Prairie Notes #226 - What Redford Said
Prairie Notes are monthly photo/journal observations from Tandy Hills Natural Area by Founder/Director, Don Young. They include field reports, flora and fauna sightings, and more, mixed with a scoop of dry humor and a bit of philosophy.
They are available free to all who get on the FOTHNA email list.
What redford Said
Prairie Notes #226
October 1, 2025
1) What Redford Said
2) Field Report - September
3) New Species Report - September
4) Newsworthy & Noteworthy
5) PrairieSky / StarParty Report
6) Prairie Proverb - Sister Lynne Smith
Robert Redford in 2015. Photo credit: George Pimentel
1) What Redford Said
On September 16, 2025, headlines from around the world noted the death of Robert Redford.
“Robert Redford, filmmaker who fought for nature, has died, aged 89”
“Robert Redford: The Environmental Movement Has Lost a Giant”
“From Sundance to southern Utah, Robert Redford fought for wild places”
“Robert Redford: A giant lost, a legacy that endures”
“Robert Redford remembered for his deep legacy in environmental activism and Native American advocacy”
"Robert Redford found his love for the natural world in Texas”
It’s easy to dismiss, or not take seriously, celebrities who speak out on hot button issues unrelated to their occupation. That’s not the case with the late, Robert Redford. Few celebrities have used their platform and fame to protect our scared wild places as passionately and effectively as Redford.
Not only did he risk his reputation and job security as an actor, he became a zealous activist, donated millions of dollars to preservation groups, put his own land in conservation easement, served as a trustee and adviser for Natural Resources Defense Council (NRDC) for almost 50 years, he fought back against corporate / industrial interests, he set up a nonprofit dedicated to producing documentaries to inspire environmental action, and he used his celebrity on the global stage to advocate for climate action. He was unwavering in his advocacy for environmental protection.
Although his primary focus was protection for wilderness in the southwestern USA, has actions and words helped all of us. In 1976, Redford was burned in effigy in Kanab, Utah, for his successful activism that blocked the construction of a $3.5 billion coal-fired power plant. He faced intense public backlash, including threats to his family. Redford was a big supporter of solar energy, very early. He even made this odd little Oscar-nominated, short film about solar power in 1975.
During all this he managed to make a few pretty good films and documentaries. That’s what makes him special. He was as concerned about threats to the planet as much or more than his acting career.
He was a kindred spirit with our Patron Saint, Ed Abbey. Although they chose divergent paths to aiding the natural world, they once took a month-long camping trip together in the southwest that was documented in National Geographic. He even once owned the rights to film and adaptation of Abbey’s enviro/comic masterpiece, The Monkey Wrench Gang.
These are dark days for environmental stewards and nature mystics. I think it important to honor and remember our environmental heroes. Robert Redford was one. He was unafraid to take on those who seek to destroy the Earth's life support systems by prioritizing short-term development and fossil fuels over sustainable, renewable resources. He was a role model for millions of nature lovers and seekers of justice. Let’s never forget what he did and said.
“Time is running out. Our window of opportunity is narrow. I believe there are true limits to the resources of our planet, but there is no limit to the human imagination and our capacity to solve the biggest challenges of our time.”
- Robert Redford, from an article for TIME magazine, December 2016
> Thanks for reading Prairie Notes and supporting Friends of Tandy Hills Natural Area. Your donations are welcome HERE.
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Ed Abbey (left) along with Robert Redford (center) in 1976 as part of an essay Redford wrote about the Outlaw Trail for National Geographic.
2) Field Report - September
I had THREE close encounters with birds in September. The Greater Roadrunner (Geococcyx californianus) that I observed here in late August for the first time in a few years left me a present. A few weeks after it was gone I happened to find one of its feathers. (see below) About a week later, while hiking up Broadcast Hill, I came upon a Turkey Vulture (Cathartes aura) perching in a tree. It was so unfazed by my approach that I could almost pet him. (see below) And, finally, after a long hike in mid-September, I looked up and I saw about a dozen Mississippi Kites (Ictinia mississippiensis) foraging in the sky. Then I realized there were 3 of them in the tree just above my head. They were equally unfazed. (see below)
In other news, the fall prairie is especially nice this year, thanks to more rain than usual. The newly designated, Eryngo Trail, is a study in fuzzy purple pineapples. Thousands of them. You gotta see it to believe it. The fall vistas are always comforting before winter takes over. So, come on in and reconnect with the natural world.
Click photos to see them uncropped.
The fall prairie was looking fab on September 8th.
This patch of Big Bluestem grass (Andropogon gerardi) has reached about 6’ tall and is more than 100 years old.
Giant Blue Sage (Salvia azurea) lives up to its name.
Nothing is sweeter than watching a mating pair of Cottontail Rabbits foraging at Tandy Hills in the summertime.
3) New Species - September
We ended the month of September with 17 new species, bringing the new total to, 2496 species. Notables include, a Vesper Bluet damselfly and a Thoreau’s Flower Moth. Two new Grasshopper species were also found. Check out a few of these below and see them all at the Tandy Hills iNat Project Page HERE.
4) Newsworthy & Noteworthy
>>>>>>> North Texas Giving Day worked out well for Friends of Tandy Hills this year. We have never met our modest, stated goal of $5,000 until now. Thanks to everyone who made donations to our worthy cause.
>>>>>>> It’s that time of year again to help out our bird brothers and sisters. It’s easy. Just turn off those outside lights and they will thank you! Learn more about the good work of our friends at, Texas Conservation Alliance website, here: https://www.tcatexas.org/lights-out-dfw
>>>>>>> The New York Times has just published an amazing story of a group of Benedictine sisters who have restored 170 acres of native prairie in Wisconsin. The prairie sisters of Holy Wisdom Monastery, outside Madison, say these actions fulfill their highest calling to welcome all people and care for the Earth as a sacred place. Read this inspiring story for free, HERE.
>>>>>>> October 10 - 26 are the dates to participate. It’s easy and fun using the iNaturalist app. Identifying pollinator species helps gather data that can protect them. Pollinators include, butterflies, bees and moths, bats, hummingbirds, wasps, flies, and beetles. They help sustain native plant species, human food crops, and add beauty to our lives. Learn more HERE: https://tpwd.texas.gov/education/bioblitz?utm_campaign=PollinatorBioBlitz2025&utm_medium=email&utm_source=Savethedate
>>>>>>> In 2024, Native Prairies Association of Texas (NPAT) launched the North Texas Prairie Initiative (NTPI), a bold new effort to protect the region’s threatened grasslands and open spaces. Considering how fast the N. TX, population is growing, this is an urgent effort that I strongly support. You can read more about this initiative HERE.
>>>>>>> This is Lost & Found story. The item on your left is a hand-carved, wooden neckerchief slide. I found it lying in a meadow at Tandy Hills about 20 years ago. Fast forward to September 2025: I made a Facebook post about American Indian Heritage Day and used this photo of the Indian slide, speculating that, a Boy Scout probably lost it. Five minutes later someone wrote that, they knew exactly who it belonged to. That someone was the wife of Martin Grunow, who carved the Indian slider when he was a teenager in the late 1960’s. Apparently, his young son (who later became an Eagle Scout) borrowed it 20 years ago and lost it on the prairie. Martin has owned and operated, The Woodwork Shop in east FW since 1985 and was very pleased to get his slider back. Don’t you love a happy ending?
(BTW— You may be surprised to learn that, American Indian Heritage Day was a Texas House Bill #174, that passed in 2013 and is celebrated on September 26th, a different date than the national heritage day.)
5) Prairie Sky / Star Party report
The September star party was a smashing success. About 50 people attended plus 11 members of the FW Astronomical Society (FWAS) and their scopes. The next star party is October 25th. See the full schedule on the website HERE. Come out and observe amazing things in the night sky with experts from FWAS. 2025 is their 10th straight year at Tandy Hills.
Here is the October sky-watching commentary from FWAS rep, John McCrea:
For our October 25th Tandy Hills/FWAS star party, we will have some new fall constellations and a preview of some winter ones as the constellations continue their westward journey. The center of our galaxy can be found in the constellation, Sagittarius (the Archer). Some of the more familiar summer constellations remaining are Scorpius (the Scorpion), Lyra (the Lyre) and Cygnus (the Swan). Among the new fall constellations visible will be, Cassiopeia (Queen of Ethiopia), Pegasus (the Winged Horse), Andromeda (daughter of Cassiopeia and Cepheus), Perseus (Rescuer of Andromeda) and Pisces (the Fish). The summer triangle (Vega (25 LY), Deneb (1,411 LY), and Altair (17 LY) will still be visible. Our circumpolar friend Ursa Major (the Great Bear) will be low over the northern horizon.
The sun will set at about 6:44 PM on October 25th and we will have a 6-day old waxing gibbous moon located in Sagittarius. The “Lord of the Rings” of our solar system, Saturn (♄), about 814 million miles away, will be in Pisces, and will be up all evening. Jupiter (♃), about 457 million miles away, will rise close to midnight in the constellation Gemini. Neptune (Ψ), at 2.8 billion miles away will be between Pisces. Uranus (♅), 1.76 billion miles away, will be in Taurus (the Bull).
6) Prairie Proverb - Sister Lynne Smith
“Humans need creation to find ourselves. To know that we’re not God over other human beings, or over the Earth.”
The Sisters of the Holy Wisdom Monastery have done amazing things with their 170-acre prairie. Check out their website HERE.
Become a Friend HERE: https://www.tandyhills.org/donate
Prairie Notes© is the official newsletter of Friends of Tandy Hills Natural Area, a 501 (c)(3) non-profit organization. All content by Don Young except where otherwise noted.
