TPWD Advisors to HaysMN
Hays County Master Naturalist welcomes our new Texas Parks and Wildlife Department Advisors, Blake Hendon and Archis Grubh.
Blake Hendon
Wildlife Biologist for Blanco, Hays, and Travis Counties
Texas Parks and Wildlife Department
Hill Country District / Wildlife Division
Blake spends as much time outdoors as he can. Like so many other naturalists, he thrives on observing and participating in the natural world. He collects seeds, grows plants, takes pictures, looks for snakes, and loves connecting with others through these activities. He shares his “Stuff in the Garden” iNaturalist project with his neighbors using a leftover realtors info box. Here is a link: https://www.inaturalist.org/projects/stuff-in-the-garden Blake has found that the pamphlets help his neighbors and his family better understand many of his “strange behaviors involving binoculars and cameras.”
Although he currently enjoys exploring moths and dragonflies through photography, he has had a long connection with native grasses—a product of extensive field work at the beginning of his academic career.
Blake grew up under the forested canopy in the Pineywoods Ecoregion in northeast Texas. His academic exposure involved a Bachelor of Science degree in Wildlife Ecology (’93) and a Master of Science degree in Rangeland Ecology and Management (’99), both from Texas A&M University. In 2000, he joined USDA–Natural Resources Conservation Service in Colorado and worked as a Rangeland Management Specialist, consulting on stewardship practices with private landowners. In 2007, he joined Texas Parks and Wildlife Department–Wildlife Division and continues in that work as a wildlife biologist consulting with private landowners in the eastern Hill Country.
Since 2007, he has kept a “semi-rowdy group of friends that I play soccer with twice a week.”
Archis Grubh
Aquatic Biologist
Texas Parks and Wildlife Department
Archis integrates methods from many areas of biology to investigate how macroinvertebrate communities adapt to environmental disturbance. While the magnitude of a disturbance can be determined based on human perception (flood gauge, Richter scale), its effect on the biotic communities is best predicted by understanding recovery timeline of the inhabiting organisms across various ecoregions. His past and present research activities are centered around the concept of intermediate disturbance hypothesis, and the studied biota of choice are fish and macroinvertebrate communities. This hypothesis paints a picture of communities living in highly disturbed environments on one end of the spectrum to very stable environments on the other end. They are linked by the ecological succession that occurs over a length of time. The species diversity is very low in highly disturbed areas with fluctuating conditions preventing communities to adapt, and also low in stable areas due to competitive exclusion over time. Whereas the greatest species diversity occurs in the intermediate zone. The three main areas of his research are: a) natural disturbances and restoration timeline, b) human disturbances and community ecology, and c) environmental flow requirements and conservation biology.
In his research endeavors at Texas Parks and Wildlife, he has continuously worked with HCMN in the form of talks, workshops, and developing volunteer opportunities at the TPWD lab in San Marcos. His interest in aquatic ecology started early on in India where he “pole-fished” the wetlands of Western Ghats. He pursued his passion by acquiring higher education from Texas A&M and the Ohio State University. His wife and three kids equally love the San Marcos River and enjoy the outdoors.
