News

Stinging caterpillar season has arrived in Texas

Details: Published: Monday, 11 May 2020 14:15

Written by Susan Himes, Susan.Himes@ag.tamu.edu

AgriLife experts warn stinging caterpillars can cause contact rashes, painful reactions

As the weather warms up and people begin spending more time in their yards, parks and forests, more people will be coming home with a rash or bug bite.

However, Texas A&M AgriLife Extension Service experts say before you blame a flying insect or a poisonous plant for a skin ailment, you may need to consider another culprit – stinging caterpillars.

Could You Be Missing Out On Senior Discounts?

Details: Published: Tuesday, 28 April 2020 19:22

Here Are A Few Things To Know

By Chris Orestis

People who reach or near their retirement years often need to watch every penny.

Sure, some of them are financially fit and don’t lose sleep worrying that their bank accounts and investments will run dry.out of money. For many, though, frugality is the watchword as they struggle to make it through each month.

Fortunately, aging does come with at least one financial perk – senior discounts that restaurants, grocery stores, retail stores, airlines, car rental companies, hotels and other businesses offer to their older clientele. These discounts give older Americans a break on prices for everything from a gym membership to a fast-food meal to a movie ticket.

You would think all seniors and their families would be all over these opportunities. But, surprisingly, many people don’t take advantage. In some cases, that could be because it doesn’t occur to ask whether a discount is available. In other cases, people just have a hard time thinking of themselves as seniors.

Use iNaturalist to explore urban wildlife during Earth Week & every week

Details: Published: Monday, 20 April 2020 20:13

By Quinta Mazatlan / Center for Urban Ecology / John Brush

Urban wildlife is far more diverse than one might think as we bustle about our daily lives. Yet if we slow down to look at a flower, peer in a tree, or listen to the sounds in our neighborhoods, that perspective shifts. And with iNaturalist, learning what life is around us is easier than ever.

The main feature of iNaturalist, available for free on iOS, Android, and online, is sharing nature observations and getting help identifying what plant or animal we have found. It might be a moth beneath a porch light, or a lizard skittering across a fence, or a tiny flower poking up through a lawn. With iNaturalist, all it takes is quick photo to get started.

The Century Plant—It’s Time to Bloom

Details: Published: Monday, 20 April 2020 20:06

Colleen Curran Hook, Executive Director of Quinta Mazatlán

The Century Plant only blooms once in a lifetime every 10 to 25, years so the century thing is an exaggeration, but a quarter of a century is still a long time. The plant is monocarpic in that it flowers, sets seed for pups and then dies. But it leaves plenty of pups or small plantlets at its base to begin a new life cycle.

Doctors encourage patients to continue monitoring their health

Details: Published: Monday, 20 April 2020 19:59

DHR Health Integrates TeleHealth into Specialty Clinics to Keep Patients Healthy Amid the Pandemic

(April 20, 2020) - Edinburg, TX — While hospitals across the country report a decline in patients admitted for strokes, heart attacks, emergency appendectomies and other urgent health concerns, physicians at DHR Health caution that the decline may be attributed to people’s fears about being admitted to the hospital during the COVID-19 pandemic. With policies and protocols in place to prevent disease spread within the hospital and clinics, doctors are reminding patients to pay close attention to their health and to contact their healthcare provider when experiencing unusual pain or symptoms.