The Western Gulf Coastal Plains ecoregion is a geographical area almost entirely along the Gulf Coast of the United States, primarily encompassing the coastal plain of Texas, extending into parts of Louisiana and reaching into northeastern Mexico, characterized by relatively flat topography and predominantly grassland vegetation as its natural potential vegetation. The Western Gulf Coastal Plains is often considered a part of the larger "Gulf Coastal Plains" ecoregion.
The Gulf Coast
The Gulf Coast has been referred to as America′s Third Coast, and Texas has 367 miles of this third coast. Here in Texas, their are warm waters, seaside restaurants, great camping and small beach towns unlike any you will encounter on the the other two coasts, (the Eastern and Western Seaboards). Yes, the simplicity of Texas beaches far surpass all others for any getting away for some self time.
However, of late, this beauty and wonder that belong to these warm water beaches has become the destination location to an every growing number of people. And we all know what happens to a beautiful spot that becomes overused. Still, despite the crowds, there are still places to find a spot to enjoy the creation.
One of my favorite locations is Padre Island national seashore.
Too, the Gulf Coast of Texas is replete with inland bays, great for all those activities people do on or near water, including beaches. Again, I have been know to stop at Magnolia Beach a time or two.
Western Gulf Coastal Plains Information:
Description:
The total area of this ecoregion is just under 30,000 square miles. The specific areas include a number of barrier islands, and the resacas or natural levees of the Laguna Madre. Too, this coast is vulnerable to tropical storms that can seriously damage ecoregion habitats.
This coastal plain in Louisiana is often called the Cajun Prairi; in Texaa, is is know a the Coastal Prairie; and in Mexico, it is known as the Tamaulipan pastizal.
Less than 1% of the ecoregion remains in pristine condition, almost entirely in Texas, while most of the coast has been converted to farmland, including rice paddies, grazing land, or urban areas including Houston, Texas. Estuaries and other coastal wetlands are better preserved than the prairie and indeed the protected areas of the coast are mainly sanctuaries for waterbirds.
Climate
From Southwest Louisiana west to the Upper Texas coast, the climate is wet humid subtropical, featuring significal annual precipitation. The climate becomes more arid farther south along the Texas coast into northeastern Mexico, though precipitation totals still remain high enough for the humid subtropical classification.
Unlike the Southern Inland Plains ecoregion which has already been engulfed within Dry side of the
climate divide, the Western Gulf Coastal Plains ecoregion still receives from 27 to 30 inches of rain per year, which is more than enough to make a difference from the adjacent ecoregion, the Southern Inland Plains. In fact, there are more overcast days along the coast that makes it just more humid that in those inland areas.
Flora
The natural habitat of the area is a mix of tallgrass prairie similar to those found in inland Texas, with Indiangrass (Sorghastrum nutans), big bluestem (Andropogon gerardi), little bluestem (Schizachyrium scoparium), and switchgrass (Panicum virgatum) the primary tallgrass species that are typical of the coastal prairie, with several other shorter grasses and many herbaceous and woody species.
In the wetter climate covering the zone from Southwest Louisiana west through the upper Texas coast, these bottomlands contain many species typical in forests elsewhere across the Southern United States, such as the southern live oak, bald cypress, magnolia, loblolly pine, post oak, and southern hackberry. Farther south, from the lower one third of the Texas coast and through the Tamaulipan stretch, the drier climate supports shrubby areas of honey mesquite (Prosopis glandulosa), huisache (Vachellia farnesiana var. farnesiana), lime prickly-ash (Zanthoxylum fagara), and Texas persimmon (Diospyros texana).
Fauna
This coast is rich in wildlife, and 700 species of birds, animals and reptiles have been counted here, although many are now threatened or endangered.
Birds
This coast is a critical habitat for both species of the
prairie-chickens but paticullary the Attwater′s prairie chickens (Tympanuchus cupido attwateri), over one million of which inhabited the prairie in Texas and Louisiana in the 19th century, but extreme reduction of their habitat put them on the U.S. endangered species list in 1967.
Another endangered bird of the coast is the
whooping crane (Grus americana). Many species of wading birds, shorebirds, and other waterbirds are abundant, such as the
sandhill crane, now numbering world wide at about 650,000 individual birds.
Birds in the Mexican part of the region include Morelet’s seedeater (Sporophila morelleti), red-billed pigeon (Columba flavirostris), brown jay (Cyanocorax morio), Neotropic cormorant, white-winged dove (Leptotila verrequxi) and Audubon's oriole (Icterus graduacauda).
Mammals
Mammals of the area include bobcats, collared peccary, white-tailed deer, eastern cottontails, with ocelot (Leopardus pardalis), Gulf Coast jaguarundi (Puma yagouaroundi cacomitli), southern yellow bat (Lasiurus ega), and Mexican spiny pocket mouse (Liomys irroratus) more abundant in Mexico.
Amphibians and Reptiles
Rancho Nuevo beach in Tamaulipas and along the Texas coast are the only nesting sites in the world for the Kemp's ridley sea turtle (Lepidochelys kempii) while other herpetofauna of the southern part of the ecoregion include Río Grande chirping frog (Eleutherodactylus cystignathoides) and Mexican white-lipped frog (Leptodactylus fragilis).
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Coordinates:
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Geographical Region:
Coastal Plains
The Ancients
One of the very first indigenous people that I ever learned about who lived along the Texas coastal lands were the Karankawa native Americans, extinct since about 1860, who were a nomadic tribal group that traveled in bands of less than 100. They fished and hunted the upper Texas Gulf Coast from Galveston bay to as far south as Corpus Christi bay, and inland for about 100 miles.
What I had learned about these indigenous people is that they were known for cannibalism. Warfare was a fact of life for the Karankawas, and they practiced a ceremonial cannibalism prior to the eighteenth-century that involved eating the flesh of their enemies. That custom is believed to be widespread among most Texas tribes during that time and involved consuming pieces of the flesh of dead enemies as the ultimate revenge or as a magical means of capturing the enemy′s courage.
First Wayƒarer
First Migration
(The Algonquian Cultures)
The
Karankawa indigenous people were of the first migration and concentrated in southern Texas along the coast of the Gulf of Mexico, largely in the lower Colorado River and Brazos River valleys. They consisted of several independent seasonal nomadic groups who shared the same language and much of the same culture.
There is a general misconception that these indigenous people migrated north from areas in or near the Caribbean islands. The truth of the matter is that the Karankawa language is a dialect of the Coahuiltecan Language, which decedented from Diklah, son of Joktan.
Furthermore, much of what has been written about the Karankawa, it has been said, was composed by their enemies. The claim concerning their cannibalism was a lie propagated by the Spanish in retaliation to the Karankawa not wanting to convert to Catholicism.
Second Migration
(The Uto-Aztecan Cultures)
The only Uto-Aztecan language indigenous people in Texas were those primarily in west Texas, which were the Jumano Cultures including the Caquate, Tanpachoas, and Tomoacas which only lived along the upper Rio Grande river valley.
There was also a separate tribe which lived in the Great Plains along the upper Colorado River, but the the Athabascan, primarily the Lipan Apache took over most all of the plains region.
Third Migration
(The Athabascan Cultures)
The Athabascan Speaking People
The
Lapain indigenous people were of the third migration and settled in the inland areas on and near the edge of the Edwards Plateau after moving down from the upper Great Plains region in the Texas panhandle .
The Earth
Mouth: Gulf Of Mexico
Brazos River: Nolan River Little River, Bosque River, Paluxy River,
Colorado River: Pedernales River, Llano River, San Saba R., Concho R.
Guadalupe R.: S. Antonio R., Medina R., S. Marcos R., Blanco R., Comal R.
Lavaca River: Navidad River
Neches River: Angelina River
Nueces River: Frio River,
Sabine River
San Bernard River
San Jacinto River
Trinity River: Big Sandy Creek
Rivers and Tributaries
Mouth: (Atchafalaya River)
Red River: Big Cypres Bayou, Sulphur River, Washita, Wichita River,
Prairie Dog Town Fork Red River
Mouth: (Arkansas River)
Canadian River
Sabine Pass (Civil War) Battleground State Historic site (29.731167, -93.874842)
Padre Island National Seashore.
The Modern Man
Lighthouses
The Steps
Steps Afoot
Texas Footpath Journey Index
Steps Afield
Texas Roadpath Journey Index
The Appendixes
Region Campgrounds
Altair Boat Ramp parking under Alternate US 90 at Colorado River
Brazos Bend State Park an hour southwest of Houston
Galveston Island State Park in the west end of the Island
Goose Island State Park near Rock Port, TX
Lake Corpus Christi State Park, IH 37 exit 36, near Mathis, Texas
Magnolia Beach west side of Lavaca Bay
Malaquite Campground on the coast in Padre Island national seashore
Mustang Island State Park just east of Padre Island
Sea Rim State Park near Port Author, Texas
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