The Lost Pines chapter serves primarily Bastrop and Caldwell counties of Central Texas (click here to find a statewide list of chapters). These counties are predominantly in the Post Oak Savannah and Blackland Prairie Ecoregions. In addition, our area includes the unique “island forest” of the Lost Pines, the westernmost extent of the loblolly pine (Pinus taeda), separated by about 100 miles from the pine forests of East Texas. Species in the Lost Pines are particularly adapted to the drier conditions here, and provide unique habitat for varied flora and fauna that can be seen in Bastrop and Buescher state parks and other nearby natural areas. You can learn more about what makes these parks so special and see pictures of them by visiting our “State Parks & Natural Areas” page; you can also find many links to information about the native plants, animals and ecology of the Lost Pines region on our resources page.
- Your Distant Cousin Was a Honeybee!
Among the sciences, genetics has rocketed to the top of the leader board. Monumental breakthroughs are changing our existence. With a simple swab we can now produce incontrovertible evidence freeing wrongly convicted inmates from death row and solve crimes that have been cold for decades. Through knowledge of our own genome, we now create new… Read More → - El Lagarto
Copeland, Florida, 2011. Margaret Webb, a 90-year-old at the time, was walking by a canal near her home. It was a perfect day. The sky seemed like blue porcelain, and a gentle breeze brought with it a premonition of fall. As she labored along, the reflected sky ran like a vein of silver in the… Read More → - Back Roads Nature–Kickapoo Caverns
If you’re one of those people who grew up in silence and wide-open spaces, accustomed to solitude, and uncomfortable in the presence of crowds, you’ll be as happy as mountain water among boulders at Kickapoo State Park! Concealed in the extreme western reaches of the Texas Hill Country, this park is not for everyone—you must… Read More → - Just a Little Grumpy
It was a clear balmy day on the plains, the grass dancing an intricate ballet on the wind. An adolescent coyote was cavorting like a young balloon out on holiday. Just weeks from his mother’s tutelage, finding food was a bit like dumpster-diving—an occasional mouse here, a lizard there—he was hungry. Then he glimpsed an… Read More → - The Five Amigos
It ain’t easy being a Texas rabbit. There’s floods, droughts, freezes, wildfires, scorching heat, tornados and only two seasons (summer & everything else). Add to that: ten ecoregions, all with their own terrain, climate, water issues and plant life. And, with an average lifespan of only 15 months, rabbits are nature’s most popular meal. They’re… Read More → - Back Roads Nature–Lake Somerville State Park
A lone eagle drifts up high in lazy circles, searching the massive expanse of water below for fish; a heron lifts on slow sliver wings. Gentle breezes nick the surface, shimmering pinpoints of light across the mirrored lake. Sparkling with the muted luster of good pearls, 11,000 acres of water sprawls in the late afternoon… Read More →