Wildlife group wins land steward award

Alum Creek Management Association protected Houston toad, rebuilt forest.

The Texas Parks and Wildlife Department awarded the Alum Creek Wildlife Management Association with a Lone Star Land Steward Regional Award for its work on protecting the endangered Houston toad and rebuilding the Lost Pines Forest.

“The Texas Parks and Wildlife Department’s Lone Star Land Steward Awards recognizes those private landowners for excellence in habitat management and wildlife conservation,” the state agency said in a statement announcing award recipients. “The awards also seek to publicize the best examples of sound natural resource management practices and promote long-term conservation of unique natural and cultural resources.”

The Alum Creek Wildlife Management Association original efforts were on the recovery of the federally endangered Houston toad in Bastrop County, but the association’s charge expanded to helping members recover their homes, properties and toad habitats after the 2011 Complex Fire destroyed 34,000 acres in the county and torched 1,600 homes.

The association practices land management on members’ properties, which cover more than 5,000 acres, and its work in the past few years has contributed to an increase in quantity and quality of habitat for the Houston Toad, which has been listed as endangered since 1970 and is on the brink of extinction, according to the Texas Parks and Wildlife Department

The association has also helped promote a diversity of vegetation in the Lost Pines with native grasses and forbs taking over non-native pastures, the state agency said. The association does prescribed burns, brush control and erosion control on members’ properties, as well as improve water and soil quality through native prairie restoration.

“By sharing information and working together on best land management practices the Alum Creek WMA members are doing their part to help ensure that the Lost Pines and Houston Toad habitat area will be here for future generations to enjoy,” said Michael Baumann, president of the Alum Creek Wildlife Management Association.