ROCKPORT, TEXAS – Every spring, millions of raptors, songbirds and shore birds congregate along the Gulf Coast of Texas during their migration journeys from South America heading inland across the United States. The Texas coast is a critical ecosystem offering these avian travellers coastlines, bays and marshes as vital layovers during their long voyages.
“Texas has approximately 365 miles of open Gulf shoreline and contains 2,361 miles of bay-estuary-lagoon shoreline. This is the most biologically rich and ecologically diverse region in the state and supports more than 601,000 acres of fresh, brackish and salt marshes, although that is just a mere fraction of the marsh extent just 50 years ago.” – Texas Parks and Wildlife Department, Texas Conservation Action Plan (2012)
Aransas County, Texas, recently announced the acquisition of the Copano Cove Ranch, also known as the Bailey Ranch, a 972-acre tract of native prairie, marshes, and wetlands that will now be preserved forever as a protected natural habitat. The county received a Texas Coastal Management Program grant from the Texas General Land Office to acquire the land and open a public nature preserve.
“This is a major win for Aransas County,” said County Judge Ray Garza in a press release announcing the acquisition. “Preserving this land protects vital habitat, expands public access, and creates opportunities for ecotourism and education that will benefit our community for generations. I am grateful to all the partners who stayed committed to getting this across the finish line.”
County officials said the vision for the acquisition started with a partnership between the Aransas First Land Trust and the Aransas County Road & Bridge Department. The partners developed and submitted the successful grant application.
The North American Land Trust (NALT) holds a conservation easement on the property, ensuring its protection from development. NALT works with local landowners, as well as county and state agencies across the country to help protect open lands and historic properties. NALT has been actively protecting land in Texas for 20 years, conserving more than 6,200 acres along the Texas Gulf Coast.
“This coastal prairie property represetns vital habitat for migratory birds,” said Steven Carter, President of the North American Land Trust. “We commend Aransas County officials for realizing the ecological significance of these lands and for taking steps to ensure that this special resource remains preserved and accessible to the public.”
Patty Kennedy, Southeast Program Director for NALT, also commended county officials for realizing the ecological values of the property and ensuring its protection by establishing a public nature preserve.
“This conservation area, commonly referred to as “Copano Cove,” will be open to the public as a nature preserve,” said Patty Kennedy, NALT’s Southeast Program Director. “Aransas County is one of the most important bird spots in the country as a migratory bird corridor.”
Kennedy also commended Janae Evans, a broker who represented the seller, for shepherding the complex transaction. Evans said the acquisition of Copano Cove was one of the most complex transactions in her long career in real estate. She said the iconic property will become a unique destination for generations to come.
“This is biodiversity on full display. The property carries a huge conservation priority for its magnificent wildlife value and its natural vegetation, which is diminishing in our region,” Evans said.
Kennedy said the valuable ecosystem includes grasslands, scattered honey mesquite, live oak shrubs, and freshwater wetlands. She said NALT staff and partners have observed 61 bird species during our monitoring visits, including 16 threatened bird species listed as “Species of the Greatest Conservation Need” under the Texas Conservation Action Plan.
Kennedy said some of the bird species observed included: Black Tern, Bobolink, Dickeissel, Eastern Meadowlark, Northern Bobwhite, Northern Harrier, Painted Bunting, Scissor-tailed Flycatcher, Sedge Wren, and White-tailed Hawk.
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