Lupe Hernandez The Mollie Beattie Coastal Habitat Community is the first site to be designated under the Adopt-A-Habitat Program and is dedicated in honor of the late Mollie Beattie of Vermont, the first woman to serve as director of the U.S. Fish & Wildlife Service. The Adopt-A-Habitat Program is different from other environmental programs in Texas in that it involves both coastal and non-coastal lands, and places emphasis on preservation of habitats for state and federally listed species through an ecosystem approach.
Introduction
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Where Is It Located?
The Mollie Beattie Community is located just north of Packery Channel in the Corpus Christi region of the Upper Laguna Madre and includes approximately 1,000 acres of Permanent School Fund (PSF) land. At the center of MBCHC is a washover pass called Newport Pass. Newport Pass is one of an interrelated group of three (3) washover passes, including Corpus Christi Pass to the north and Packery Pass to the south.
Top Of Page Index Mollie Beattie Coastal Habitat Community (MBCHC) lies within a coastal ecotone or a zone of transition between different environments. Two vastly different coastal ecosystems surround the habitat. An estuarine ecosystem ( where freshwater meets saltwater) lies directly north and the Laguna Madre's hypersaline lagoon ecosystem lies just south of the MBHC. The estuarine ecosystem extends throughout most of the northern Gulf Coast, and is generally less saline (salty) than ocean water (less than 35 parts per thousand). The bayshore habitats in the estuarine ecosystem are characterized by densely-vegetated, smooth cordgrass (Spartina alterniflora) marshes bordered by narrow bands of tidal flats. The Laguna Madre waters are generally greater than 35 ppt. The bayshore habitats in the Laguna Madre are characterized by broad tidal flats that are almost completely devoid of cordgrasses and other vascular plants that cannot tolerate the hypersaline conditions.
The average annual rainfall is 27 to 35 inches, with occasional periods of drought and other periods of above normal rainfall (such as hurricanes). Temperatures vary from low 40's in the winter to mid 90's in the summer. Bayshore tides in the preservation area are controlled by both astronomical forces and winds. Winds are predominately southeasterly, but north and northeasterly winds prevail in the winter. The seasonal tidal cycle produces extremely low tides in the habitat in the winter and summer creating vast areas of emergent tidal flats. Winter cold fronts accompanied by strong winds push water onto the tidal flats so it is common for the tidal flat system to be completely covered by bay waters during the winters.
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Who was Mollie Beattie? Mollie H. Beattie of Grafton, Vermont, was nominated by President Bill Clinton to serve as Director of the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service (USFWS) and was confirmed by the U.S. Senate on September 10, 1993. Mrs. Beattie came to the Service from The Richard A. Snelling Center for Government in Vermont, an institute for public policy and service, where she was Executive Director.
Mollie's Career
Prior to that position, she served as Deputy Secretary for Vermont's Agency of Natural Resources from 1989-90, with responsibility for fish and wildlife, forestry, public lands, water quality, and energy issues. As Commissioner of the Vermont Department of Forests, Parks and Recreation from 1985-89, Mrs. Beattie was responsible for the administration of public lands, including management of wildlife habitat areas, and the operation of 48 state parks. As Program Director for nonprofit Windham Foundation from 1983-85 she managed 1,300 acres of farm and forest land for the Foundation with a primary emphasis on wildlife habitat improvement. She taught resource management to private landowners for the University of Vermont Extension Service and served as Project Director for an experimental game bird habitat program.
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In 1995, Mollie Beattie, then Director of the USFWS, met with Texas Land Commissioner Garry Mauro and agreed to work together and find ways for state land offices to actively support the Endangered Species Act. As promised to Mollie Beattie before her untimely death in the summer of 1996, the GLO and the USFWS signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) to initiate the Adopt-A-Habitat program. The Mollie Beattie Coastal Habitat Community is the first site to be designated under the Adopt-A-Habitat Program. On November 14, 1996, the dedication ceremony of the Mollie Beattie Coastal Habitat Community was held at the Texas A&M University, Natural Resources Center Auditorium in Corpus Christi, Texas.
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Some 8,000 years ago, Asiatics crossed the Bering Strait and slowly made their way south over the North American continent to inhabit Padre Island. Their cultures slowly disappeared and Indian cultures emerged. The main tribe was the Karankawa tribe, which is thought to have come from Northern Mexico. Known for their fierceness and cannibalism, the Karankawas depended heavily on fish, shellfish, mussels, and aquatic vegetation for food. The Karankawas spoke a language similar to Aborigines and inhabited Padre Island until the mid 1850's.
A.D.
In the early 1500's Alonzo de Pineda explored the Gulf Coast, setting foot on Padre Island and opening the door to the New World for the European cultures. But early Spanish settlements on the Island met with tragedy and disaster. Legends have it that magnificent treasures lie beneath the sands of the Island and the waters of the Gulf. Several Spanish galleons filled with treasures bound for Spain met with disaster when strong storms ripped them apart and deposited the pieces on the Gulf bottom or along the shores.
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