The Western Gulf coastal grasslands ( es, Pastizales costeros del Golfo Occidental) are a subtropical grassland

ecoregion An ecoregion (ecological region) or ecozone (ecological zone) is an ecologically and geographically defined area that is smaller than a bioregion, which in turn is smaller than a biogeographic realm. Ecoregions cover relatively large areas of ...

of the southern

United States The United States of America (U.S.A. or USA), commonly known as the United States (U.S. or US) or America, is a country Continental United States, primarily located in North America. It consists of 50 U.S. state, states, a Washington, D.C., ...

and northeastern

Mexico Mexico (Spanish language, Spanish: México), officially the United Mexican States, is a List of sovereign states, country in the southern portion of North America. It is borders of Mexico, bordered to the north by the United States; to the so ...

. It is known in Louisiana as the "Cajun Prairie", Texas as "Coastal Prairie," and as the Tamaulipan pastizal ( es, Pastizal Tamaulipeco) in Mexico.

Setting

The ecoregion covers an area of , extending along the shore of the

Gulf of Mexico The Gulf of Mexico ( es, Golfo de México) is an ocean basin and a marginal sea of the Atlantic Ocean, largely surrounded by the North American continent. It is bounded on the northeast, north and northwest by the Gulf Coast of the United ...

from southeastern

Louisiana Louisiana , group=pronunciation (French: ''La Louisiane'') is a state in the Deep South and South Central regions of the United States. It is the 20th-smallest by area and the 25th most populous of the 50 U.S. states. Louisiana is bord ...

(west of the

Mississippi Delta The Mississippi Delta, also known as the Yazoo–Mississippi Delta, or simply the Delta, is the distinctive northwest section of the U.S. state of Mississippi (and portions of Arkansas and Louisiana) that lies between the Mississippi and Yaz ...

) through

Texas Texas (, ; Spanish: ''Texas'', ''Tejas'') is a state in the South Central region of the United States. At 268,596 square miles (695,662 km2), and with more than 29.1 million residents in 2020, it is the second-largest U.S. state by ...

and into the Mexican state of

Tamaulipas Tamaulipas (), officially the Free and Sovereign State of Tamaulipas ( es, Estado Libre y Soberano de Tamaulipas), is a state in the northeast region of Mexico; one of the 31 states which, along with Mexico City, comprise the 32 Federal Entiti ...

as far as the Laguna Madre. Specific areas include a number of

barrier island Barrier islands are coastal landforms and a type of dune system that are exceptionally flat or lumpy areas of sand that form by wave and tidal action parallel to the mainland coast. They usually occur in chains, consisting of anything from a ...

s, and the '' resacas'' or natural

levee A levee (), dike (American English), dyke (Commonwealth English), embankment, floodbank, or stop bank is a structure that is usually earthen and that often runs parallel to the course of a river in its floodplain or along low-lying coastli ...

s of the Laguna Madre. The coast is vulnerable to tropical storms that can seriously damage habitats. This ecosystem is edaphic in origin; the soils in this region are of a heavy clay that contributed to difficulty for woody species to establish, allowing grasses and herbaceous species to be more competitive. The grassy areas are broken up by many pockets/groves of forest, usually along water courses, or isolated silt/sand pockets among the substrate (where the soil is more permissive for tree growth).

Climate

From Louisiana west to the Upper Texas coast, the climate of the region is wet

humid subtropical A humid subtropical climate is a zone of climate characterized by hot and humid summers, and cool to mild winters. These climates normally lie on the southeast side of all continents (except Antarctica), generally between latitudes 25° and 40° ...

, featuring high annual rainfall. The climate becomes more arid going down the Texas coast, and into Northeastern Mexico, though precipitation totals still remain high enough for humid subtropical classification.

Flora

The natural habitat of the area is a mix of

tallgrass prairie The tallgrass prairie is an ecosystem native to central North America. Historically, natural and anthropogenic fire, as well as grazing by large mammals (primarily bison) provided periodic disturbances to these ecosystems, limiting the encroachm ...

similar to those found in inland Texas, with Indiangrass ('' Sorghastrum nutans''), big bluestem (''

Andropogon gerardi ''Andropogon gerardi'', commonly known as big bluestem, is a species of tall grass native to much of the Great Plains and grassland regions of central and eastern North America. It is also known as tall bluestem, bluejoint, and turkeyfoot. Taxon ...

''), little bluestem (''

Schizachyrium scoparium ''Schizachyrium scoparium'', commonly known as little bluestem or beard grass, is a species of North American prairie grass native to most of the contiguous United States (except California, Nevada, and Oregon) as well as a small area north of t ...

''), and switchgrass (''

Panicum virgatum ''Panicum virgatum'', commonly known as switchgrass, is a perennial warm season bunchgrass native to North America, where it occurs naturally from 55°N latitude in Canada southwards into the United States and Mexico. Switchgrass is one of the ...

'') the primary tallgrass species that are typical of the coastal prairie, with several other shorter grasses and many

herbaceous Herbaceous plants are vascular plants that have no persistent woody stems above ground. This broad category of plants includes many perennials, and nearly all annuals and biennials. Definitions of "herb" and "herbaceous" The fourth edition o ...

and woody species. In addition, the region has bottomland forests lining the floodplains of the many waterways in the region. In the wetter regions along the upper Texas coast and Louisiana, the tree species include many of those seen in forest of the

Southern United States The Southern United States (sometimes Dixie, also referred to as the Southern States, the American South, the Southland, or simply the South) is a geographic and cultural region of the United States of America. It is between the Atlantic Ocean ...

, such as the

southern live oak ''Quercus virginiana'', also known as the southern live oak, is an evergreen oak tree endemic to the Southeastern United States. Though many other species are loosely called live oak, the southern live oak is particularly iconic of the Old South. ...

bald cypress ''Taxodium distichum'' (bald cypress, swamp cypress; french: cyprès chauve; ''cipre'' in Louisiana) is a deciduous conifer in the family Cupressaceae. It is native to the southeastern United States. Hardy and tough, this tree adapts to a wide ...

magnolia ''Magnolia'' is a large genus of about 210 to 340The number of species in the genus ''Magnolia'' depends on the taxonomic view that one takes up. Recent molecular and morphological research shows that former genera ''Talauma'', ''Dugandiodendr ...

loblolly pine ''Pinus taeda'', commonly known as loblolly pine, is one of several pines native to the Southeastern United States, from East Texas to Florida, and north to southern New Jersey. The wood industry classifies the species as a southern yellow pine. ...

, post oak, and southern hackberry. The southern third of the Texas stretch and all of the Tamaulipan portion contains shrubby areas of honey mesquite ('' Prosopis glandulosa''), huisache ( ''Vachellia farnesiana'' var. ''farnesiana''), lime prickly-ash (''

Zanthoxylum fagara ''Zanthoxylum fagara'' or wild lime, is a species of flowering plant that—despite its name—is not part of the genus ''Citrus'' with real limes and other fruit, but is a close cousin in the larger citrus family, Rutaceae. It is native to sout ...

''), and Texas persimmon (''

Diospyros texana ''Diospyros texana'' is a species of persimmon that is native to central, south and west Texas and southwest Oklahoma in the United States, and eastern Chihuahua, Coahuila, Nuevo León, and Tamaulipas in northeastern Mexico. Common names includ ...

'').

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. This coast is a critical habitat for 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 On 29 January 2010, the IUCN Red List of Threatened Species identified 5220 (2754 animals, 1 fungus, 2464 plant, 1 protist) endangered species, subspecies and varieties, stocks and sub-populations. For IUCN lists of endangered species by kingdom ...

in 1967. Another endangered bird of the coast is the

whooping crane The whooping crane (''Grus americana'') is the tallest North American bird, named for its whooping sound. It is an endangered crane species. Along with the sandhill crane (''Antigone canadensis''), it is one of only two crane species native to ...

(''Grus americana''). Many species of wading birds, shorebirds, and other waterbirds are abundant. Birds in the Mexican part of the region include Morelet’s seedeater (''Sporophila morelleti''),

red-billed pigeon The red-billed pigeon (''Patagioenas flavirostris'') is a relatively large, robust species of pigeon. It's breeding range extends from southern Texas, United States, to Costa Rica. It's primarily found throughout coastal and lowland areas of Me ...

(''Columba flavirostris''), brown jay (''Cyanocorax morio''),

Neotropic cormorant The neotropic cormorant or olivaceous cormorant (''Nannopterum brasilianum'') is a medium-sized cormorant found throughout the American tropics and subtropics, from the middle Rio Grande and the Gulf and Californian coasts of the United States so ...

white-winged dove The white-winged dove (''Zenaida asiatica'') is a dove whose native range extends from the Southwestern United States through Mexico, Central America, and the Caribbean. They are large for doves, and can be distinguished from similar doves by th ...

(''Leptotila verrequxi'') and Audubon's oriole (''Icterus graduacauda''). Mammals of the area include

bobcat The bobcat (''Lynx rufus''), also known as the red lynx, is a medium-sized cat native to North America. It ranges from southern Canada through most of the contiguous United States to Oaxaca in Mexico. It is listed as Least Concern on the ...

collared peccary The collared peccary (''Dicotyles tajacu'') is a species of artiodactyl (even-toed) mammal in the family Tayassuidae found in North, Central, and South America. It is the only member of the genus ''Dicotyles''. They are commonly referred to as ...

white-tailed deer The white-tailed deer (''Odocoileus virginianus''), also known as the whitetail or Virginia deer, is a medium-sized deer native to North America, Central America, and South America as far south as Peru and Bolivia. It has also been introduced t ...

, eastern cottontails, with ocelot ('' Leopardus pardalis''), Gulf Coast jaguarundi (''Puma yagouaroundi cacomitli''),

southern yellow bat The southern yellow bat (''Dasypterus ega'') is a species of vesper bat that belongs to suborder microchiroptera (microbat) in the family Vespertilionidae. It is native to South, North and Central America, from the Rio Grande Valley of Texas in ...

(''Lasiurus ega''), and

Mexican spiny pocket mouse The Mexican spiny pocket mouse (''Heteromys irroratus'') is a species of rodent in the family Heteromyidae. It is native to Mexico and Texas in the United States where it is found in dry, scrubby habitats. The IUCN has assessed it as being of "le ...

(''Liomys irroratus'') more abundant in Mexico. Rancho Nuevo beach in Tamaulipas and along the Texas coast are the only nesting sites in the world for the

Kemp's ridley Kemp's ridley sea turtle (''Lepidochelys kempii''), also called the Atlantic ridley sea turtle, is the rarest species of sea turtle and is the world's most endangered species of sea turtle. It is one of two living species in the genus '' Lepido ...

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 ''Leptodactylus fragilis'', known under many common names such as the Mexican white-lipped frog, American white-lipped frog or simply white-lipped frog, is a species of leptodactylid frog. Its distribution ranges from the Lower Rio Grande Vall ...

'').

Threats and preservation

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 Houston (; ) is the most populous city in Texas, the most populous city in the Southern United States, the fourth-most populous city in the United States, and the sixth-most populous city in North America, with a population of 2,304,580 i ...

. Estuaries and other coastal wetlands are better preserved than the prairie and indeed the protected areas of the coast are mainly sanctuaries for waterbirds.

Gallery

File:McFaddin National Wildlife Refuge, Jefferson County, Texas, USA (30 April 2010).jpg,

McFaddin National Wildlife Refuge The McFaddin and Texas Point National Wildlife Refuges are located in proximity in southern Jefferson County on the upper Texas coast at Sabine Pass. The refuges have a combined of fish and wildlife habitat. McFaddin, much the larger one, loc ...

, Jefferson County, Texas, USA (30 April 2010). File:Marysee Prairie Preserve, County Road 2077, Liberty County, Texas, USA (22 May 2020).jpg, Marysee Prairie Preserve, County Road 2077, Liberty County, Texas, USA (22 May 2020). File:Anahuac National Wildlife Refuge (5A) Chambers Co. TX; 1 Dec 2018.jpg,

Anahuac National Wildlife Refuge The Anahuac National Wildlife Refuge (NWR) is a wildlife conservation area along the coast of Texas (USA), west of the town of High Island, Texas. It borders East Bay, part of the Galveston Bay complex, behind Bolivar Peninsula at the Gulf of Mex ...

, Chambers County, Texas, USA (1 December 2018). File:Texas bluebonnets (Lupinus texensis), Attwater Prairie Chicken National Wildlife Refuge, Colorado County, Texas, USA (29 March 2019).jpg, Texas bluebonnets (''

Lupinus texensis ''Lupinus texensis'', the Texas bluebonnet or Texas lupine is a species of lupine found in Texas, and the Mexican states of Coahuila, Nuevo León, and Tamaulipas. With other related species of lupines also called bluebonnets, it is the state ...

''), Attwater Prairie Chicken National Wildlife Refuge, Colorado County, Texas, USA (29 March 2019). File:Texas bullnettle & plains coreopsis, Attwater Prairie Chicken National Wildlife Refuge, Colorado Co., TX, USA (3 May 2018).jpg, Texas bullnettle & plains coreopsis, Attwater Prairie Chicken National Wildlife Refuge, Colorado Co., TX, USA (3 May 2018). File:Northern crested caracara (Caracara cheriway), Attwater Prairie Chicken National Wildlife Refuge, Colorado County, Texas, USA (24 May 2014).jpg, crested caracara ('' Caracara plancus'') Attwater Prairie Chicken National Wildlife Refuge, Colorado County, Texas, USA (24 May 2014). File:Attwater Prairie Chicken National Wildlife Refuge, Colorado County, Texas, USA (11 November 2017).jpg, Attwater Prairie Chicken National Wildlife Refuge, Colorado County, Texas, USA (11 November 2017). File:Brazos Bend State Park, Fort Bend County, Texas, USA (8 December 2010).jpg, Brazos Bend State Park, Fort Bend County, Texas, USA (8 December 2010). File:Saltmarsh fleabane (Pluchea odorata), Brazoria National Wildlife Refuge, Brazoria County, Texas, USA (24 August 2013).jpg, Saltmarsh fleabane (''

Pluchea odorata ''Pluchea odorata'' is a species of flowering plant in the aster family, Asteraceae. Common names include sweetscent, saltmarsh fleabane and shrubby camphorweed. Distribution The plant is native to the United States, Mexico, Central America, th ...

''), Brazoria National Wildlife Refuge, Brazoria County, Texas, USA (24 August 2013). File:San Bernard National Wildlife Refuge, Brazoria County, Texas, USA (12 December 2016).jpg,

San Bernard National Wildlife Refuge The San Bernard National Wildlife Refuge is a wildlife conservation area along the coast of Texas (USA), south of the towns of Sweeny and Brazoria, Texas. It encloses a bay behind a barrier island at the Gulf of Mexico. The refuge is located in ...

, Brazoria County, Texas, USA (12 December 2016). File:Aransas National Wildlife Refuge, Aransas County, Texas, USA (27 November 2011).jpg,

Aransas National Wildlife Refuge Aransas National Wildlife Refuge is a 115,324-acre (466.7 km2) protected area situated on the southwest side of San Antonio Bay along the Gulf Coast of the U.S. state of Texas. It is located in parts of Aransas, Refugio, and Calhoun Cou ...

, Aransas County, Texas, USA (27 November 2011). File:Padre Island National Seashore, Kleberg County, Texas, USA (26 November 2011).jpg,

Padre Island National Seashore Padre Island National Seashore (PINS) is a national seashore located on Padre Island off the coast of South Texas. In contrast to South Padre Island, known for its beaches and vacationing college students, PINS is located on North Padre Isla ...

, Kleberg County, Texas, USA (26 November 2011). File:Spanish Dagger (Yucca treculeana), Laguna Atascosa National Wildlife Refuge, Cameron County, Texas, USA (12 April 2016).jpg, Spanish Dagger (''

Yucca treculeana ''Yucca treculeana'' Carrière is a plant in the family Asparagaceae, native to Texas, New Mexico and Coahuila. Common names include Spanish dagger, Spanish bayonet and Don Quixote's lance. ''Yucca treculeana'' is a large, tree-like species up to ...

''),

Laguna Atascosa National Wildlife Refuge Laguna Atascosa National Wildlife Refuge is the largest protected area of natural habitat left in the Lower Rio Grande Valley. The refuge is located almost entirely in Cameron County, Texas (near Harlingen), although a very small part of its n ...

, Cameron County, Texas, USA (12 April 2016). File:Harris's Hawk (Parabuteo unicinctus) on the road to Mezquital, Municipality of Matamoros, Tamaulipas, Mexico (18 March 2009).jpg, Harris's Hawk ('' Parabuteo unicinctus'') on the road to Mezquital, Municipality of Matamoros, Tamaulipas, Mexico (18 March 2009). File:Grassland habitat on the road to Mezquital, Municipality of Matamoros, Tamaulipas, Mexico (18 March 2009).jpg, Grassland habitat on the road to Mezquital, Municipality of Matamoros, Tamaulipas, Mexico (18 March 2009).

References

{{Reflist Gulf Coast of Mexico Gulf Coast of the United States Tropical and subtropical grasslands, savannas, and shrublands Ecoregions of Mexico Tropical and subtropical grasslands, savannas, and shrublands of the United States Ecoregions of the United States Grasslands of Mexico Grasslands of the United States Grasslands of Texas Natural history of Louisiana Natural history of Tamaulipas Natural history of Texas Nearctic ecoregions