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Cactus Creek Ranch 2nd Bi-Annual BioBlitz
October 26th, 2024
Prepared by: Jacquelyn Tleimat in January 2025
Date: 26 October 2024
Participants: Terrilyn Alaniz, Fayth Banda, Mary Jo Bogatto, Chery Brummett, Mark Conway, Alicia Cavazos, Devin Johnston, Justin LeClaire, Michael Orgill, Samantha Schiereck, Jacquelyn Tleimat, Susan Upton, Chad Wilmoth, Tira Wilmoth
Weather Conditions:
Prior to the survey, there was light fog cover, and the low temperature was 59 °F. At the start of the survey, conditions were mostly cloudy, and 61 °F. The cloud cover cleared by 10 AM until 9 PM when clouds started to roll back in. The highest temperature of the day was 80 °F at 3 PM and then dropped down to 63 °F by midnight. The moon phase was waning crescent, with 29% illumination.
Description of Activities:
On October 26th, 2024, a BioBlitz was conducted at the Cactus Creek Ranch (26°13'29.64"N, 97°25'36.59"W; on right) which sits adjacent to the Laguna Atascosa National Wildlife Refuge. A total of 14 individuals participated in the survey with survey periods from 12:01 AM – 1 AM, 8 AM – 12 PM, 1 PM – 6 PM, 7:30 PM – 11 PM for a total of 92 survey hours. Upon arrival at the ranch on October 25th, 2024, three minnow traps were deployed in three ponds with a glowstick to potentially attract news. Additionally, a mercury halogen light was deployed outside of the cabin to begin documenting nocturnal insects in the area. Acoustic recordings of new species from the BirdWeather PUC were reported if recorded during the BioBlitz. Surveys begun at 7:30 am; two groups of were split on the property to document all birds, insects, arachnids, plants, and other vertebrates. Another group split to check minnow traps and document species diversity around the ponds. Sweep nets were used to survey terrestrial invertebrates and sieves were used for aquatic invertebrates. Afternoon surveys were focused on capturing diversity around ponds that were missed during AM surveys.
In the evening, the mercury halogen light was deployed again, and the minnow traps were rebaited with glow sticks. Another group of two drove to the ponds to conduct acoustic surveys for amphibians. The mercury halogen light was set out from 7 PM until 11 PM at which point surveys ceased. Representatives from each species were photographed. All data were uploaded to iNaturalist and ebird.
Summary of Findings:
A total of 883 observations were uploaded to iNaturalist and 6 checklists to ebird. At the time of report preparation, a total of 371 unique species were recorded in this 24-hour period (Figure 2). Of these species, 183 were insects (49.5%), 83 were plants(22.4%), 53 were birds (14.3%), 23 were arachnids (6.2%), 8 were mammals (2.2%), 8 were reptiles (2.2%), 4 were ray-finned fishes (1.1%), 3 were mollusks (0.8%), 2 were fungi (0.5%), 1 amphibian (0.2%), and 3 were other animals (0.8%).
Of these observations made during the BioBlitz, 14 species (3.8%) are listed as threatened. The threatened species not detected in March include Sandhill Crane, American Bumble Bee, Harris’s Hawk, Texas Horned Lizard, Reddish Egret, Pond Slider, Monarch, Rio Grande Leopard Frog, Clytie Ministreak, and Bailey’s Ballmoss. Most plants identified to the species level were native to the area (83%), and nine of these plants were newly documented to Cactus Creek Ranch (Table 1). One new lichen genus was recorded in the area (Dirinaria spp.), seven new arachnid species (Table 2), and 111 new insect species (Table 3). Only 1 species of bird observed (of 61 total) was not native. Eight of the ten mammal species were native, and all recorded reptiles and fish were native species.
All observations can be found in the iNaturalist BioBlitz Event Page.
Future Recommendations:
The greatest species increase from this bioblitz was of insects and fish (compared to previously documented species numbers). The number of insect species increased by 40% (170 to 281) and fish species increased by 300% (1 species to 4 species). This indicates a need to continue documenting these groups to better reach the total diversity in the area. In addition, a survey of plant diversity during the spring floristic season (beginning mid-April) would allow for better identification and representation of the plant community on the property.
Bio Blitz 2024 Galleries
Our recent project, Bioblitz 2024, aimed to catalog the diverse flora and fauna of our pristine environment through community involvement and scientific research. Aiding us in our mission to protect and celebrate the natural world.
