My hope

A lot of people living in the United States and around the world are having a hard time sleeping. So much is happening and so fast and we fear for what tomorrow may bring. Friends and family have succumb to Covid, people are out of work and we have a new President with probably more …

Advertisement

Can we realize Roosevelt’s dream for a transboundary conservation area by developing a plan for a sustainable future?

The Chisos Mountains from near the Terlingua Ghost Town. Background Big Bend National Park was first officially proposed on February 16, 1935 when Texas Senator Morris Sheppard wrote a letter to President Franklin D. Roosevelt suggesting a protected area of international scope in the Big Bend area. Roosevelt was a strong advocate for the proposal …

Conservationists push for quick reversal of damaged environmental rules

“First 100-Days Challenge” Delivered to New Administration The vast list of damaging environmental policy changes enacted without congressional approval by the Trump administration is about to get major attention from the conservation community. According to a just-released campaign by the Rewilding Institute (TRI) called “Healing Nature’s Wounds,” endorsed by a significant list of national environmental …

This is where I want to be right now and its SNOWING!!!!

The bison in the Yellowstone Park bison herd are American bison of the Plains bison subspecies. Yellowstone National Park may be the only location in the United States where free-ranging bison were never extirpated, since they continued to exist in the wild and were not re-introduced, as has been done in most other bison herd …

Who will speak out the American beaver in El Paso?

American beaver swimming in a small canal west of the Montoya - Meadowlark intersection in the Upper Valley On June 25 distinguished El Paso biologist, Dr. Ad Konings, went birding at the El Paso Country Club and found a beaver in a small canal west of the Montoya - Meadowlark intersection.  As he approached this …

Last chance to save the vaquita

Over the past few years I have been involved with international efforts to help call attention to the plight of the rarest marine mammal on earth, the vaquita porpoise.  This beautiful sea creature from the Sea of Cortez is so rare, and its future so much in doubt, that the species could go extinct at …

The blue dot by Carl Sagan – must see

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wupToqz1e2g

The Franklin Mountains are rich in biodiversity

Rock squirrel by Rick LoBello by Rick LoBello, Education Curator Everyone of us living on the planet needs biodiversity and ecosystem services to function. Biodiversity provides the world’s supply of oxygen, clean air and water, pollination of plants, pest control, wastewater treatment and many other ecosystem services. As a result we need to be informed …

Big Bend, a moment in history

Big Bend National Park is one of the best places in the world where you might see a mountain lion while driving through the park or hiking. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=dFrGNx1tuQs Special thanks to Dion Recachina who I met over 30 years ago at a Cooperating Associations Conference for all his help in making this film a reality. …

The world needs super heroes

Every day more and more of our planet's ecosystem is being destroyed by people who care more about short term gains rather than the future of humanity.   Last year Paulo Paulino Guajajara, an indigenous leader working to protect the Amazon rainforest in northern Brazil, was shot and killed by armed men who no doubt saw him …

The little white bird with 32,299 shares

How can I ever forget you...America's Funniest Home Videos Honorable Mention 2015

Dreaming of a peaceful world

If there ever was a time for all 7 billion of us to find a way to become united like never before, that time is now.   During this pandemic and in the years ahead everyone of us needs to stay engaged, no matter how difficult.   We only have one time to make a difference for …

Stressed by the pandemic? Get outside

Spring is in the air, the birds are singing and flowers are blooming.   We are being told to avoid gathering with other people so what can we do to keep our sanity?   One way is to get outside, in your backyard pulling weeds, taking care of your plants, enjoying the night sky and going for …

My number 2 team is NUMBER 1!

Former Kansas City Chief's Head Coach Hank Stram The Kansas City Chiefs had just won Superbowl IV and I was a freshman at William Jewell College, home of the Kansas City Chief's training camp from 1963-1990.   During my senior year I was able to take a job working at the camp helping where ever I …

Help build a roof in Africa

My friend Dr. Alan Goodall, who some of you may know as the author of The Wandering Gorillas, has asked me to help the Batwa in Rwanda with several projects - especially this one https://www.gofundme.com/f/help-kwizera-go-to-school. I posted a blog about the Batwa late in 2018 and just recently have been in touch with Richard Ntakirutimana by SKYPE …

Why not in El Paso?

Let’s create a Northern Chihuahuan Desert Wildlife Park in the Franklin and Organ Mountains  The other day I received a conservation alert from the Franklin Mountains Wilderness Coalition.   The alert reported on City Council plans to discuss a conservation easement and Natural Open Space Zone to be placed on the lands that make up the …

Looking forward to Desert Conference

My 45-year journey in the Chihuahuan Desert began in 1975 when I was hired as a park ranger naturalist in Big Bend National Park.  My greatest joy ever since has been helping people connect with and appreciate this part of our world.  Today as the Education Curator of the El Paso Zoo I am working …

“Half of all land must be kept in a natural state to protect Earth”

What will El Paso do when there is no more land to develop?by Rick LoBello All over El Paso and the surrounding area developers are on the move building new roads, shopping centers and housing areas.  These projects are making life a little easier for those of us who drive back and forth to work …

Sign up today

If you're looking to get involved with a group of people in El Paso who are working to encourage recycling, saving wildlife habitat in the Franklin Mountains and returning extirpated species to the wilds of Texas like the Mexican wolf, the El Paso Sierra Club is the group for you. Learn more about how you …

Go for the snow this winter

Snow Geese at Bosque del Apache National Wildlife Refuge by Rick LoBello Happy Holidays everyone.  It’s a wonderful time of year and I am making plans for another trip to my favorite winter spot near El Paso – Bosque del Apache National Wildlife Refuge in New Mexico.   Last year I made a little video about …