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Frog Hunting
By Russell Graves
The sound is hard to describe phonetically but if you ever heard it you don’t forget it. “Wuh-um, wuh-um, wuh-um,” bellows the big bullfrog in a baritone voice from the edge of the small pond that sits a couple of hundred feet from the front porch of my country cabin in central Fannin County. He’s fervently looking for a mate, so each night he sings the same love song over and over. If you like the country, you are bound to love that sound. Nothing epitomizes Texas summer nights like fireflies and noisy bullfrogs.
I have a lifelong fascination with bullfrogs that started when I was a kid. Some of my earliest memories in the outdoors involve frog gigging with my dad and his cousin. My people are originally from the central Texas area around Kosse, but for years, we’d have our family reunion at Fort Parker State Park near Mexia.
During our three or four-day stints camping at the park, my dad would bring his jonboat. During the days, we’d fish the lake at the park, but at night, he’d launch the boat for a post-dusk foray down the Navasota River where he and his cousin Milton would tag team bullfrogs and haul a bucketful from the banks of the river while three burr headed boys (me and my two brothers) held the spotlight.
Occasionally, my dad would let one of us lean from the boat and try to catch a big green frog barehanded but lack of coordination and quickness led to the frogs jumping away more often than not. Back in the day, however, he and Milton were a formidable duo and were efficient at catching a mess of the amphibians.
After a night of frog catching, my dad would put the catch in a small tub with a bit of water so they wouldn’t dry out. The next morning he’d clean them. He was as good at cleaning frogs as he was at catching them. He’d reach into the bucket, snatch a frog out by the hind legs, and in one deft motion, lay them across a stump and chop off the back legs with a hatchet. He’d toss the front half back on the ground where they’d instinctively crawl back to the water.
“Where are the frogs going now, daddy?” I asked him. I couldn’t have been more than seven or eight at the time.
“They’ll go back to the river, grow some more legs, and we’ll catch them again next year,” he smiled with all the swagger of a 40-something while wearing his aviator sunglasses, cut-off jeans, and pearl snapped shirt. Back in the late 1970s my dad was the epitome of a “good ol’ boy”: a fan of Willie and Waylon, drinker of Pearl beer, and just the right combination of a hell-raising, blue-collar worker and a loving father who shared his love of the outdoors and her bounty with his boys.
To read more pick up a copy of the June 2017 NTFR issue. To subscribe call 940-872-5922.
By Barry Whitworth, DVM
In January, I attended the Oklahoma Veterinary Conference. While waiting for one of the sessions to start, a classmate of mine commented how many of the attendees walk with a limp, used a cane, and/or have damaged hands. We all agreed that working with animals is hard on the body. In general, anything associated with farming and ranching is dangerous.
Most farmers and ranchers know that agriculture is a dangerous occupation. According to United States Bureau of Statistics, workers involved in agriculture, forestry, and fishing had the highest occupational fatality rate in 2022. The fatality rate of 23.5 per 100,000 full-time equivalent (FTE) workers for this group is much higher when compared to the overall occupation fatality rate of 3.7 per 100,000 FTE. Most of the agriculture-related fatalities are associated with transportation, such as tractor overturns, and vehicle crashes, but a fair number involve livestock.
To read more, pick up a copy of the March issue of NTFR magazine. To subscribe by mail, call 940-872-5922.
By Jesse Kader
Comfy and keep it western. That’s the name of the game this month. It’s hot and who wants clingy clothing? This jumpsuit is perfectly comfortable and relaxed without forfeiting the fashion. Dress it up or keep it casual. See this and more at www.jessesjewelz.com.
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Noble Research Institute Expands New Program Offering Farmers and Ranchers the Essentials of Regenerative Ranch Management
The educational program has been expanded to three new locations, empowering ranchers and farmers to monitor and improve the health of their land, livestock and livelihood through regenerative principles.
ARDMORE, OK–September 12, 2023 – Noble Research Institute announced the expansion of Essentials of Regenerative Ranching, a new educational program designed to help ranchers enhance and restore the land, making it more resilient and reaching livestock grazing goals through regenerative management. Essentials of Regenerative Ranching provides producers with practical tools, hands-on experience and guidance to make data-driven decisions to decrease costs and improve profit.
The Essentials of Regenerative Ranching course has been expanded to three new locations in Texas and Oklahoma. Registration is open now at www.noble.org/essentials. Seating is limited, so early registration is recommended.
Texas A&M
College Station, Texas
October 17 – 18
O.D. Butler, Jr. Animal Science Complex
Noble Research Institute
Ardmore, Oklahoma
October 31 – November 1
Pavilion Center
Texas A&M
Kingsville, Texas
November 7-8
Caesar Kleberg Wildlife Center
“Program participants gain working knowledge and experience of monitoring and improving the health of their soil, grazing livestock more strategically and making informed financial decisions,” said Hugh Aljoe, Noble Research Institute’s director of ranches, outreach and partnerships. “We use a mix of classroom and field work to send producers home with the tools they need to begin making changes on their ranch.”
Farmers and ranchers navigate uncertainty from weather, fluctuating market prices and escalating costs of inputs. Many producers are seeking new tools that offer greater control and reduce their operational uncertainty. Through this course, ranchers and farmers will calculate their financial situations, determine initial stocking rates, carrying capacity and grazing goals.
“The course is well-suited for ranchers of all experience levels and all types and sizes of operations,” Aljoe added. “No matter your situation, this program will transform the way you think about your ranch.”
The Essentials of Regenerative Ranching program allows producers to overcome obstacles, become more informed problem-solvers and increase the productivity of their grazing lands. By participating in this program, ranchers join a community of like-minded producers who are shaping the future of ranching and leaving a lasting impact on their land and families. “If I had known what I learned in this course when I started my regenerative journey, I could have avoided some key mistakes,” said Tana McCarter, a rancher, and Essentials attendee. “I left with the tools I needed to monitor my soil health and financial progress. I’ll now have the right data to make informed decisions on how to meet my regenerative goals.”
Noble Research Institute is an independent nonprofit agricultural research organization dedicated to guiding farmers and ranchers in applying regenerative principles that yield healthier soil, more productive grazing land, and business success.
At Noble, researchers, facilitators and ranch staff work together to share with farmers and ranchers the skills and tools to regenerate the land in a profitable manner. Noble is focused on the regenerative management of the nation’s grazing acres, which directly impacts pasture and range environments, wildlife, pecan production, and livestock production. Regenerative management recognizes that each decision made on the ranch impacts the interactions of the soil, plants, water, animals, economics and people. Noble’s 14,000 acres of working ranch lands provide a living laboratory on which to demonstrate and practice regenerative principles and ideas to deliver value to farmers and ranchers across the U.S.
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