Prairies and Pineywoods Wildlife Trail

Last updated
Prairies and Pineywoods Wildlife Trail
LocationEast Texas
UseBird watching / hiking
Hiking details
Sights Sam Houston National Forest, Davy Crockett National Forest, Sabine National Forest

The Prairies and Pineywoods Wildlife Trail is a state-designated system of trails and wildlife sanctuaries in the Texas Panhandle in the United States. It is one of the four major wildlife trail systems designated by the State of Texas.

Texas Panhandle Region in Texas, United States

The Texas Panhandle is a region of the U.S. state of Texas consisting of the Northernmost 26 counties in the state. The panhandle is a rectangular area bordered by New Mexico to the West and Oklahoma to the North and East. The Handbook of Texas defines the southern border of Swisher County as the southern boundary of the Texas Panhandle region.

United States Federal republic in North America

The United States of America (USA), commonly known as the United States or America, is a country comprising 50 states, a federal district, five major self-governing territories, and various possessions. At 3.8 million square miles, the United States is the world's third or fourth largest country by total area and is slightly smaller than the entire continent of Europe's 3.9 million square miles. With a population of over 327 million people, the U.S. is the third most populous country. The capital is Washington, D.C., and the most populous city is New York City. Most of the country is located contiguously in North America between Canada and Mexico.

The trail system consists of two separate groups of rails. The western trails, which are more prairie terrain, cover an area stretching from Brenham and College Station in the south to Wichita Falls and Denison in the north. The eastern trails, which are more woodland terrain, cover an area stretching from Huntsville and Hemphill in the south to Paris and Texarkana in the north.

Prairie ecosystems considered part of the temperate grasslands, savannas, and shrublands biome

Prairies are ecosystems considered part of the temperate grasslands, savannas, and shrublands biome by ecologists, based on similar temperate climates, moderate rainfall, and a composition of grasses, herbs, and shrubs, rather than trees, as the dominant vegetation type. Temperate grassland regions include the Pampas of Argentina, Brazil and Uruguay, and the steppe of Ukraine, Russia and Kazakhstan. Lands typically referred to as "prairie" tend to be in North America. The term encompasses the area referred to as the Interior Lowlands of Canada, the United States, and Mexico, which includes all of the Great Plains as well as the wetter, hillier land to the east.

Brenham, Texas City in Texas, United States

Brenham is a city in east-central Texas in Washington County, United States, with a population of 15,716 according to the 2010 U.S. census. It is the county seat of Washington County. Brenham is south of College Station, and about halfway between Houston and Austin approximately 70 miles (110 km) northwest of Houston, and about 90 miles (140 km) east of Austin.

College Station, Texas City in Texas, United States

College Station is a city in Brazos County, Texas, situated in East-Central Texas in the heart of the Brazos Valley, in the center of the region known as Texas Triangle. It is 90 miles northwest of Houston and 87 miles (140 km) northeast of Austin. As of the 2010 census, College Station had a population of 93,857, which had increased to an estimated population of 122,162 as of February 2019. College Station and Bryan together make up the Bryan-College Station metropolitan area, the 13th-largest metropolitan area in Texas with 273,101 people as of 2019.

The trails include locations in Sam Houston National Forest, Davy Crockett National Forest, and Sabine National Forest.

Sam Houston National Forest

The Sam Houston National Forest, one of four National Forests in Texas, is located 50 miles north of Houston. The forest is administered together with the other three United States National Forests and two National Grasslands located entirely in Texas, from common offices in Lufkin, Texas. The units include Angelina, Davy Crockett, Sabine, and Sam Houston National Forests, plus Caddo National Grassland and Lyndon B. Johnson National Grassland. There are local ranger district offices located in New Waverly.

Davy Crockett National Forest

Davy Crockett National Forest is off U.S. Highway 69 lying west of Lufkin, Texas and east of Crockett. It is administered by the United States Department of Agriculture Forest Service local headquarters in Lufkin. There are local ranger district offices located in Ratcliff.

Sabine National Forest

Sabine National Forest is located in East Texas near the Texas-Louisiana border. The forest is administered together with the other three United States National Forests and two National Grasslands located entirely in Texas, from common offices in Lufkin, Texas. There are local ranger district offices located in Hemphill.

Notes

    Coordinates: 32°N96°W / 32°N 96°W / 32; -96


    Related Research Articles

    Clay County, Minnesota County in the United States

    Clay County is a county in the U.S. state of Minnesota. As of the 2010 United States Census, the population was 58,999. Its county seat is Moorhead.

    Norman County, Minnesota County in the United States

    Norman County is a county in the U.S. state of Minnesota. As of the 2010 United States Census, the population was 6,852. Its county seat is Ada.

    Theodore Roosevelt National Park United States National Park in western North Dakota

    Theodore Roosevelt National Park is an American national park comprising three geographically separated areas of badlands in western North Dakota. The park was named for U.S. President Theodore Roosevelt. The park covers 70,446 acres of land in three sections: the North Unit, the South Unit, and the Elkhorn Ranch Unit.

    Piney Woods

    The Piney Woods is a temperate coniferous forest terrestrial ecoregion in the Southern United States covering 54,400 square miles (141,000 km2) of East Texas, southern Arkansas, western Louisiana, and southeastern Oklahoma. These coniferous forests are dominated by several species of pine as well as hardwoods including hickory and oak. Historically the most dense part of this forest region was the Big Thicket though the lumber industry dramatically reduced the forest concentration in this area and throughout the Piney Woods during the 19th and 20th centuries. The World Wide Fund for Nature considers the Piney Woods to be one of the critically endangered ecoregions of the United States. The United States Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) defines most of this ecoregion as the South Central Plains.

    Kisatchie National Forest

    Kisatchie National Forest, the only National forest in Louisiana, United States, is located in the forested piney hills and hardwood bottoms of seven central and northern parishes. It is part of the Cenozoic uplands and has large areas of longleaf pine forests. It is one of the largest pieces of natural landscape in Louisiana, with some 604,000 acres (2,440 km2) of public land, more than half of which is vital longleaf pine and flatwoods vegetation. These support many rare plant and animal species. There are also rare habitats, such as hillside seepage bogs and calcareous prairies. The forest also contains and provides a buffer for the Kisatchie Hills Wilderness, a nationally designated wilderness area that contributes to protecting biodiversity of the coastal plain region of the United States.

    Ocala National Forest A national forest located Florida

    The Ocala National Forest ls the second largest nationally protected forest in the U.S. State of Florida. It covers 607 square miles (1,570 km2) of Central Florida. It is located three miles (5 km) east of Ocala and 16 miles (26 km) southeast of Gainesville. The Ocala National Forest, established in 1908, is the oldest national forest east of the Mississippi River and the southernmost national forest in the continental U.S. The word Ocala is thought to be a derivative of a Timucuan term meaning "fair land" or "big hammock". The forest is headquartered in Tallahassee, as are all three National Forests in Florida, but there are local ranger district offices located in Silver Springs and Umatilla.

    Texas blackland prairies

    The Texas Blackland Prairies are a temperate grassland ecoregion located in Texas that runs roughly 300 miles (480 km) from the Red River in North Texas to San Antonio in the south. The prairie was named after its rich, dark soil.

    Cibola National Forest protected forest in New Mexico, Oklahoma, and Texas

    The Cibola National Forest is a 1,633,783 acre United States National Forest in New Mexico, USA. The name Cibola is thought to be the original Zuni Indian name for their pueblos or tribal lands. The name was later interpreted by the Spanish to mean, "buffalo." The forest is disjointed with lands spread across central and northern New Mexico, west Texas and Oklahoma. The Cibola National Forest is divided into four Ranger Districts: the Sandia, Mountainair, Mt. Taylor, and Magdalena. The Forest includes the San Mateo, Magdalena, Datil, Bear, Gallina, Manzano, Sandia, Mt. Taylor, and Zuni Mountains of west-central New Mexico. The Forest also manages four National Grasslands that stretch from northeastern New Mexico eastward into the Texas Panhandle and western Oklahoma. The Cibola National Forest and Grassland is administered by Region 3 of the United States Forest Service from offices in Albuquerque, New Mexico. Elevation ranges from 5,000 ft to 11,301 ft. The descending order of Cibola National Forest acres by county are: Socorro, Cibola, McKinley, Catron, Torrance, Bernalillo, Sandoval County, New Mexico, Lincoln, Sierra, and Valencia counties in New Mexico. The Cibola National Forest currently has 137,701 acres designated as Wilderness. In addition to these acres, it has 246,000 acres classified as Inventoried Roadless Areas pursuant to the Roadless Area Conservation Rule.

    Cross Timbers

    The term Cross Timbers, also known as Ecoregion 29, Central Oklahoma/Texas Plains, is used to describe a strip of land in the United States that runs from southeastern Kansas across Central Oklahoma to Central Texas. Made up of a mix of prairie, savanna, and woodland, it forms part of the boundary between the more heavily forested eastern country and the almost treeless Great Plains, and also marks the western habitat limit of many mammals and insects.

    Okefenokee National Wildlife Refuge

    The Okefenokee National Wildlife Refuge is a 402,000‑acre (1,627 km2) National Wildlife Refuge located in Charlton, Ware, and Clinch Counties of Georgia, and Baker County in Florida, United States. The refuge is administered from offices in Folkston, Georgia. The refuge was established in 1937 to protect a majority of the 438,000 acre (1,772 km2) Okefenokee Swamp. The name "Okefenokee" is a Native American word meaning "trembling earth."

    Sproul State Forest

    Sproul State Forest is a Pennsylvania state forest in Pennsylvania Bureau of Forestry District #10. The main offices are located in Renovo, Pennsylvania in Clinton County in the United States.

    Geography of Oklahoma

    The Geography of Oklahoma encompasses terrain and ecosystems ranging from arid plains to subtropical forests and mountains. Oklahoma contains 10 distinct ecological regions, more per square mile than in any other state by a wide margin. It is situated in the Great Plains and U.S. Interior Highlands region near the geographical center of the 48 contiguous states. Usually considered part of the South Central United States, Oklahoma is bounded on the east by Arkansas and Missouri, on the north by Kansas, on the northwest by Colorado, on the far west by New Mexico, and on the south and near-west by Texas.

    Great Texas Coastal Birding Trail

    The Great Texas Coastal Birding Trail is a state-designated system of trails, bird sanctuaries, and nature preserves along the entire length of the Texas Gulf Coast in the United States. As the state of Texas hosts more bird species than any other in the U.S. the trail system offers some of the most unusual opportunities for bird-watching in the world. The "trail" is actually 43 separate hiking and driving trails that include 308 birding sites. The sites themselves feature a variety of viewing opportunities with boardwalks, observation decks, and other amenities. The trails boast more than 450 bird species. The trail system is managed by the Texas Parks and Wildlife Department as part of the Great Texas Wildlife Trails which also include the Heart of Texas Wildlife Trail, the Panhandle Plains Wildlife Trail, and the Prairies and Pineywoods Wildlife Trail.

    The Heart of Texas Wildlife Trail is a state-designated system of trails and wildlife sanctuaries in Central Texas in the United States. It is one of the four major wildlife trail systems designated by the State of Texas.

    State wildlife trails in the United States are state-sponsored systems of hiking and driving trails developed for the benefit of birdwatching and wildlife enthusiasts. They have been created and maintained by state governments or other state-level entities, both to promote ecology and to promote tourism. The term "trail" used in the names of most of these systems is, in general, a misnomer as that these trail networks are not single routes and are connected by motorways.

    Cedar Hill, Texas City in Texas, United States

    Cedar Hill is a city in Dallas and Ellis counties in the U.S. state of Texas. It is located approximately 16 miles (26 km) southwest of downtown Dallas and is situated along the eastern shore of Joe Pool Lake and Cedar Hill State Park. The population was 45,028 at the 2010 census.

    Black Kettle National Grassland

    The Black Kettle National Grassland is located in Roger Mills County, Oklahoma and Hemphill County, Texas. It contains 31,286 acres (12,661 ha) of which 30,710 acres (12,430 ha) are in Oklahoma.

    This page is based on this Wikipedia article
    Text is available under the CC BY-SA 4.0 license; additional terms may apply.
    Images, videos and audio are available under their respective licenses.