Management Plan Sierra Diablo
Total Page：16
File Type：pdf, Size：1020Kb
MANAGEMENT PLAN SIERRA DIABLO WMA December 2006 TABLE OF CONTENTS I. INTRODUCTION AND BACKGROUND INFORMATION 1. Property Name and Mission Statement 2. Property Description A. Location B. Legal Description 3. Administration A. Funding Sources B. General Administration C. Personnel D. Legal Considerations 4. History A. Prehistoric Summary B. Historic Summary C. Acquisition II. RESOURCES 1. Natural Resources A. Environment B. Climate C. Topography D. Geology E. Hydrology F. Flora G. Fauna 2. Cultural Resources 3. Facilities A. Buildings B. Roads C. Fences D. Utilities E. Public Access III. MANAGEMENT CONSTRAINTS 1. Cultural Resources 2. Surface Use Agreements A. Easements/Agreements/Cooperatives B. Mineral Rights 3. Threatened, Endangered Species and Species of Special Concern IV. INTEGRATED MANAGEMENT PLAN 1. Mission Statement 2. Goals in Prioritized Order 3. Objectives and Strategies A. Resource Management B. Research C. Interpretation I. INTRODUCTION AND BACKGROUND INFORMATION 1. PROPERTY NAME AND MISSION STATEMENT A. PROPERTY NAME – Sierra Diablo Wildlife Management Area B. MISSION STATEMENT – Operate and maintain the Sierra Diablo Wildlife Management Area as required to protect the resource and capital investments, facilitate research investigations and demonstrations, and provide for maximum public use consistent with compliance with the National Environmental Policy Act. 2. PROPERTY DESCRIPTION A. LOCATION The Sierra Diablo Wildlife Management Area (SDWMA) is located in the Trans-Pecos Ecological Region in Culberson and Hudspeth counties, approximately 26 miles northwest of Van Horn, Texas. The SDWMA is bounded by the Beach and Baylor Mountains to the South and the Guadalupe Mountains to the North. The wildlife management area (WMA) consists of 11,165.8 acres in four noncontiguous tracts scattered approximately 16 miles along the rim of the Sierra Diablo Mountains. The SDWMA headquarters complex is accessed by county and private roads from Allamore, Texas just off Interstate 10, 11 miles west of Van Horn. B. LEGAL DESCRIPTION Legal description available on request. 3. ADMINISTRATION A. FUNDING SOURCES Funding for the management Area is provided by two sources. These include the Federal Aid in Wildlife restoration Program and Fund 9 of the State of Texas. The Federal Aid in Wildlife Restoration Program or Pittman-Robertson Fund originates from excise taxes on sporting arms, handguns, ammunition and archery equipment. The federal funds are distributed to the Texas Parks and Wildlife Department in the form of a grant by the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service. The federal grant provides 75% of the funding for the area. The remaining 25% is provided by Fund 9, also known as the Texas Game, Fish and Water Safety Fund. The funds are generated from hunting license sales and registration fees. B. GENERAL ADMINISTRATION All management area administration responsibilities are coordinated through the Wildlife Division, Region 1 Director in San Angelo, Texas. C. PERSONNEL The SDWMA is staffed by one biologist/assistant project leader with an office in Alpine, Texas. This staff member spends the majority of his time on the SDWMA but has other Project responsibilities. The Sierra Diablo WMA is part of a complex of WMAs that comprise the Trans-Pecos Wildlife Management Area Project. Project personnel include wildlife biologists/assistant project leaders and wildlife technicians. These staff includes: Project Leader - Michael T. Pittman - Alpine Assistant Project Leader - Clay Roberts - Sierra Diablo WMA/Alpine Assistant Project Leader - Froylan Hernandez - Elephant Mountain WMA Wildlife Technician - Dale Burns - Elephant Mountain WMA Wildlife Technician - Cody McEntire - Elephant Mountain WMA Assistant Project Leader - Dewey Stockbridge - Black Gap WMA Wildlife Technician - Travis Smith - Black Gap WMA Wildlife Technician - Vacant - Black Gap WMA D. LEGAL CONSIDERATIONS The Texas Parks and Wildlife Department's Environmental Policy Guidelines govern WMA activities: This policy includes but is not limited to the following acts - National Historic Preservation Act of 1966; Texas Natural Resource Code; Clean Water Act; Texas Parks and Wildlife Department Code; Texas Water Code; Solid Waste Disposal Act; The State Clean Air Act; Texas Administrative Code; Texas Pesticide Control Act and Texas Agricultural Code; and the Endangered Species Act. Activities and facility construction are also governed by the National Environmental Policy Act and the Americans with Disabilities Act where applicable. 4. HISTORY A. PREHISTORIC SUMMARY To be added later. B. HISTORIC SUMMARY The SDWMA is surrounded by large cattle ranches. Agricultural grazing of the acreage comprising the Area was never feasible because of the terrain and scarcity of permanent livestock water. Prior to State acquisition, the Area was utilized primarily for mule deer hunting. The Area was established to maintain and protect the existing native desert bighorn sheep population in the Sierra Diablo Mountains and to restore the bighorn sheep to its former status. However, the native sheep population had been decimated to the point where it could not sustain itself before the Area was established. The last native bighorn sheep were sighted in the Sierra Diablo Mountains in 1960. Since its acquisition, the management of the Sierra Diablo WMA has been directed toward restoration of desert bighorn sheep to their former range. C. ACQUISITION The Sierra Diablo WMA was originally set aside as a refuge for the last remaining population of desert bighorn sheep in Texas. Purchase of the area was authorized by State Legislative Bill H.B. 453 and signed by the Governor of Texas on May 24, 1945. Formerly public school lands and private holdings, original acquisitions of the property occurred in 1947, 1957, 1959, 1960 and 1967. The original purchases consisted of 5,335 acres of public school lands at $1.00 per acre. The property on which the Area headquarters is located was acquired from T.A. and Mabel Beard in December 1957 adding 2,456.0 acres the Area. These properties were owned by the General Land Office or purchased by the State of Texas and granted to the Game, Fish and Oyster Commission by virtue of application filed in the General Land Office under the provisions of H.B. 453, Forty-ninth Legislature, 1945. Property adjacent to Victorio Canyon was acquired by trade, donation and purchase. Mr. Nelson Puett traded Section 22, Block 42 ½, Public School Lands, Culberson County for TPWD Section 11 and donated Section 21 to the Department in 1987. An additional 2,560 acres were purchased from Alpha-21 Corporation in June 1990. The last addition to the Area consisted of 174.47 acres from the General Land Office. Currently, the Sierra Diablo WMA consists of 11,165.8 acres. The present Area was acquired in six transactions. The Department makes payments in lieu of taxes to Culberson and Hudspeth Counties when an assessment is received from either County. II. RESOURCES 1. NATURAL RESOURCES A. ENVIRONMENT The Sierra Diablo WMA consists of 11,165.8 acres within the Chihuahuan Desert. The Chihuahuan Desert is the second largest desert in North America. It extends from southern New Mexico and far western Texas south and west almost to Mexico City. In Texas an area of some 19,000,000 acres from just east of the Pecos River to the Mexican border is the Chihuahuan Desert. The Sierra Diablo WMA lies in a rough mountainous area consisting of rugged rimrocks and ledges, interspersed with deep canyons. Elevations range from 2,000 feet ASL along the desert floor to 6,320 feet ASL within the mountain areas. Soils are rocky loam of limestone origin and subject to heavy erosion. Permanent water on the Area is limited. Three major vegetation types are found on the Area. These include Sotol-Lechuguilla, Yucca-Juniper Savannah and Pinon Pine-Juniper. B. CLIMATE The climate of the Area is characterized by low rainfall, high winds and evaporation, and marked diurnal temperature variation. The average yearly rainfall is 10 inches with over half falling during July, August, and September. Temperatures average 90° F in the summer and 30° during the winter. The average growing season ranges from 224 to 231 days. Average first frost occurs November 10 and average last frost occurs April 2 (Kingston 1989). Radiational cooling is usually rapid at night and diurnal temperature variations are often as much as 50° F, primarily because of dry atmosphere and absence of cloud cover. C. TOPOGRAPHY The Sierra Diablo Mountains were formed approximately 950 million years ago from Precambrian volcanics. The mountain range rises gently from the west near Sierra Blanca, Hudspeth County, and climbs to an elevation of 6,578 feet ASL in Culberson County. After attaining an average elevation of 6,320 feet ASL, the topography breaks sharply with 2,000 foot drops to the desert floor to the east. The many canyons cutting into the mountain range are surfaced by shallow, stony soils. D. GEOLOGY To be added later. E. HYDROLOGY Continuous natural surface water within the management area does not exist. Natural water on the Area is limited to the numerous potholes which catch and hold rainwater for a brief period of time. Hydrological data for the WMA is not available. F. FLORA Three major vegetation types are found on the Area. These include: Sotol-Lechuguilla, Yucca- Juniper Savannah, and Pinon Pine-Juniper. The Sotol-Lechuguilla association is usually found on the slopes of hills and lower canyons adjacent to creosotebush-acacia flats. Dominant plant species include stool, lechugilla and yucaa. Often associated with the dominants are catclaw, four-wing saltbrush, desert hackberry, coldenia, mormon tea, apached plume, coyotillo, javelina bush, althorn, range ratany, skelton leaf goldeneye and ocotillo. Grasses commonly found in this vegetation type are blue, sideoats, red, black, and hairy gramas; cane and silver bluestem; buffalo grass, curly mesquite, Arizona cotton top, threeawns, hairy and slim tridens; and fluffgrass. The Yucca-Juniper Savannah vegetation type is found in draws and barrancas at elevations near 4,000 feet ASL and on mountain sides at higher elevations.