Field Dressing Birds

Proper dressing and handling of a downed bird begins before the bird ever hits the ground.  One has to be prepared for the hunt and must have a sharp hunting knife, a steel or whetstone, light rope of nylon cord, plastic bags, clean cloths and a cooler with ice.

It is important to field dress a downed bird promptly.  As soon as the bird is dead:

1.  Remove the entrails and crop as soon as possible, because the grain in the crop may ferment if not removed soon after death.  See specific directions below.

2.  The heart and liver may be saved for giblets.  Store them in a plastic bag on ice to keep them clean and cold.

3.  The birds may be plucked or skinned in the field.

4.  Cool the carcasses quickly to retain flavor and maintain the quality of the bird.

5.  Wipe out the cavity with a clean cloth or paper towel.  Do not use grass or snow, as this will contaminate the caracass.

6.  Allow air to circulate in the carcass by hanging or laying the bird in a well-ventilated place.

7.  In hot weather, place the birds individually in plastic bags and put on ice.

8.  Do not pile warm birds in a mass.

9.  Store birds in a cooler of ice out of the sun.

Once you are ready to process the bird:

a.  When preparing upland birds, skin or pluck the bird and soak in cold water for one to two hours to remove the excess blood.

b.  Birds generally do not require aging.

c.  For immediate use, birds should be stored in the refrigerator and used within 3 days.

d.  For long term storage, the whole cleaned carcass or individual parts may be frozen.  Do not freeze birds without plucking and cleaning them first.


Skinning and Gutting Birds


1.  Wash your hands with soap and clean water before you begin to field dress your pheasant. This seems obvious, but many hunters forget to do this--and pay the price later.


2.  Put on your surgical gloves. This will prevent you from touching any bacteria. It will also prevent you from passing on bacteria to your pheasants, which will shortly be your dinner.


3.  Develop the habit of cleaning your knife frequently while dressing your pheasant. It only takes a second or two to wipe your knife on a clean cloth, and it could save your kill from being spoiled.

4.  Opt to skin your pheasant to field dress it in the shortest amount of time. Cut the bird horizontally across the upper breast area. Grasp the skin and pull it off with a slow, steady motion.

5.  Choose to pluck your bird to preserve the moistness of the meat for later cooking. Begin at the tail end of the bird and pull feathers out against the grain until only the head remains feathered.


6.  Cut the bird from the base of the neck to the legs.  Be careful not to cut into the internal organs while doing so.


7.  Pull open the cavity and carefully remove the organs. Try not to rupture any organs to protect your meat.


8.  Wipe out the cavity with a clean, dry cloth.

Large Birds

RED-TAILED HAWK


The Red-Tailed Hawk is a bird of prey and is commonly known in East Texas as a "chickenhawk," although it rarely preys on standard sized chickens.  They typically weigh between 1.5 - 3.5 pounds, measure 18-26 inches in length, and have a wingspan from 43-57 inches wide.

The Red-Tailed Hawk is numerous in the East Texas Pineywoods.  It is a protected species in the United States.  It's plumage can be variable, depending on the species and the region.  The basic appearance is consistent.  The underbelly is lighter than the back and a dark brown band across the belly, formed by horizontal streaks in feather patterning, is present in most color variations.  The red tail, which gives the species it's name, is uniformly brick-red above and pink below.  The bill is short and dark, in the hooked shape characteristic of raptors.  They have short, broad tails, and thick, chunky wings.

It's preferred habitat is mixed forest and field with high bluffs or trees that may be used as perch sites.    In flight, this hawk soars with wings in a slight dihedral, flapping as little as possible to conserve energy.  Active flight is slow and deliberate, with deep wing beats.  In wind, it occasionally hovers on beating wings and remains stationary above the ground.  When soaring or flapping it's wings, it typically travels from 20-40 mph, but when diving may exceed 120 mph.

The Red-Tailed Hawk is carnivorous, and an opportunistic feeder.  It's diet is mainly small mammals, but it also includes birds and reptiles.  Rodents compromise up to 85% of the hawks diet.  It typically hunts from an elevated perch site, swooping down from a perch to seize prey, catching birds while flying, or pursuing prey on the ground from a low flight.



EASTERN WILD TURKEY


The Eastern Wild Turkey is the same species as the domestic turkey.  Adults have long reddish-yellow to grayish-green legs and a black body.  Males, have a large, featherless, reddish head, red throat, and red wattles on the throat and neck.  The head has fleshy growths called caruncles.  Males have a long, dark, fan shaped tail and glossy bronze wings.  Females have feathers that are duller overall, in shades of brown and gray.  Males typically have a "beard," a tuft of coarse hair growing from the center of the breast.  Beards average 9 inches in length.  The adult male normally weighs 11-24 pounds and is 30-37 inches long.

Despite their weight, wild turkeys are agile fliers.  Their ideal habitat is open woodland where they may fly beneath the canopy top and find perches.  They fly close to the ground for no more than a quarter mile.

Wild Turkeys are omnivorous.  They prefer eating hard mast such as acorns, nuts, and various trees, seeds, berries, roots and insects.  They occasionally consume amphibians and small reptiles.  Turkey populations can reach large numbers in small areas because of their ability to forage for different types of food.  Early morning and late afternoon are the desired times for eating.



TURKEY VULTURE


The Turkey Vulture, also known as the Turkey Buzzard or just Buzzard inhabits a variety of open and semi-open areas including forests, shrubland, and pastures in East Texas.

The Turkey Vulture is a scavenger and feeds almost exclusively on carrion.  It finds its food using it's keen eyes and sense of smell, flying low enough to detect the gasses produced by the beginnings of the process of decomposition in dead animals.  In flight, it uses thermals to move through the air, flapping its winds infrequently.  It nests in caves, hollow trees, or thickets.  It is a large bird, with a wingspan of 63-71 inches, and a weight of up to 5 pounds.  The body feathers are mostly brownish-black.  The adults head is small in comparison to its body and is red in color with few to no feathers.  It also has a relatively short, hooked, ivory colored beak.  The irises are grey-brown; legs and feet are pink skinned, although typically stained white.

The Turkey Vulture is gregarious and roosts in large community groups, breaking away to forage independently during the day.  Several hundred may roost communally in groups.  It roosts on dead, leafless trees, and will also roost on manmade structures such as water or microwave towers.

This vulture is often seen standing in a spread-winged stance, which is thought to dry the winds, warm the body, and bake off bacteria.  It has few natural predators.

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Non-Poisonous Amphibians

EAST TEXAS TOAD


The East Texas Toad is fairly common, and average 2-3 inches in length.  It has a dark pectoral region breaking apart into dark spots to the belly, and cranial crests that go up behind the eye.  It has three or more warts in each large spot on the back surface.  It's color is generally a uniform yellowish-brown, brown, greenish-brown, or nearly black with many having an overlaying of reddish wash.

The East Texas Toad can be found along marshes and in deciduous woodlands as well as sandy areas near irrigation ditches and temporary rain pools.  It is dependent on rains, and their numbers peak in the spring and summer.



SOUTHERN DUSKY SALAMANDER


The Southern Dusky Salamander is mid-sized, reaching 3-5 inches.  It is a stout salamander with back legs slightly larger than the front.  A row of white spots, or "portholes" runs along each side, posterior to frong legs.  The tail is slightly flattened.  This species is variable in color but is generally dark brown to black, sometimes with a lighter patch running down the back.  The underside is often flecked with white dots.

The are found in murky areas in or near slow moving and stagnant streams, ponds and creek beds.  They are often found under cover such as branches, logs, or rocks.

The seldom stray far from water and feed mostly on aquatic invertebrates.  Breeding occurs in the fall.  Females lay from 9-20 eggs under rocks, logs, or leaf litter and females sometimes protect the eggs.  Eggs hatch in early fall and undergo metamorphosis the following spring.



STRECKERS CHORUS FROG


Strecker's Chorus Frog is a large, stout frog with its toes slightly webbed with disks at the tips.  Its colors vary from gray, brown, olive, to green ground cover.  It has a dark stripe through it's eye as well as a dark spot under it's eye, dark spots longitudinally along it's back, and deep yellow or orange coloration of the groin.  An adult can reach lengths between 1-1.5 inches.

Strecker's Chorus Frog is nocturnal, feeding on insects.  it can burrow into the soil with it's front limbs to shelter itself from heat and predation.

Breeding occurs during the fall and spring months.  Eggs are laid in water and attached to vegetation.  The frog is seen in moist woodland areas, rocky ravines, near streams in swamps and in cultivated fields.

Non-Venomous Reptiles

Most of the animals at the Hidey Hole are actually non-venomous.  Among the most common are:

TEXAS RAT SNAKE


The Texas Rat Snake is the largest snake found in Polk County, and can reach lengths over six feet.  When newly hatched, they are about 9 to 11 inches long and have a light gray background with brown saddle-shaped blotches running down the back and an arrowhead shaped pattern on top of the head.  They change color as they grow, however, and the pattern of adults is much more subdued.  The background color of an adult Texas Rat Snake will range from shades of brown to yellow and even orange, and the blotches are much less distinguishable in adults.  The top of the head also changes color - adult's heads are slate gray to black on top and white underneath.  This color scheme is an accurate identification method to use, because they are the only large snake in the Polk County area that has a head that is gray-black on top and a lighter colored body that had dark saddle-shaped blotches on the back.

Texas Rat Snakes are an ill-tempered snake if encountered in the wild, and will readily defend themselves.  This usually involves coiling up, raising the head, striking out repeatedly at anything that gets too close and vibrating the tail.  This vibrating of the tail often causes it to be mistaken for a rattlesnake; however, they do not have rattles and are NOT rattlesnakes.

As the name implies, the Texas Rat Snake's primary diet is mice and rats, causing them to be commonly seen in any place inhabited by rodents.  If bitten by a Texas Rat snake, you are in no medical danger.  Simply wash the area well with soap and water, and apply an antimicrobial topical agent - they can hardly break the skin.

Texas Rat Snakes are sometimes referred to as "chicken snakes," because they are occasionally seen in or around chicken coops.  Although they are often thought to eat chickens and eggs, this is not the case if adequate rodents are around.



YELLOW BELLIED WATER SNAKE


The Yellowbelly Water Snake is the harmless snake most often incorrectly confused with a Cottonmouth (Water Moccasin).  This is because of it's generally dark coloration and it's irritable disposition.  When threatened, they will coil up and flatten out their head, making it look arrowhead shaped.  They also vibrate their tail, let out large amounts of foul smelling musk which smells like a skunk, and strikes out repeatedly at whatever is threatening them.  A bite from a Yellowbellied Water Snake involves no more than soap and water and a bandaid.

One way of differentiating this snake from the deadly Cottonmouth, is that water snakes do not have the wide, dark "raccoon mask" facial stripe seen on the Cottonmouth.

Yellowbellied Water Snakes are often found in meadows and will seek cool, dark places when attempting to find new water sources.  They will also be found where there are lots of frogs and toads, as this is their preferred meal.



TEXAS BROWN SNAKE


The Texas Brown Snake is a very common snake found throughout East Texas, and is highly variable in color, ranging from browns to tans and even brick reds.  The color of the Texas Brown Snake is fairly even, though, with the exception of a faint lighter stripe down the middle of the back.  Additionally, the top of the head and the corners of the mouth are darker in color.  These "dark spots" on the sides of the head can resemble large eyes when the head if flattened out.  This makes these small harmless snakes seem larger and more dangerous than they really are, since hatchlings are the size of an earthworm, and even adults are no more than 13 inches long.

Texas Brown Snakes are completely harmless if encountered, but will readily feign aggressiveness to defend themselves.  This usually involves coiling up, raising the head, striking out repeatedly at anything that gets too close and vibrating the tail.  This is just an act to get larger animals to leave them alone, however, since they generally strike with their mouths closed, and their mouths aren't large enough to grab human skin even if they tried.

Texas Brown Snakes can be found just about anywhere there is a cool dark moist bit of soil.  They eat a wide variety of suitably sized insects and other invertebrates, including snails and slugs, making them a gardner's friend.

Infusions

An infusion is a large amount of herb brewed for a long time.  Typically, one ounce by weight (about a cup in volume) of dried herb is placed in a quart jar which is then filled to the top with boiling water, tightly lidded and allowed to steep for 4-10 hours.  the remaining stems, leaves, and flowers are then strained.  Although dried herbs are generally considered best for infusions, fresh can be used as well.

It is a very simple chemical process, much like making tea.  It is done with botanicals that dissolve readily in water.

Decoctions

Decoction is a method of extraction, by boiling, of dissolved chemicals and herbal/plant material, which may include stems, roots, bark, and rhizomes.  Decoction involves first mashing, then boiling water to extract oils, organic compounds, and other chemical substances.  The process can also be applied to meats and vegetables to prepare bouilon or stock.

The decoction is the name for the resulting liquid.

It is generally used to extract fluids from harder materials such as roots and bark.

Decoction, is a term for an infusion which has been reduced to one-half its volume by slow evaporation.  Decoctions keep longer than infusions, and the smaller dose required makes it more easily administered.  It is an excellent way to prepare an herb with a terrible taste.  Since decoctions are made by evaporation, the volatile essences are water soluble vitamins in the leaves, flowers and seeds would be lost in the process.  This is why it us generally used for roots and barks.

• Begin by straining the plant material out of the infusion and discarding it.
• Measure the liquid.
• Heat the liquid until it begins to steam; this is before it simmers and long before it boils.
• Stand right there and watch for the steam to start rising. When it does, turn the heat down very low.
• Steam until the liquid is reduced to half or one-quarter of what it was in the beginning. A little stainless steel pan with measuring marks on the side is of invaluable assistance in this process, but you can also judge by the mark left on the side of the pan as the liquid level falls. Or you can measure it.
• Pour the decoction into a clean or sterile bottle.
• Label with the contents, strength, and date. Example: Simple decoction of Witch Hazel bark, Dec. '84.
• Optional: Add one tablespoon of brandy or spirit per four ounces of decoction.
• Cap well
• Cool at room temperature, then store in the refrigerator. Some decoctions may keep for as long as a year, others ferment and sour within a few months.
  Dosage: A simple decoction is four times as potent as an infusion. One cup (8 ounces) of infusion is equal to one-quarter cup (2 ounces) of a simple decoction. Use up to one tablespoon for an infant.
  Double decocting increases the strength of the infusion by a factor of sixteen (four times four). So the dose equivalent of one 8 ounce cup is only one tablespoon (1/2 ounce). The usual infant dose is half a teaspoon of double decoction.

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Medicinal Plants

ALOE VERA


Overview:  Anyone growing up in Texas along the Gulf Coast knows what Aloe Vera is.  As a kid, we would rub it all over our skin, and even eat it.  If you don't know what Aloe Vera is, you ain't from 'round here.

Uses:  Antibacterial, antifungal, spermicidal, aniviral, emmolient, relieves constipation, and soothes burns and rashes, particularly sunburn and poison ivy.

Where Found:  Grows well in areas with little sun and strongly prefers shade, so it will grow well near the creek beds.  It's quick to die out in freezing weather.

Identifier:  Perinneal, succulent plant.  Leaves are thick and fleshy with small serrations along the edges.  Flowers come from within the basal leaves and shoot up a cluster of flowers that can very from red to yellow.  Plant get 1-2 feet tall.

Harvesting:  As needed; fresh is best for all applications, as the gel dries out quickly.

Preparation:  Harvest the leaves and cut into the inner gel layers for topical use.  Small amounts can be ingested for constipation.



WILD ONION

Overview:  Take care to distinguish onions from toxic similar plants, such as Crow Poison, which looks very similar.  Never gather plants that lack the distinct smell of onion.  Don't let musky odors of the toxic look-alikes fool you.  Crow poison's white to cream colored flowers distinguish it from wild onion.

Uses:  Raw, peeled bulbs for colds; Infusion of ground cloves for sore throat; juice from cloves as topical antibacterial.

Where Found:  Wild onion can be found at the Hidey-Hole in limited quantities.  It is most commonly found on the western side of the creek.  It is abundant in the East Texas area.

Identifiers:  Leaves and bulbs have a distinct oniony odor.  Leaves are basal and linear, like tall blades of grass.  Most Texas species bloom in the spring. Six tepals form small flowers that can be yellow, pink, red, or purple.  Flowers occur in umbels at the top of the slender flower stalk and may stand erect or nodding.  Seeds are black and wrinkled.  Some are in abundance along stream banks.

Harvesting:  Typically best in spring.

Preparation:  Seep raw onion bulbs in hot water for several minutes to create a tea.

CATTAIL

Overview:  Although there appears to be no cattails growing directly at the Hidey-Hole, there are ample cattails growing in and around the ponds and streams in the surrounding parcels of land.  Cattails are highly useful, both for food and medicinal uses.

Uses:  Gel from sheethed shoot has anti-inflammatory properties; pollen from female flower has antiseptic properties; young flower heads eaten raw can treat diarrhea.

Where Found:  Both fresh and brackish water, along ponds and streams, ditches and marshes.

Identifiers:  Tall, grasslike leaves are easy to spot protruding from the water.  Beware of a toxic, lookalike called a Water Iris.  It is difficult to tell the difference, but to determine, break off a piece of the plant from the root.  Cattail stalks are almost perfectly round, whereas Water Iris is more oddly shaped at the base.  Second, each individual leaf is wrapped completely around the base stalk with a Cattail, and it is more layered with a Water Iris.

Harvesting:  Various parts of the cattail can be harvested and utilized year-round.

Preparation:  Collect pollen from the female flower into a paper bag, and use the powder as an antiseptic powder.  The gel from a sheathed shoot can also be utilized as an anti-inflammatory.



MULLEIN


Overview:  Mullein is a biennial wildflower.  The first year, the plant produces a basal rosette of large velvety leaves.  The second year, the plant produces a flowering stalk up to 6 feet tall.  It grows across East Texas and is generally available all year long.

Uses:  Leaf and flower infusion is an expectorant and antiviral; Poultice from the leaf has anti-inflammatory properties; leaf gauze can be used on minor cuts.

Where Found:  Sunny fields.

Identifiers:    Leaves are all basal with semi rugged edges.  stem and seed pod is long.

Harvesting:  As available all year long.

Preparation:  Poultice:  Macerate the leaves into a mush and apply directly.  Leaves and flowers can be steeped raw in hot water to create a tea which will be applied internally and topically.



YARROW


Overview:  Used by native Americans for centuries for rashes and for hemostasis.

Uses:  Fresh or dried leaves can be used to help clot blood; leaf infusion can be used to induce sweating and reduce fever, Decoction/oil mixture repels insects, and gargle infusion can help sore throat.

Where Found:  Although the plant does grow in Texas and East Texas, it doesn't grow terribly well.  There is none known to be growing at the Hidey-Hole, but has been seen in surrounding properties.

Identifiers:  Grows to three feet tall.  No branches except near the top.  Leaves alternate and are 3-5 inches long with many leaflets on each side of midrib and further divided into smaller leaflets, giving it a delicate fern-like, lacy appearance.  Flower heads arranged in large compact clusters at top of the stem, each cluster consisting of 1 or more flower heads.  Flower has 20-25 yellowish-white ray flowers and similarly colored disk flowers.

Harvesting:  Year round, as available.

Preparation:  To make an infusion, crush and chop the leaves and flowers and and allow to seep in a cup of hot water.


Other medicinal plants that are available in the area, but not at the Hidey-Hole include:

Willow
Bloodroot
Mint