"Protecting Our Riparian Areas"

By Peggy Darr, Nature Preserve Officer, Medina River Natural Area

Thursday February 16 Program

6:30pm at TriPoint (281 & St. Mary's, click for directions)

There is more to a river than flowing water. A riparian area is the dense band of vegetation hugging the sides of a river. It covers the entire floodplain and can extend for miles. Riparian areas provide important wildlife habitat and are an important water source for the ever growing human population. Unfortunately, riparian areas are often misunderstood and abused. People allow cattle to graze at the river's edge, they mow the "weedy" plants surrounding a river, and they clear trees for a "better view." All of these actions reduce a river's capacity to retain water. The dense vegetation found in riparian areas acts like a sponge; when rivers flood, the plants slow the rushing water allowing more to soak into underground aquifers. During this time of severe drought, healthy, functioning riparian areas are more important than ever!

Peggy Darr has a Master of Science Degree in Wildlife Biology from Louisiana State University and a Bachelor of Science Degree in Environmental Studies from the University of Vermont (her home state). As an undergraduate student, she also studied wildlife ecology and conservation while abroad in Tanzania and Belize. She is currently the manager of the Medina River Natural Area, a 511 acre preserve owned by the City of San Antonio. Peggy is primarily an ornithologist and has done field research with a variety of bird species including spotted owls in Washington, piping plovers in Massachusetts, Attwater's prairie chickens in Texas, and ducks in North Dakota. She has also given a variety of wildlife-related presentations including one on Texas shorebirds at the Kachemak Bay Shorebird Festival in Homer, Alaska.

Click here to see pictures from our BAS field trip to Deep & Punkin Cave Preserve!