We examined instream large woody debris (LWD) dynamics on the Sabine River, TX. All wood >10 cm in diameter and >2 m long was measured on four river meanders (meander wavelengths) below the dam on Toledo Bend Reservoir. We determined LWD species, degree of decay, bank orientation, jam association, and stage contact. We also measured riparian vegetation characteristics on each meander. LWD volumes were significantly greater at the site immediately below Toledo Bend Dam, due to the relatively steeper channel gradient and higher rates of channel erosion. Based on mass balance estimates, between 11 and 21% of total annual recruitment came from upstream fluvial transport, and the remainder resulted from bank erosion and tree mortality. We estimated average LWD residence time to be 12–14 years. The lower Sabine River is transport-limited for sediment, and the same is true for LWD. Based on these measurements, it is unlikely that Toledo Bend Reservoir is having a significant impact on LWD dynamics at the measurement reaches due to lacustrine wood storage. Of greater concern in the study system are riparian forest degradation and invasive species spread, which may dramatically affect future LWD loadings and residence times, and thus, riverine biota.

Beginning in 2009, we surveyed the vegetation of ephemeral ponds in Sabine and Nacogdoches counties in east-central Texas. These ponds are shallow and flat-bottomed, with a small but distinct flora dominated by grasses (Poaceae) and sedges (Cyperaceae). The floras of these ponds are most similar to those of flatwoods ponds located on the lower coastal plain. Once more common on the landscape, ponds of this type have been altered or destroyed by land-use changes and fire suppression, leading to massive encroachment of woody vegetation. The pond we sampled in Nacogdoches County has been regularly mowed for approximately 30 years to prevent woody encroachment. Currently, prescribed burning in late summer and mechanical removal of encroaching woody vegetation are being applied to better understand management options that will maintain and restore the ponds we sampled and similar sites in east-central Texas. These and other natural ponds in the West Gulf Coastal Plain have not been comprehensively studied.

According to three surveys performed annually since the mid-late 1980s, the Anas fulvigula (Mottled Duck) population in Texas has declined substantially. Factors contributing to the observed trend are not well understood. Assessing the relative influence of vital rates on the population growth-rate is necessary to make management and conservation decisions regarding Mottled Ducks. We gathered estimates and associated variance estimates for vital rates of Mottled Ducks on the western Gulf Coast. We constructed a matrix population-model based on female vital rates and assumed birth-pulse reproduction, and parameterized it with a pre-breeding census. We calculated mean and standard error estimates for composite vital rates such as population growth rate (λ), fertility, and recruitment using 1000 iterations of the model. We also performed 20 meta-iterations of the population model to obtain mean coefficient of determination (r²) values for the linear regression of each vital rate and composite rates on λ. Overall λ was low, 0.541 (SE = 0.070). Fertility was also low, F = 0.071 (SE = 0.058). The elasticity analysis suggested that proportional changes in both fertility (r² = 0.675) and survival (r² = 0.322) played major roles in explaining the variation in λ. For the vital rates comprising F, breeding incidence (r² = 0.270) and nest success (r² = 0.200) explained the most variation in λ. Results indicated that the Mottled Duck population is in a steep decline, with low fertility and annual survival both influencing annual growth. We suggest targeting management efforts towards increasing adult survival, breeding incidence, and nest success for Mottled Ducks on the western Gulf Coast.

While Peucaea aestivalis (Bachman's Sparrow) will use several habitat types (e.g., pine savanna, pine plantations, clear cuts, abandoned fields), specific vegetative conditions must be present for a site to be acceptable. Bachman's Sparrow presence/absence was examined in forested (mature Pinus palustris [Longleaf Pine] forest and mid-aged pine plantations) and early successional habitats (clear cuts and three-year-old pine plantations) to determine which vegetation variables were best for predicting sparrow occurrence. Across all sampled habitats, the probability of Bachman's Sparrow presence increased with increases in canopy cover and percent grass groundcover. Probability of presence decreased with increases in shrub-layer rating and percent bare ground. When considering only forested habitats, the probability of Bachman's Sparrow presence increased with increasing canopy cover and percent grass groundcover, but decreased with increasing canopy height, shrub height, and stand basal area. In early successional habitats, the probability of Bachman's Sparrow presence increased with greater grass groundcover and decreased with more bare ground. Also, there were more occupied sites in forested habitats than in early successional habitats.

Numerous isolated prairies exist, or existed, on the West Gulf Coastal Plain east of the main distribution of the prairie ecosystem. Changing land-use patterns and suppression of wildfire have destroyed almost all of these small prairie occurrences. Intensified restoration and management of degraded prairie habitat on the Sam Houston National Forest in southeastern Texas have been ongoing since approximately 2004. As a result, encroaching woody vegetation has been substantially reduced, and a vegetation structure consistent with prairie habitat has been restored. Beginning in 2008, we conducted winter bird surveys on these prairies with the objective of quantifying avian use, especially by grassland sparrows of the genus Ammodramus. With the improvement in prairie structure, winter use of these sites by Ammodramus spp. was rapidly established, typically following the first post-restoration growing season. Ammodramus henslowii (Henslow's Sparrow), a species of conservation concern, responded particularly dramatically. These results demonstrate that aggressive restoration of prairie remnants on the West Gulf Coastal Plain can rapidly reestablish prairie habitat and facilitate re-colonization by at least some avian species characteristic of prairie habitats.

Restoration of the unique and diverse habitats of the Kisatchie Sandstone Hills requires the re-introduction of fire to reduce fuel accumulation and promote herbaceous vegetation, but some soils in the area are extremely erodible, and past fires have resulted in high erosion rates. Overstory and understory vegetation, downed woody fuels, and other stand attributes were measured on sites that received either no management or two prescribed burns after >20 years of fire exclusion. The two burns (one dormant season and one growing season) reduced the live fuel-load (understory biomass) and forest floor (litter and duff mass) by 90 and 71%, respectively, but did not change the downed woody fuel load. Understory plant diversity was not affected by burning, but burning stimulated both colonization and sprouting for most plant species. Habitat for Picoides borealis (Red-cockaded Woodpecker) was improved; understory plant height was reduced by 2 m, and herbaceous vegetation was found in 40% of the areas sampled in the burned sites but it was found in only 6.7% of the reference (unburned) sites. Erosion risk was still elevated due to the sparse vegetative cover on the forest floor. Future management should consider erosion prevention, and plan the timing and intensity of additional burns to maximize plant cover on the forest floor and to improve the habitat by converting the woody understory to an herbaceous understory.

This study quantifies differences in vegetation richness, composition, and structure between sites where fire has been excluded for 20 years and frequently burned sites in a Pinus palustris (Longleaf Pine) community within the Upland Island Wilderness in eastern Texas. Sixty plots were allocated equally between two sites: Upland Island, where fire had been excluded, and Boykin Spring, where fires were frequent. Plots were stratified within 3 relative topographic positions: lower slopes, upper slopes, and ridges. We collected data on vegetation within four strata (herbaceous, woody understory, mid-story, overstory) and on site parameters. Compared to the frequently burned site, the fire-excluded site had lower herbaceous species richness and cover, greater cover by shrubs and other pines in the understory and midstory, a denser midstory, and less Longleaf Pine regeneration. Overall, vegetation differences did not appear to be shaped by any underlying local edaphic and physiographic gradients. Our data demonstrated the effectiveness of a burning regime in maintaining and possibly recreating historic stand structure and diversity. It may be necessary to increase burning frequency to once every 2–3 years at Upland Island to reduce hardwood re-sprouts from emerging into the understory and midstory strata.

We established a high-intensity prescribed-fire experiment in shrub-dominated coastal prairie to quantify (1) the proportion of Red Imported Fire Ant mounds that are likely to be missed by applicators of individual mound-based chemical treatments in prairie, based on the number of mounds found in unburned prairie compared to recently burned areas, and (2) to track changes in the densities of Red Imported Fire Ant and native Red Harvester Ant mounds in response to growing-season prescribed fires conducted during drought. First, our data suggest insecticide applicators are likely to miss 48% of Red Imported Fire Ant mounds when applying individual mound treatments in shrub-infested prairie. Second, fire treatments did not increase Red Imported Fire Ant or decrease Red Harvester Ant populations. Prescribed fire may therefore provide an advantageous management option for prairie managers that does not increase densities of Red Imported Fire Ants, and maintains mound densities of Red Harvester Ants, while enhancing the ability of insecticide applicators to locate and treat individual Red Imported Fire Ant mounds.

Sapindus saponaria var. drummondii (Western Soapberry) is a small- to medium-sized tree native to the western Gulf Region and southwestern US and is valued in urban and rural landscapes. Recently in the United States, it has become host to an invasive insect introduced from Mexico. Agrilus prionurus (Coleoptera: Buprestidae) (Soapberry Borer) was first reported in Travis County, TX, in 2003 and has been detected in 51 additional counties as of December 2013. As its populations expand rapidly in Texas, this invasive pest is killing Soapberry trees >6 cm in diameter. Additionally, it may eventually threaten Western Soapberry populations throughout the tree's range. Infestations of Soapberry Borer are similar to those of A. planipennis (Emerald Ash Borer), a destructive invasive pest of Fraxinus spp. (ash) but not yet found in Texas. Signs of Soapberry Borer infestation include large bark flakes that accumulate at the base of infested trees, galleries between the bark and sapwood, trees that die back from the top, and excessive epicormic sprouts on the lower trunk. Western Soapberry appears to be the Soapberry Borer's sole host in Texas, and trees of this species exhibit little resistance to this introduced pest. Preliminary studies indicate that Soapberry Borer adults emerge and fly from late May to August and that this species has no more than one generation per year in Texas. Preventative and therapeutic treatments with the systemic insecticide emamectin benzoate are showing promise as a means to protect valuable Soapberry trees in rural and urban landscapes.

Fifty-one species make up the known tardigrade fauna of the West Gulf Coastal Plain (western Louisiana, eastern Texas, southeastern Oklahoma, and southern Arkansas). Tardigrade diversity appears low compared to well-sampled areas of North America and Europe. Lichens and mosses collected in southwestern Louisiana during the Spring of 2010 contained ten species of tardigrades. Macrobiotus anemone sp. n. belongs to the hufelandi group. It differs from other species in the group in having egg processes whose terminal disks have 7–10 long, tentacular arms. Murrayon hyperoncus sp. n. differs from other species in the genus in the much larger dimensions of its buccal tube, placoids, and lunules. Echiniscus arctomys, Hypsibius convergens, Mesocrista spitzbergensis, Paramacrobiotus richtersi, and Murrayon pullari are new records for Louisiana.

We completed an all taxa biological inventory (ATBI) for water bears (Phylum Tardigrada) in the Big Thicket National Preserve (BTNP) of southeastern Texas begun in 2006. Our inventory is based on methods used in a tardigrade ATBI of the Great Smoky Mountains National Park (GSMNP). We sampled lichens, mosses, liverworts, leaf litter, soil, and aquatic vegetation. Tardigrades were present in 47% of terrestrial and 3% of freshwater samples. We identified 631 tardigrade specimens and 63 eggs, representing 13 genera and 37 species. Tardigrade species richness in BTNP is approximately half that in GSMNP. Lower diversity in BTNP is partly explained by the absence of the altitudinal variation characteristic of GSMNP. Freshwater tardigrades were especially poorly represented at BTNP. Streams and lakes in BTNP are eutrophic and muddy, and may be poor habitats for tardigrades. This study confirms previous findings that the high tardigrade diversity found in mountainous areas may not be typical of other landscapes, and that in North America, tardigrades are less numerous and diverse in southern coastal plains and flatlands than in northern forests and mountains.

Despite concerns that the Louisiana Pine Snake (Pituophis ruthveni) has been extirpated from large portions of its historic range, only a limited number of studies on their movement patterns have been published. Winter movement patterns are of particular interest since it has been hypothesized that impacts of management practices would be reduced during the winter. Using radiotelemetry, we determined winter movement patterns of Louisiana Pine Snakes (11 males, 8 females) in 5 study areas (2 in Louisiana and 3 in Texas). Movements during winter (November—February) were greatly curtailed compared to the remainder of the year; however, snakes occasionally undertook substantial movements. Relocations were typically within the snake's previous active-season home range, and movements were more frequent in the early portion of winter. All hibernation sites were within Baird's Pocket Gopher (Geomys breviceps) burrow systems at depths ranging from 13–25 cm. Louisiana Pine Snakes did not use communal hibernacula, nor did individual snakes return to previously used sites in successive years.

Ongoing surveys suggest that Pituophis ruthveni (Louisiana Pine Snake) has declined range-wide and that known extant populations have continued to decline. Seven known populations remain and occupy small, isolated blocks of habitat. Population sizes are unknown, but all of them are believed to be critically small. Management for the species' recovery requires an understanding of its habitat requirements and how resources used by these snakes are distributed in space. Research suggests that the species' primary prey, Geomys breviceps (Baird's Pocket Gopher), prefers sandy, well-drained soils. Thus soil attributes may be used to identify potential Louisiana Pine Snake habitat. Using Natural Resources Conservation Service Soil Survey Geographic Database (SSURGO) soil characteristics and available historical and recent telemetered snake locations, we developed resource selection functions describing Louisiana Pine Snake potential habitat at two spatial scales. SSURGO variable hydgrp, a soil characteristic developed for modeling precipitation runoff, incorporating soil permeability and depth to ground water, best predicted species occurrence and was used to map potential habitat selection and identify areas of high conservation value. Our model demonstrates that the distribution of Louisiana Pine Snakes on the landscape is strongly influenced by edaphic factors, which are unlikely to be changed at a landscape scale by human activities. Ample area of suitable soils remains available to support the species throughout its historical range; however, we suspect that a miniscule fraction of the potential habitat we identified has suitable vegetation communities on-site to support Louisiana Pine Snakes.

Because diurnal roosts can be important in determining bat occupancy and abundance in forested habitats, we identified characteristics of cavity trees that influence roost selection by Corynorhinus rafinesquii (Rafinesque's Big-eared Bats) and Myotis austroriparius (Southeastern Myotis) in east Texas. We identified used and non-used cavity trees with a combination of transect searches, radiotelemetry, and historical records at 7 study areas. Both bat species selected similar cavity trees for summer diurnal roosts, showing an affinity for tupelo trees (Nyssa spp.), with 55% of diurnal roosts in Nyssa aquatica (Water Tupelo) and 33% in N. sylvatica (Blackgum). Of 17 tree and habitat variables we measured at used and unused cavity trees, those related to cavity size and availability (cavity height and diameter, tree diameter, density of large trees in the area) were the most important predictors of use. Characteristics of the surrounding stand at both local and landscape scales were less important. Rafinesque's Big-eared Bats and Southeastern Myotis appeared to use the largest cavity trees present and we speculate that the availability of suitable trees with large cavities may limit abundance in this region.

The activity patterns of 4 forest predator species were monitored, using infrared-triggered cameras, within a 1318-ha study area in East Texas. We recorded 161 photographic capture events in 1925 trap-nights over 17 weeks. Photographic capture events included 18 Lynx rufus (Bobcat), 109 Procyon lotor (Raccoon), 21 Didelphis virginiana (Virginia Opossum), and 13 Canis latrans (Coyote). We developed an easily replicated method of measuring time on a percent scale to compare activity data over several months, accounting for changes in sunrise and sunset times. Bobcat activity was 38.9% crepuscular and 22.1% diurnal. The activity of the other 3 species was mostly nocturnal: Raccoon 94.5%, Virginia Opossum 100%, and Coyote 77%. Moon phase based on percentage of visible light did not affect either Raccoon or Virginia Opossum nocturnal activity level.