Ashlyn's Wilderness Blog

 

Journal Entry # 10 Fort Worth Zoo Excursion      Ending the class with an adventure to the zoo was such a fun and memorable experience. With finals and the end of the semester approaching, it was incredibly refreshing to have the chance to step outside the classroom and enjoy something lighthearted. Visiting a well-known Fort Worth landmark that I had never taken the time to explore before made the outing even more special.      I was genuinely impressed by the Fort Worth Zoo. Beyond the animals, the natural scenery throughout the zoo was peaceful and surprisingly calming. It felt more like a nature walk than just a zoo visit, which added to the overall experience. One of my favorite parts was the section dedicated to Texas wilderness. It was so cool to see animals native to the state, and the highlight there was definitely the alligator chilling in the water!      If I had to pick a favorite exhibit, I’d say it was the giraffes. They were es...

    Journal Entry # 9 Easter Weekend in San Antonio         Over Easter weekend this semester, I got the opportunity to travel to San Antonio for a couple days. While I was there, we saw many different sites, the most notable being the zoo and the Japanese Tea Gardens. Throughout my adventures, I made sure to be observant of the animals, flora, and scenery that I encountered. I have detailed my experiences and included some of my favorite photos below.    Stop #1: San Antonio Zoo!!     Over this past year, one of my friends and I have taken interest in an animal called the capybara. It is the worlds largest rodent with origins in South America. Recently, the San Antonio Zoo introduced a baby capybara to its animal population prompting our visit. We spent a lot of time watching the capybara, picking up on its mannerisms and interactions with its adult counterparts. One specific behavior we noticed was that the capybaras enjoyed flick...

  Journal Entry # 7 4/10 Trip to Fort Worth Nature Center       Today, we had the chance to explore a new trail at the Fort Worth Nature Center, the Prairie Trail. This scenic loop offered views of green trees, wildflowers, and even a view of the prairie dogs in their habitat.      Seeing the prairie dog area was especially meaningful, as we remembered hearing about the Nature Center’s plans to introduce them during one of our earlier visits. Since then, the staff has made great progress. They traveled to collect the prairie dogs, kept them in quarantine, and recently placed them in cages on-site. The idea is for the prairie dogs to gradually burrow their way out and establish their own space. It was fascinating to watch their behavior and movement within the individual cages. Once they settle in and the population grows, it will be an exciting and enriching feature of the Prairie Trail.     Beyond the prairie dogs, the trail had so much...

   Journal Entry #7 Canoeing at the Fort Worth Nature Center      I was really excited for the chance to hit the water on the canoes at the Fort Worth Nature Center. During the trip, we spotted some wildlife, soaked up some sunshine, breathed in the fresh air, and tested our canoeing skills. Overall, I thought canoeing was the perfect way to kick off my Saturday morning—enjoying the outdoors with great company.     Some of my favorite sightings out on the water were the turtles and the alligators. As we passed by a variety of tree stumps in the water you could see many turtles laying out - trying to catch as much sun as they could. It appeared as though on any stump there was always at least two turtles, and it was fun seeing they always seemed to have a companion. Another cool spotting was the alligators. I was not expecting to see any while we were canoeing, so it was kind of a surprise. Thankfully, after our time catching an alligator at one of our ...

  Journal Entry # 6 3/27 Trip to Fort Worth Nature Center  Now that we're back from spring break and our focus has shifted to creating video trail guides, we had the opportunity to spend today’s class exploring some of the trails that the center offers. Considering Texas, particularly the DFW area, is known for its relatively flat landscape, I was curious to see what these hiking trails had to offer. I have to say, I was pleasantly surprised by what I found. The trail my group explored had a respectable amount of elevation gain, and along the way, we were treated to views of some bodies of water. At times, I felt completely immersed in nature, surrounded only by trees and bushes. Although I spotted a few butterflies, I was hoping to encounter more wildlife and insects. Perhaps I just need to spend more time on the trail to see more. One of the things I truly loved was how lush and green everything was. It was such a relief to finally experience the season where everything isn'...

In anticipation of our time with the nature center after spring break, here are three suggestions to enhance the center’s social media presence: Introduce Collaborations : Partnering with pages that already have a larger following could significantly expand the center’s reach. For example, securing a feature on prominent local pages, like those focused on Fort Worth, could help boost visibility and draw attention to the center. Make Content Interactive : Increasing audience engagement could be a huge benefit. Adding interactive features such as polls in Stories or offering Q&A options would encourage followers to engage more with the content, while also allowing the center to address any questions or interests viewers might have. Focus on Current Trends : Tapping into popular trends is an excellent way to connect with younger audiences who are most active on social media. Using current trends like relevant hashtags, participating in challenges, and creating engaging Reels ...

 Journal Entry #5  Fossil Rim Wildlife Center  As part of my spring break plans, a couple of friends and I decided to visit the Fossil Rim Wildlife Center in Glen Rose, Texas . This is a drive-through wildlife center where we had the chance to see a variety of animals and even feed them—all from the comfort of our car. Upon admission, we were given a bag of food that we could toss onto the road for the animals to enjoy. However, for the giraffes, we had the special opportunity to feed them directly from our hands. The center made it easy to identify the animals through both an app and a brochure. If the animals got close enough, we could use the Fossil Rim app to snap a photo and receive the animal's identification. The center was also organized into different “pastures” , each designed to support the specific species living there. Conservation is a core mission of the center. Their goals include not only the conservation of species but also scientific research , profe...

     Journal Entry #4 3/13 Trip to Fort Worth Nature Center  Today was an eventful day at the nature center. I originally came in expecting to cut more privet, but that quickly changed when I learned we had the opportunity to go alligator catching. Naturally, this sparked a lot of questions in my mind, like: How big are these alligators? Why do they need to catch one? How do you even catch an alligator? And so on. After loading up into trucks, we arrived at a pond where we could immediately spot the heads of a couple of gators in the water. We had the chance to walk around the pond, spotting several alligators, as well as other animals like birds and turtles. During this time, some of the FWNC workers had successfully hooked an alligator, and the process of pulling it out of the water began. I learned that the reason they catch alligators is to monitor the population in the area. They catch the alligator, weigh it, measure it, and tag it to better understand the popu...

   Journal Entry #3  3/6 Trip to Fort Worth Nature Center  Today's habitat restoration work, focusing on cutting privet, was quite similar to last week's task. However, I felt much more productive this time. It seemed like everyone had a better sense of what to expect and how to approach the task. For me, the progress we made far exceeded what we accomplished last week, and I felt more confident in my efforts. One reason this week felt easier was that I had already developed a strategy for tackling the privet and knew the most effective way to reach the base of each bush. Below are some photos that capture highlights from the day: One of the photos I took was of a privet bush before we cut it down. It shows just how tangled the bushes can get, which adds a level of challenge—and excitement—to the task of removing them. In the end, we successfully cleared this area of privet.  This time, I also made an effort to take in more of the surroundings beyond just the pr...

 Journal Entry #2  2/27 Trip to Fort Worth Nature Center      Today was our second day at the Fort Worth Nature Center, where our class focused on cutting privet, an invasive shrub. I saw firsthand how this plant can quickly dominate an area, as it was nearly taking over the small patch of land we were working on. This experience helped me understand how privet can disrupt the ecosystem by hindering the growth of native plants and affecting the overall habitat. Despite the hard work, it felt rewarding knowing that our efforts were contributing to the restoration of the area. It was a productive day, and I appreciated the chance to make a positive impact on the nature center. Throughout our efforts today I had a few takeaways:  1) My biggest takeaway was realizing how important teamwork is in making tasks more enjoyable. Working alongside such great people made todays experience at the nature center much more fun and rewarding. The conversations were lighthe...