Texas 'Critters' University

How the university's sustainability efforts impact wildlife on campus

By Ella Mercer

A fox squirrel climbs down a tree on campus.

Creatures great and small.

Bees buzz near flowers at the Frog Alley Parking Garage.

Squirrels, butterflies, herons, opossums, roaches and lizards.

Photo by laura adai on Unsplash

A moment on TCU's nationally recognized campus grounds could include encounters with any number of critters or plants from Texas and around the country.

But it wasn’t always this way.

Crows munch on a snack near the Mary Couts Burnett Library.

Unsurprisingly, cowboys ushered in the first sweeping changes to the North Texas landscape when they turned the forests into ranchland. Tory Bennett is the associate professor and department chair for the TCU department of environmental and sustainability sciences. She said ranchers leveled the Texas forests and planted non-native grasses to sustain their farms. Because of this, many of the native animals had to adapt or migrate.

Now, North Texas critters are up against a new beast: urbanization.

Urbanization is defined as “the concentration of human populations into discrete areas,” according to the Environmental Protection Agency. It can lead to “the transformation of land for residential, commercial, industrial and transportation purposes.”

The sprawling Fort Worth metroplex has grown on an average of 3.45% each year since 2000, according to Neilsberg. Sitting just under 1 million residents, the city and its surrounding ecosystem have experienced rapid change. And according to biologists in the area, some wildlife cannot keep up with the development.

Polluted water, bright lights and excess concrete all make it increasingly difficult for certain native species to survive in an urban ecosystem, Bennett said.

There are a lot of critters that don’t do well amid the concrete, said Sam Kieschnick, an urban wildlife biologist in Fort Worth. “But there are cracks in the asphalt."

For example, the mighty horned lizard is rarely spotted on TCU’s campus, aside from Super Frog’s gameday appearances. But Kieschnick said North Texas old-timers may remember capturing the creatures while playing outside as children.

Because of its deteriorating habitat and increase in urban-adapted predators, the horned lizard has not fared well in the wake of DFW’s urbanization, Kieschnick said.

But other lizards, like the spiny lizard and the green anole are two standout creatures that thrive in the urban ecosystem.

Common creatures around campus have also adapted to life in an urban ecosystem. And the key to a healthy urban ecosystem is biodiversity, Kieschnick said

The urban ecosystem is like a mosaic, he said. When you look at DFW on a map, it looks plain and gray. But closer up, you’ll see a patchwork of green spaces that make up part of the ecosystem.

“You will see magnificence there,” Kieschnick said. “You will see intricate beauty.”

A horned lizard rests on the ground. (TCU)

Two lizards bask in the sun on concrete near the Tom Brown/Pete Wright apartments. (Ella Mercer)

Why should TCU care about sustaining the urban ecosystem around it?

As TCU prepares for more expansion into the greater Fort Worth area, an environmentally sustainable campus is critical to maintain the urban ecosystem around Funkytown.

Even small steps, like appreciating the changing leaves or seeing a butterfly flutter by, are ways students can engage with the urban ecosystem around them.

“When you’re walking through, stressed about one assignment, and then a test, and then a paper and then a project, you can feel some tranquility as you walk through a beautiful campus,” said Erik Trevino, the director of landscaping and grounds at TCU.

As a designated Tree Campus USA, TCU must actively manage its urban forest and meet student involvement requirements, like hosting service projects or forming student organization.

“The required service learning projects usually result in greater student and faculty involvement and understanding of the importance of trees,” said Courtney Blevins, Fort Worth Regional Forester with the Texas A&M Forest Service.

Trevino helps students organize and fund sustainability events on campus. He said the sustainability department wants to sponsor as many student-led events as it can for EarthWeek, which is in April.

These events could look like more tree plantings, zero-waste picnics, a day using no plastics and even a swag exchange.

“Students are the ones that can promote events and make events exciting,” Trevino said. “It’s better if we can get engagement and excitement from students.”

What is sustainability?

Erik Trevino, the director of landscaping and grounds at TCU, said there are two parts to sustainability. There are the exciting parts that everyone talks about with catchy phrases like “reduce, reuse, recycle.” And then there are the nuts and bolts that really make a difference, like water efficiency, resource efficiency and other infrastructural elements that help the habitat around campus and the university’s wallet.

Wendy Macias, the chair of the sustainability committee at TCU, said there are three facets to sustainability: people, planet and profit. All must benefit to achieve true sustainability on any campus, not just at TCU. But the most difficult to change, Macias said, are the people. Individual, daily decisions like turning off lights and not wasting materials could make the biggest impact on the urban ecosystem, she said.

How are students involved?

Butterflies flit about one of the designated pollinator gardens at TCU. (Ella Mercer).

Pollinator gardens

Camilla Price, a TCU alumna, worked with the department of environmental and sustainability sciences and the landscaping and grounds crews to plant pollinator gardens around campus. Pollinator gardens are flower beds filled with native species. They attract creatures like native bees and butterflies. Native plants may not look as clean as potted pansies or tulips, but Bennett said they are still important to the patchwork of an urban ecosystem.

Many partners and volunteers helped make ReFrog a success. (TCU)

ReFrog

ReFrog began as a way to reduce the amount of waste in the dumpsters during move-out, Macias said. She founded the initiative two years ago. Students can donate lightly used items at the end of the year, which are then donated to partners in DFW. In the two years since the program began, ReFrog has saved over 10,000 items from landfills, Macias said.

Volunteers clean Frog Pond. (@oneshadegreener_ via Instagram)

One Shade Greener

One Shade Greener is a student organization at TCU that partners with other clubs on campus for beautification efforts. Mark Sayegh, a biochemistry major, founded the organization, which has expanded across Texas and even to a high school in Tennessee. The organization removed 5,650 pounds of trash and planted four vegetable/herb beds in 2023, according to its Instagram. The organization also started an initiative to recycle the plastic signs around campus.

A Tree Campus USA sign shows the school's national designation. (Ella Mercer)

Garden Frogs

Garden Frogs was founded by TCU graduate student Kim Rahebi. The organization coordinates with Tree Campus USA to plant trees on campus and help the university maintain its designation as a Tree Campus. The group has planted five trees around campus, according to Instagram. Rahebi said the organization is intended to include students, faculty and staff in nature-based events that promote mental health.

A horned lizard rests on the ground. (TCU)

Texas "Critter" University survey finds students think more can be done

A survey found that TCU students are in split decision when it comes to whether they think the university is doing enough to promote sustainability on campus.

On a scale from 1-10, all students in the sample ranked the importance of environmental sustainability at 5 or above.

Of the 23 students surveyed, only four said they had participated in an environmental sustainability initiative at TCU.

Why should TCU care now?

As TCU continues to refine and act on its Campus Master Plan, the Fort Worth habitat will inevitably be affected. But Horned Frogs need engagement with nature in order to thrive.

Wendy Macias, chair of the sustainability committee at TCU, said the university needs a point person who can keep sustainability front of mind in great and small campus decisions.

“If we’re not having a positive impact, then our negative impact is going to be even greater,” Macias said.

Bennett said she thinks smaller, individual choices, like turning off LED and bright lights at night, could make a big difference to the wildlife on campus. She also said certain types of infrastructure can be helpful to wildlife as TCU continues to invest in more buildings. Bird-friendly window panes, for example, do not look different to the human eye, but they help birds and other flying critters see windows instead of flying into the glass.

"If we're not having a positive impact, then our negative impact is going to be even greater."
Wendy Macias

The Chancellor's Green will be outside The Harrison. (TCU)

A new green space will be added between Reed Hall and Sadler Hall. (TCU)

Berry Street will get a facelift. (TCU)

TCU included three new green spaces in the Campus Master Plan. The Chancellor’s Green will be near the Harrison, and mock-ups of the new space include green areas for outdoor classes, fresh walkways and plenty of new trees.

A new plaza between Sadler Hall and Reed Hall will feature more accessible green space.

The corner of Berry Street and Sandage Avenue will hold a large green area that looks more like a park than a campus. It will improve the stormwater drainage in the area, according to the plan.

Both students and wildlife will benefit from the new and improved green spaces on campus, Kieschnick said. He described a hypothesis called biophilia, or the innate desire for humans to connect with nature.

Literally translated to “love of life,” biophilia is often used in design to aid people’s mental well-being, according to the Natural Resources Defense Council.

Humans experience deep calm from interacting with nature, Kieschnick said.

From the opossums to the plants, the squirrels to the butterflies, sustainability experts hope to preserve the already adapted urban ecoystem and ensure a beautiful Funkytown for future Horned Frogs of all kinds.