National Park Service Padre Island National Seashore U.S. Department of the Interior News and Information Volume 1 Padre Post Cattle egrets taking flight / Photo by 2016 Artist-in-Residence Lee Bailey Welcome to Padre Island National Seashore! As the sun peeks over the horizon, casting small streamlets of light across More Inside... the Gulf waters, I find myself stand- Park and Camping Information.......2-5 ing on the observation deck of Mala- What to See and Do..........................6 quite Pavilion at Padre Island National Keeping Wildlife Wild........................7 Seashore. The warm southeast wind Traveling Down Island........................8 has awakened a small squadron of Park Map...........................................9 brown pelicans, flying in single file Featured Articles..........................10-13 40 feet above the water, looking Grasslands Nature Trail Guide.......14-15 for a school of bait fish to enjoy for Weather and Climate.......................16 breakfast. Laughing gulls and royal Safety...............................................16 terns are swooping in to claim what’s been left behind by the night jani- tors of the beach: ghost crabs. Superintendent’s Walking down the boardwalk toward Message Malaquite Beach, I surprise a kanga- roo rat scurrying back to its burrow, Foggy morning at Big Shell Beach, a remote area in the backcountry of Padre Island NPS Photo while smaller ghost crabs head for their freshly dug homesteads. Over During World War II, the Coast Guard The sun has now risen higher off the the vine-covered dunes is a pair of patrolled offshore and the land itself was horizon and the night prowlers have white-tailed hawks searching for a a bombing range. Oil and gas opera- all retired until dusk returns again. warm meal. The sun has now cleared tions have also left an impression on Meanwhile, the beach is now covered the horizon on this beautiful morn- the island. On top of all of this, several with some of the 380 bird species who ing and no white-tailed deer or bad- attempts were made to turn the island migrate from as far away as the Arctic gers have appeared on the dunes. into wall-to-wall asphalt and condos. and are heading south to Central and In the far distance a pair of coyotes, Thanks to Mother Nature, she stepped in South America for warmer weather. NPS Photo / C. Fenn following a night on the prowl, with a few gusty storms, and today we The island provides food and a resting I sincerely hope you enjoy your visit to the howl to welcome in the new day. are left to care for the longest undevel- area before their trips further south. For longest remaining stretch of undeveloped oped stretch of barrier island in the world the many visitors who enjoy the migra- barrier island in the world. Over half a mil- My mind begins to wonder: how and all the natural beauty it affords. tory bird seasons, this is a must to see. lion visitors come here each year to enjoy many people before me have taken camping, swimming, fishing, boating, and in the beauty and tranquility this This changing landscape of beaches, What a hidden gem to visit with so many other recreational activities. barrier island offers? The island was dunes, grasslands and tidal flats, sand- recreational activities and things to see first inhabited by Native Ameri- wiched between the Gulf of Mexico and do, from searching for seashells and This national park was created to preserve can people of the Coahuiltecan and the Laguna Madre, hosts incred- sea beans to the many water activities the seashore, unimpaired, for purposes of and Karankawa tribes. Four coun- ible biodiversity. Tens of thousands of including some of the best saltwater public recreation, benefit, and inspiration. tries have also claimed the land: migratory birds as well as many spe- fishing found anywhere. Many tours, As the National Park Service enters its Spain, Mexico, Republic of Texas, cies of mammals, reptiles, amphibians, along with youth and adult educational second century of service, I hope you will and the United States. All have left insects, mollusks, crustaceans, plants, programs, are available most days of the join and support our dedicated park staff a lasting imprint on the island. and fish are found in the park. The week. You will be greeted and assisted and volunteers in preserving some of our most endangered sea turtle in the by professional rangers and dedicated nation’s greatest treasures. As soft sand sifts between the toes world, the Kemp’s ridley, nests here volunteers during your stay, whether Please be safe and courteous while boat- of my bare feet, I marvel at this more often than at any other location it’s for a few hours or much longer. ing, camping, or otherwise enjoying the island’s several hundred year his- in the country. In the summer, visitors We welcome you to Padre Island, and park. Watch for children and animals while tory. Survivors from various Span- here can even cheer on newly hatched await your return with friends in tow. driving on the beach. Look for and report ish shipwrecks sought shelter on the sea turtle hatchlings as they make their - Karl Vermace, Volunteer-in-Park, nesting and stranded sea turtles. And pick island. Spanish land grants turned the first journey to the Gulf and beyond. Master Ranger Corps up free trash bags from the Malaquite region into a cattle ranching empire. Visitor Center to help keep our beaches beautiful. We are all stewards of this special place, 4-5 Campground 10 Birding in the 11 Sea Turtle and we must work together to protect and care for the Padre Island National Seashore Information Park Releases so that it may be enjoyed for the next 100 years and beyond. Sleep under the stars! Solitude, warm nights, Padre Island National Seashore is an ideal place Would you like to watch newly hatched sea sea breezes, and dark skies are some of for birds and bird-lovers alike! Discover the best turtles get released into the wild? Discover Enjoy your stay at your park! the features which make camping at Padre birding locations and what species you’re likely more about one of Padre Island’s most iconic Island National Seashore an unforgettable to see when birding at Padre Island. animals, the Kemp’s ridley sea turtle. experience. Mark Spier Superintendent National Park Service From Gulf to Laguna THE LAGUNA MADRE U.S. Department of the Interior Change, sudden or constant, is part of COASTAL PRAIRIE The western shore of the park borders the dynamics of a barrier island. The Located on the interior of the island, the the Laguna Madre, a shallow lagoon island is in a constant state of change, coastal prairie is a rare grasslands ecosys- composed of extensive, environmentally moved by gentle Gulf breezes, violent tem with less than 1% remaining in the Padre Island National Seashore sensitive mudflats. Due to a high rate Authorized by Congress in 1962, tropical storms, and from the rhythmic world. Padre Island National Seashore of evaporation and limited freshwater Padre Island National Seashore ebb and flow of tides and crashing waves. preserves one of the largest remain- mixing, the Laguna Madre is extremely preserves the longest stretch of The dunes, grasslands, and tidal flats ing protected tracts of this ecosystem. salty and considered hypersaline. It’s a undeveloped barrier island in the world. are shaped and reshaped daily- a con- Most of the island’s terrain consists unique ecosystem as it is only one of Park Mailing Address stant reminder of just how fragile the of coastal prairie interspersed with six hypersaline lagoons in the world. Padre Island National Seashore barrier island environment can be. ephemeral marshes and dune fields. Though saltier than the ocean, it’s not P.O. Box 181300 Grassland habitats are dominated by so salty that it can’t support life. Corpus Christi, TX 78480 THE GULF OF MEXICO rolling mounds covered with salt tol- Park Website Of all the ecosystems at Padre erant vegetation such as seacoast The Laguna is home to roughly 80% nps.gov/pais Island National Seashore, per- bluestem and bushy bluestem. of the North American population of haps the most visited and familiar E-mail redhead ducks in the wintertime. Fish, [email protected] are the Gulf beaches, spanning 70 The coastal prairie is an ever-changing clams, and snails use the extensive miles of undeveloped shoreline. habitat mostly controlled by rainfall. In grassflats as a coastal nursery while Park Headquarters the dry summer months the prairie is sea turtles and ducks feed on the (361) 949-8173 Winds create the dunes, and salt-tolerant home to white-tailed deer, coyotes, grasses. Islands in the Laguna Madre are Malaquite Visitor Center plants, like railroad vine, anchor the rattlesnakes, and raccoons. With the protected and important rookeries for (361) 949-8068 wind-driven sand. The railroad vine coming of the fall and winter rains bird species, like the American reaches out toward the sea, stabiliz- the prairie is transformed into a thriv- white pelican. Sea Turtle Hatchling Hotline ing the fine, white sand with roots and ing wetland which supports thou- (361) 949-7163 Left: Railroad vines at Malaquite Beach spreading vines, forming a relatively sands of wintering birds. Though at Facebook continuous dune ridge. The sand dunes first glance the prairie doesn’t seem Center: White-tailed deer in the coastal facebook.com/nps.pais harbor life that is often unseen and like much, it is a dynamic and com- prairie facebook.com/nps.pais.seaturtles unexpected; part of a rich and complex plex ecosystem integral to the wildlife Right: American white pelican rookery Instagram and Twitter pattern of life here on Padre Island.