R E S O U R C E S F O R T E A C H E R S A N D S T U D E N T S

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T E X A S P A R K S & W I L D L I F E � 47

ONCE, TEXAS HAD NO HIGHWAYS. In fact, most places didn’teven have roads! Many early settlements were built near riversso people could hop on and go from one part of Texas to anoth-er. Today we drive cars, but nature still uses rivers for its high-ways. Rivers transport nutrients from the land to the sea. As ariver flows, it takes mud, plants and rocks with it. These materi-als come from a process called erosion (such as when pieces ofthe riverbank break off) and make sediment.

>>ROCKING AND ROLLING

RIVERS ROCK!Nature’s superhighways go with the flow.

VOL. 2 >> ISSUE 11 >> JULY 2010

>>Alligator gar

WE CALL a river’s world a “river basin” andthe place where it begins its “headwaters.”

WHEN IT RAINS, some raindrops soakinto the ground while others roll away.The water that rolls away createscreeks and streams, called

tributaries. Rainwater zoomsto rivers on tributaries.

IF YOU SEE something that looks like a really fat snakehiding under a rock, you’ve probably spotted an Americaneel. Try to pick it up and you might get gooey! These guys

produce slippery slime as a defense mechanism.

MONSTERS OF THE RIVER? Nope, just monstrous fish! Alligator gar sometimesgrow 10 feet long and weigh 300

pounds. But never fear — even thoughtheir alligator-shaped heads andsharp teeth make them lookscary, these dudes are cool.

WHILE WE call them “shrimp,” atan average length of 14 inches, theseprawns sure won’t fit on your dinnerplate! When threatened, they’ve beenknown to put up their dukes ... um,

pincers, that is.

RIVERS ARE BIG, but that doesn’t mean they always haveroom for all the water that tributaries bring them. When theyget too full, water spills into floodplains, bringing lots of nutrient-rich sediment with it. Sediment feeds the soil,

making floodplains great places to grow crops.

WHERE A RIVERmeets the sea, somethingvery special happens: an estuary is born.

Here, fresh and salty water come together, and theriver deposits the rest of its sediment. Wading birdsflock to Texas’ estuaries for plentiful prey. In fact, somany interesting birds hang out here that peoplecome to Texas from all over the world just

to see them!

THE NONVENOMOUS gulf saltmarsh snake likes to be out at nightjust like the critters it eats (such asfrogs). If you see one of these shy reptiles, consider yourself lucky.

THE MORE SHRIMP that roseate spoonbillsscoop up and swallow, the pinker they get!

CRAWFISH MAKE their burrows tostay wet inside. They even create a

special door to plug the opening. Whenthreatened, crawfish use their fan-liketails to fling mud into the face of theenemy. Take that, you dirty predator!

FROM THE BANK, a river may look as if it’sbarely moving, but beware! Swim carefully because currents are often

swifter than they seem.

DON’T LET the name “orange-throatdarter” fool you! Bright blue and

green also decorate the males. They’recalled “darters” because these tiny fish

quickly dart from danger.

>> A RIVER’S WORLD

48 � J U L Y 2 0 1 0 T E X A S P A R K S & W I L D L I F E � 49

>>Swimming on bank

>>Orange-throatdarter

>>Gulfsalt marsh snake

>>Big-claw river shrimp

>>Roseate spoonbill

>>Crawfish>>American eel

>>HEADWATERS

>>TRIBUTARIES >>FLOODPLAINS

>> ESTUARY

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>>Alligator gar

WE CALL a river’s world a “river basin” andthe place where it begins its “headwaters.”

WHEN IT RAINS, some raindrops soakinto the ground while others roll away.The water that rolls away createscreeks and streams, called

tributaries. Rainwater zoomsto rivers on tributaries.

IF YOU SEE something that looks like a really fat snakehiding under a rock, you’ve probably spotted an Americaneel. Try to pick it up and you might get gooey! These guys

produce slippery slime as a defense mechanism.

MONSTERS OF THE RIVER? Nope, just monstrous fish! Alligator gar sometimesgrow 10 feet long and weigh 300

pounds. But never fear — even thoughtheir alligator-shaped heads andsharp teeth make them lookscary, these dudes are cool.

WHILE WE call them “shrimp,” atan average length of 14 inches, theseprawns sure won’t fit on your dinnerplate! When threatened, they’ve beenknown to put up their dukes ... um,

pincers, that is.

RIVERS ARE BIG, but that doesn’t mean they always haveroom for all the water that tributaries bring them. When theyget too full, water spills into floodplains, bringing lots of nutrient-rich sediment with it. Sediment feeds the soil,

making floodplains great places to grow crops.

WHERE A RIVERmeets the sea, somethingvery special happens: an estuary is born.

Here, fresh and salty water come together, and theriver deposits the rest of its sediment. Wading birdsflock to Texas’ estuaries for plentiful prey. In fact, somany interesting birds hang out here that peoplecome to Texas from all over the world just

to see them!

THE NONVENOMOUS gulf saltmarsh snake likes to be out at nightjust like the critters it eats (such asfrogs). If you see one of these shy reptiles, consider yourself lucky.

THE MORE SHRIMP that roseate spoonbillsscoop up and swallow, the pinker they get!

CRAWFISH MAKE their burrows tostay wet inside. They even create a

special door to plug the opening. Whenthreatened, crawfish use their fan-liketails to fling mud into the face of theenemy. Take that, you dirty predator!

FROM THE BANK, a river may look as if it’sbarely moving, but beware! Swim carefully because currents are often

swifter than they seem.

DON’T LET the name “orange-throatdarter” fool you! Bright blue and

green also decorate the males. They’recalled “darters” because these tiny fish

quickly dart from danger.

>> A RIVER’S WORLD

48 � J U L Y 2 0 1 0 T E X A S P A R K S & W I L D L I F E � 49

>>Swimming on bank

>>Orange-throatdarter

>>Gulfsalt marsh snake

>>Big-claw river shrimp

>>Roseate spoonbill

>>Crawfish>>American eel

>>HEADWATERS

>>TRIBUTARIES >>FLOODPLAINS

>> ESTUARY

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>>WILD MATH

TEACHER RESOURCE

Spike’s Activity PageSpike’s Activity Page

50 � M A R C H 2 0 0 950 � J U L Y 2 0 1 0

Spike’s Activity PageSpike’s Activity Page

Visit www.tpwmagazine.com to downloada printable PDF, access lesson plans, findadditional resources or order copies.

HELLO GIANT SALVINIA.GOODBYE FISHING HOLE.

Learn to identify and report harmful invasive species.www.texasinvasives.org

Once giant salvinia invades, it chokes lakes and ruins fishing, boating and water recreation. When introduced, it can double in size every seven days and completely cover the lake.

Giant salvinia travels to di�erent Texas lakes attached to boats and trailers. It can survive fordays out of water, so clean even the smallest pieces off your boat, trailer and gear.

Because if giant salvinia is allowed to take over Texas lakes, it won’t be our Texas anymore.

NEXT MONTH: Life in a Desert

This river forms part of the border between Texas and Louisiana. In Spanish, its namemeans “cypress” because lots of cypress trees line its banks. What river is this?

This river flows through Austin, the capital of Texas. Its name means “reddish” inSpanish. What river is this?

In 1841, John Neely Bryan founded the city of Dallas on the banks of this river. It wasdammed to create Lake Livingston. LaSalle, who explored it in 1687, called it “River ofCanoes.” What river is this?

>>WILD SOCIAL STUDIES

>>KEEPING IT WILD

Nueces River

Rio Grande

Red River

Neches River

Sabine River

Trinity River

1) Texas has 15 major rivers. Of those 15, these three form parts ofour border: RED RIVER — forms much of the border between Texas and Oklahoma.SABINE RIVER — forms much of the border between Texas and Louisiana.RIO GRANDE — not only forms part of Texas’ border, but also part ofthe border between the United States and Mexico!

What is the probability that a major Texas river would make up part ofthe Texas border? Use a fraction, then simplify your answer.

2) The RIO GRANDE is 1,896 miles long, but 646 miles of it are inNew Mexico and Colorado. How many miles does the Rio Grandeflow in Texas?

3) These are three well-known Texas rivers and their lengths:COLORADO RIVER – 600 milesNECHES RIVER – 416 milesNUECES RIVER – 315 milesHow many miles do these rivers flow altogether? Te

xasColorado River

LOOK DOWN. See those feet of yours?They’re standing in your watershed! Ina watershed all the water that fallseventually ends up in a common place. To see what a watershed might looklike, tightly crumple up a piece of paperand then open it. If the paper was awatershed, water would end up in theareas with creases. It would eventuallyflow to the part you crumpled first (orthe lowest point). The next time it rainshard, watch where the water in yourwatershed goes!

LOWESTPOINT

Crumple it!

Open it!