Jan Wrede
I am retired from three careers: community organizer, science teacher and environmental educator. I am motivated by the perennial need for civil right and conservation. My published works are in these fields and were written to encourage change. I have also written a weekly nature column in local Texas Hill Country newspapers, numerous booklets on native plants, land stewardship, and water conservation.
Nonfiction
Outspoken: The Olly Neal Story
2020, Butler Center Books
OUTSPOKEN is a personal account of the struggle for black freedom and equality. This is the story of a powerful and charismatic public figure told in his own words. His road from son of a sharecropper to civil rights leader and appellate court judge was not a smooth one.. Judge Neal tells his story with ribald humor, sometimes embarrassing candor, and hard-earned wisdom.
Trees, Shrubs, and Vines of the Texas Hill Country: A Field Guide second edition
2015 Texas A&M University Press
Attracting Birds in the Texas Hill Country is a comprehensive reference book covers written for wildlife managers, land owners, and anyone with a backyard, who are interested in enhancing the habitat on their land for resident, migrant and wintering birds.
The first edition is currently out of print but a new edition will be out sometime n 2023.
Land Stewardship For Birds: A Guide for Central Texas
2nd ed. 2023, Texas A&M Press
In this revised and re-titled edition of Attracting Birds in the Texas Hill Country: A Guide to Land Stewardship, biologist Rufus Stephens and educator Jan Wrede provide a comprehensive update to their popular and practical handbook that focuses on habitat improvement to benefit birds on properties of all sizes in Central Texas.
Nearly 50 years of research shows that over time, the number of North American birds has declined by 2.9 billion. Breeding birds have declined by nearly 30 percent in virtually all habitats, and Central Texas is no exception. Just as human impact on the environment has contributed to habitat loss, so can our actions restore the habitats that once sustained thriving bird populations.
Central Texas resident, migrant, and wintering birds have specific habitat needs for cover, food, and water. Breeding birds also need specific habitat for raising their young. Thus, Land Stewardship for Birds: A Guide for Central Texas is organized by the types of habitats present: woodlands and savannahs; grasslands; rivers and streams; canyons, springs, and seeps; constructed tanks, ponds, and lakes; plus residential backyards. Three chapters on management of predators, deer, and cedar and other brush offer in-depth recommendations for addressing these important factors that impact bird habitat.
New material in this edition includes a section on wildfire, improved bird census guidelines, updated plant lists, the latest standards for managing bird boxes, a more robust guide to managing brush species, and helpful apps and online resources, making Land Stewardship for Birds a valuable addition to the land steward’s reference library.
Other Works
include weekly nature columns in local newspapers; numerous booklets
on plants native to the Texas Hill Country, land stewardship and water conservation.