where we are 303 00:17:46.400 --> 00:17:49.920 wiping out the habitat, and in many cases in America, 304 00:17:50.039 --> 00:17:52.920 we're doing really good with the actual species on the 305 00:17:52.960 --> 00:17:56.519 remaining habitat, and now there's too many because we've wiped 306 00:17:56.559 --> 00:18:00.799 out habitat and they're showing up in downtown. We've got 307 00:18:00.839 --> 00:18:03.880 to be able to get to the point where we're 308 00:18:04.400 --> 00:18:08.599 habitat first and want our wildlife to have places to roam. 309 00:18:08.759 --> 00:18:12.920 I can't imagine my life without wildlife. I've been obsessed 310 00:18:12.960 --> 00:18:16.079 with wildlife my whole life, and I always will be obsessed. 311 00:18:16.359 --> 00:18:19.680 And that translates to broadcasts like this. I mean, you 312 00:18:19.799 --> 00:18:22.480 obviously can hear the passion of my voice. This isn't staged. 313 00:18:23.119 --> 00:18:25.960 This is real and in our outreaches that we do, 314 00:18:26.039 --> 00:18:28.920 we connect kids with stuff like this. And it's not 315 00:18:29.079 --> 00:18:32.599 just kids. It's the kids that are the least. It's 316 00:18:32.640 --> 00:18:34.480 the ones that are at the back of the line 317 00:18:34.960 --> 00:18:37.200 that are hiding their head in shame because of abuse 318 00:18:37.200 --> 00:18:40.279 they've experienced, or you know, whatever's going on in their life, 319 00:18:40.359 --> 00:18:43.240 or the health trials they have, all of these things. 320 00:18:43.759 --> 00:18:46.599 These are the kids we bring out on these expeditions 321 00:18:46.640 --> 00:18:49.400 that have chances to meet like the white Buffalo we 322 00:18:49.440 --> 00:18:51.599 talked about in the first segment. If you would like 323 00:18:51.720 --> 00:18:55.440 more information on how you can connect with us and 324 00:18:55.519 --> 00:18:58.880 help these kiddos, you can go to kingdomzoo dot com, 325 00:18:59.319 --> 00:19:01.680 kingdomsoo dot com. You can make donations area, you can 326 00:19:01.720 --> 00:19:03.480 suggest a kid we might want to work with, or 327 00:19:03.519 --> 00:19:05.359 also go to Higher Calling dot net. You'll click on 328 00:19:05.400 --> 00:19:09.200 the Youth Conservation Outreach button there and it goes into 329 00:19:09.240 --> 00:19:11.480 that part of what we do with expeditions. I mean, 330 00:19:11.559 --> 00:19:14.599 we've been fortunate to have support from people like the 331 00:19:14.640 --> 00:19:19.279 Houston Safari Club Foundation and CCA and other organizations in 332 00:19:19.319 --> 00:19:22.400 the past, but we're mainly supported by you the people, 333 00:19:22.440 --> 00:19:24.799 and you're helping us reach kids all over the place. 334 00:19:24.839 --> 00:19:27.960 We're doing something in Florida in a few weeks. We're 335 00:19:27.960 --> 00:19:30.960 gonna be back in Florida in the Keys area in 336 00:19:31.079 --> 00:19:35.319 late July. We're doing Colorado again, my favorite state. We're 337 00:19:35.359 --> 00:19:38.519 doing Yellowstone this year. We're doing the Smoking Mountains and 338 00:19:38.559 --> 00:19:42.440 also helping lots of kids locally through our Kingdom Zoo 339 00:19:42.440 --> 00:19:46.640 Wildlife Center. Learn more at Kingdomzoo dot com and also 340 00:19:46.839 --> 00:19:48.960 go to Higher Calling dot net and click on the 341 00:19:49.000 --> 00:19:52.119 Youth Conservation Outreach link and see how you can help. 342 00:19:52.160 --> 00:19:54.039 And maybe you know a kid that we can help. 343 00:19:54.079 --> 00:19:57.359 That's always very important. Come back on more. We're gonna 344 00:19:57.359 --> 00:20:00.519 talk some stuff about wildlife in Texas that I bet 345 00:20:00.559 --> 00:20:06.440 you didn't know. Welcome back to Moro Outdoors on News 346 00:20:06.480 --> 00:20:09.279 Talk five sixty k lv I. This is Chuester Moore. 347 00:20:09.319 --> 00:20:12.000 You know hunting never ends in Texas. I just shot 348 00:20:12.000 --> 00:20:13.799 a pig at my friend Derek's deer Lee's out in 349 00:20:13.799 --> 00:20:16.039 Fredicksburg a couple of weeks ago. In fact, we have 350 00:20:16.160 --> 00:20:19.480 year round exotic and hog hunting and varnmut hunting, but 351 00:20:19.799 --> 00:20:23.359 the official hunting season has kicked off with dove season 352 00:20:23.400 --> 00:20:26.279 opening an early teal season coming up. Then we have 353 00:20:26.480 --> 00:20:29.839 archery only whitetailed, then we have duck season of course, 354 00:20:29.880 --> 00:20:33.759 with geese mixed in there, and then we have the 355 00:20:33.839 --> 00:20:37.640 general whitetail season, mule deer season out in West Texas, 356 00:20:37.640 --> 00:20:41.720 a prong horned season. Seriously, lots of cool stuff going on, 357 00:20:42.680 --> 00:20:45.359 and I wanted to kind of run through some of 358 00:20:45.400 --> 00:20:50.119 these and give my thoughts on the opportunities for these 359 00:20:50.160 --> 00:20:54.920 particular hunts in Texas and give you some nuggets that 360 00:20:55.079 --> 00:20:58.160 maybe you didn't know of. I mean, dove season is 361 00:20:58.279 --> 00:21:00.480 kind of like, I'm gonna be honest with you, I've 362 00:21:00.480 --> 00:21:03.680 never been a huge dove hunter. I love to eat doves. 363 00:21:04.200 --> 00:21:06.319 I've been dove hunting quite a few times. It's just 364 00:21:06.440 --> 00:21:09.079 never been something I was like really hardcore about, like 365 00:21:09.119 --> 00:21:12.720 a lot of guys, But dove hunting in Texas. There 366 00:21:12.759 --> 00:21:17.279 are more dove killed in Texas than there are living 367 00:21:17.359 --> 00:21:19.920 in most states there. For example, you know, there's like 368 00:21:20.039 --> 00:21:24.200 forty million dove in Texas. Let me repeat that, about 369 00:21:24.359 --> 00:21:29.119 forty million dove in Texas and about four hundred thousand 370 00:21:29.759 --> 00:21:34.119 dove hunters. If every dove hunter in the state, you know, 371 00:21:34.319 --> 00:21:39.079 shot you know, ten dove, there'd be four million. Hard 372 00:21:39.119 --> 00:21:41.200 I don't know what the harvest rate is recently, but 373 00:21:42.440 --> 00:21:44.279 that you know, most of the time that's somebody going 374 00:21:44.400 --> 00:21:50.279 one time. But there it's a very very big thing 375 00:21:50.359 --> 00:21:53.640 in Texas, and there are more dove hunters in Texas 376 00:21:53.680 --> 00:21:56.039 and there are deer hunters in most states. It's just 377 00:21:56.079 --> 00:21:58.160 a big deal. And I don't think it quit gets 378 00:21:58.519 --> 00:22:01.079 highlighted quite enough because it's it's not something people like 379 00:22:01.759 --> 00:22:05.119 train up for, you know, they just go out usually 380 00:22:05.200 --> 00:22:07.920 hunt the first couple of weekends and that's it. You know. Actually, 381 00:22:07.920 --> 00:22:09.640 some of the better dove huntings in the in the 382 00:22:09.640 --> 00:22:11.759 middle of the dove season, when no one's out there. 383 00:22:12.240 --> 00:22:15.160 We have white wing dove that are increasing, even in 384 00:22:15.200 --> 00:22:18.200 Southeast Texas. Of course, mourning dove is the basis of 385 00:22:18.880 --> 00:22:21.799 most from the hunting. I'm give you a quick story 386 00:22:21.839 --> 00:22:24.839 about a white wing dove. I was fishing, you know, 387 00:22:25.000 --> 00:22:28.039 years ago, at a rig that was about three to 388 00:22:28.079 --> 00:22:31.519 four miles off the Louisiana coast, right off Sabine Passed, 389 00:22:31.599 --> 00:22:32.960 and there was a and I had I ran a 390 00:22:32.960 --> 00:22:34.640 picture of this in the Port Arthur News at the time. 391 00:22:35.119 --> 00:22:38.079 There was a white wing dove sitting on the oil 392 00:22:38.160 --> 00:22:40.559 rig just taking a rest and I got to think 393 00:22:40.680 --> 00:22:43.200 this thing flew across the Gulf of Mexico. I mean, 394 00:22:43.200 --> 00:22:46.160 how crazy is that? That was just a neat little 395 00:22:46.200 --> 00:22:48.480 thing to see. But dove season is upon. It is 396 00:22:48.559 --> 00:22:51.400 happening right now. The weather, you know, who knows all 397 00:22:51.440 --> 00:22:53.240 the rain we're been getting late, we have no rain, 398 00:22:53.359 --> 00:22:55.119 and then dove season comes, we get a lot of rain. 399 00:22:55.160 --> 00:22:58.799 But it could benefit the teal hunters putting some fresh 400 00:22:58.839 --> 00:23:01.240 water out of the marsh, some water in some of 401 00:23:01.240 --> 00:23:04.359