Texas Parks and Wildlife will be at the Ladd Natural Area on Sunday, April 23 to lead a BioBlitz.
From Mark Graham via Nextdoor — “Texas Parks and Wildlife will be at the Ladd Natural Area on Sunday, April 23 to lead a BioBlitz. The event will be held from 3:00 pm until 6:00 pm for the first part of the survey. A TPWD biologist, Sam Kieschnick, will be on hand to lead the event. Hopefully, a lot of Texas Master Naturalists will also be there to help catalog as many species as possible that day. Anybody can help including kids. In fact, this is a good way to introduce kids to learning about native Texas species. Again, this is from 3:00 to 6:00 pm on Sunday, April 23rd at the Ladd Natural Area.
The event does not end at 6:00 pm though. Sam, with TPWD, will then set up his black-light stations (5 stations I believe) that will allow viewing insects and the like after dark. It will start at 8:00 pm and should be absolutely fascinating. Kids would absolutely love seeing what can be found after dark. I am a 68 yr old kid and I am excited. So adult kids and adults with kids please feel free to attend for a little bit to see the UV event. It will go from 8:00 pm to late so plan on attending at some point.
These events have a purpose. They are to catalog every species possible that can be found on the Ladd property. It will help with worldwide research and also show the city how vitally important the land is to promote a native ecosystem. You all can help the cause as well as come to see the land if you have never visited it. If you can make it, download the iNaturalist app to your phone so you can take images and upload them to the Ladd Natural Area iNaturalist site. Last year, the first time the event happened, we had a great turnout and identified a lot of different species in one day. In less than a year, 638 different species have been found on the land. That is pretty impressive.
Here's the link to the Ladd Natural Area that is found on the iNaturalist site.
Please come help protect this land. It is yours and deserves to be restored to what a native Texas once looked like here. It is our heritage and, if you haven't noticed, the population is booming all over Texas, and protecting what is natural is needed. The images above are from the BioBlitz held last year and images I shot the last couple of days showing how the land is in a full new-growth mode right now.”
These are your 42-acres of pristine Backland Prairie in the heart of Duncanville.
Donated by the Ladd family in 1998, for the citizens of Duncanville to enjoy, here are some fast facts about the Ladd Property.
It is a refuge for species of plants and animals, including otters and beavers, that have lived there for hundreds of years. The spring-fed Ten Mile Creek runs through it, with its waterfalls, fossils, and scenery like you were in the Texas Hill Country.
It is one the last remnant of the original untouched land in Duncanville, from the Hamilton Ranch in 1926, and donated to the city by Bob Ladd in 1998.
It is over 40 acres of historical, ecological, geological, and environmental significance and the most beautiful creek and natural area remaining in Duncanville.
It is an opportunity for Duncanville to have its own nature preserve for walking, birding, fishing, playing with kids and grandkids.
Southwest Duncanville is a parks desert with no parks within any walking or biking distance.
Nationally recommended park acres per 1,000 citizens is 10.
Duncanville is 5.99, well below the average for any of our peer cities.
Austin is at 24 acres/1,000 citizens.
The Ladd Preserve would put us at just over 7.
© 2022, Duncanville Nature Conservancy is a 501(c)3 nonprofit organization.