furbearing mammals of texas - texas master...
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Mammals of Texas (157)
Marsupials (1)
Insectivores (5) – shrews and moles
Bats (30)
Carnivores (28)
Seals (1) – Caribbean monk seal - extinct
Rodents (63)
Rabbits (5)
Hoofed Mammals (8)
Armadillos (1)
Manatees (1) – West Indian manatee – extant – 1986 stranding –Federally endangered
Whales and Dolphins (14) – bottlenose dolphin most common –most only infrequently seen in Texas coastal waters
Accidental Mammals
Hairy legged vampire bat (Diphylla ecaudata),
one female taken May 24, 1967 from an
abandoned railroad tunnel 19 km west of
Comstock, Val Verde County
Little brown myotis (Myotis lucifugus) one
specimen Fort Hancock, Hudspeth County
Northern myotis (Myotis septentrionalis) one
specimen Winterhaven, Dimmitt County
Mammals Unique to Texas
Kangaroo Rat Dipodomys elator — STATUS: State Threatened
Gulf Coast Kangaroo Rat Dipodomys compactus —STATUS: Not well known. THREATS: development on Mustand and Padre Islands. NEEDS: monitoring
Attwater’s Pocket Gopher Geomys attwateri —STATUS: locally common THREATS: hybridization, fire ants
Texas Pocket Gopher Geomys personatus —STATUS: Good
Llano Pocket Gopher Geomys texensis — STATUS: Locally abundant THREATS: Limited range
Streckers Pocket Gopher Geomys streckeri –STATUS: Unknown Threats: limited range NEED: documentation of full range.
Order Insectivora - Shrews and
MolesSouthern Short-tailed Shrew, Eastern one-fourth of Texas; venomous; highly reproductive; few survive 2 years: Current study by East Texas Baptist University, Marshall
Elliot’s Short-tailed Shrew, Aransas, Montague, and Bastrop Counties; slightly venomous
Least Shrew, eastern and central portions, west in the Panhandle to New Mexico; inhabitant of grasslands; entirely animal matter
Desert Shrew, western 2/3 of Texas; do not construct or make use of underground burrows; eat larval stage of insects
Eastern Mole, south, east, central, and panhandle restricted in their distribution by the nature of the soil
Bats- Order Chiroptera
30 bat species – ex. Pallid bat, yuma bat, cave bat, Mexican free-tailed etc.
15 of 33 species Tracked in TXBCD
Federally Endangered –Mexican long-nosed batonly known from Big Bend National Park
3 species state threatened
State Threatened Bats
Southern yellow bat
Status: state threatened
Threats: Limited distribution and Palm trees required roost sites
Common around Brownsville found up to Corpus Christi
State Threatened Bats
Spotted bat
Status: State Threatened
Widely distributed in western North America
Known from Big Bend National Park
USFWS: Need Knowledge prior to any categorization of status
State Threatened Bats
Rafinesque’s big-
eared bat
Status: State
Threatened
Threats: Degradation
of habitat from
commercial logging
and general lack of
knowledge
Rodents
19 of 69 species
tracked in TXBCD
3 State Threatened
Tracked Species Primarily
Pocket Gophers (12)
– Geomys
Desert, Davis, Jones,
Texas, Maritime, Carrizo
Springs, Frio, and Llano
– Thomomys –
Guadalupe southern,
Limpia southern, and
Limpia Creek
RodentsPrairie vole – Uncommon– 2 counties Lipscomb and Hansford
– Recently reported by biologist Jim Ray from Pantax Complex
Presidio mole – Subspecies of common mole
– Presidio County 1887
– northern Coahuila 1951
Gray footed chipmunk– Status good in GMNP
– high elevations Sierra Diablo and
– Guadalupe Mtns
Yellow nosed cotton rat– Thought rare and in need of listing
– Recent trapping evidence indicates
abundant in range in Trans Pecos
Prairie dog– Former Candidate for listing as federally threatened.
– 97 counties historically 86 currently
– TPWD survey 170,000 acres
– Goal is 293,000 acres – continue to reach that goal
State Threatened Rodents
Texas Kangaroo rat
Status: State
Threatened
Threats: Restricted
range appears heavily
grazed and eroded
sites optimal
Needs: USFWS more
information
State Threatened Rodents
Palo Duro Mouse
(Peromyscus truei
comanche)
Status: State
Threatened
Threats: Restricted
range (Palo Duro
Canyon) Competition
from other species
State Threatened Rodents
Coues Rice Rat
Status: State Threatened
Threats: Restricted range coastal grasslands and loss of habitat
Needs: habitat protection especially resacas
Common Mexico to Panama
Pocket Gophers
9 Species now 12
– Llano pocket
gopher (G.
texensis)
– Attwater's pocket
gopher (G.
Attwateri)
– Others include
Botta’s, desert,
Baird’s, plains
Jones, Texas,
and yellow faced
Rabbits – Order Lagomorpha
Swamp rabbit – eastern third of Texas
Eastern cottontail - eastern three-fourths of the state and in some areas of the Trans-Pecos
Davis Mountains cottontail - Occupies upland habitats in the western one-half of the state. Status: Tracked TXBCD Not listed– Guadalupe and Chisos Mountain populations severely reduced
with no specimens 30 years
– Texas Tech study Davis Mountain population remains healthy
Black-tailed jackrabbit – absent only from the Big Thicket area
Hoofed Mammals
Javelina Status: Declining?
Elk - Formerly present only in the
Guadalupe Mountains now introduced
species
Pronghorn Status: Declining
Bison Status: Captive herd
Carnivores – Order Carnivora
Felidae - cats – records of 6 species– 4 species endangered
– Margay only known from one historical occurrence - extant
– Jaguar - extant
Canidae - wolves and foxes – 6 species – 2 Red wolf and gray wolf – extant
Procyonidae – raccoons, coatis – 3 species
– Coati state threatened
Ursidae – Bears– Historically 4 subspecies black bear: Currently 2
– Grizzly bear extant
Mustelidae – weasels, skunks, otters– 11 species including 6 species skunk
– Black-footed ferret – extant
Carnivores – Order CarnivoraFelidae - cats – records of 6 species– 4 species endangered
– Margay only known from one historical occurrence - extirpated
– Jaguar - extirpated
Canidae - wolves and foxes – 6 species – 2 Red wolf and gray wolf – extirpated
– Swift fox former candidate for listing
Procyonidae – raccoons, coatis – 3 species
– Coati state threatened
Ursidae – Bears– Historically 4 subspecies black bear: Currently 2
– Grizzly bear extirpated
Mustelidae – weasels, skunks, otters– 11 species including 5 species skunk
– Black-footed ferret – extirpated
Ocelot
Status: Federally endangered
Laguna Atascosa NWR and population in northern Willacy County
Threats: Restricted range small population size, habitat loss
Needs: Habitat restoration and protection, culverts
Ongoing research: Ocelot PVA, camera trapping, genetics, GPS collars at LANWR
Jaguarundi
Status: Federally
endangered
Extreme southern Texas
in Cameron, Hidalgo,
Starr, and Willacy
counties
Last confirmed report
1986 road kill
Issues – loss of habitat,
thought extirpated
White-nosed Coati
Status: State threatened
Texas, NM, AZ is northern
edge of range widespread
in Mexico
Threats: Habitat loss
riparian woodland
Needs: Life history,
abundance, general
ecology and management
Status of Black Bear in Texas
John Young and Dave Holdermann, Texas Parks and Wildlife Department, Wildlife Division, Wildlife Diversity Branch
Bears at Our Borders
Bears in Coahuila Mexico Serranias del Burro
Litter size 2-4 cubs/female
Estimated cub survival 81%, adult survival 88-94%
Linkage along mountain range
Source population for recolonization
Mid 1990’s breeding population established
Not restricted phenomena
1993-1997 15 bear sightings in east Texas
TPWD Habitat Suitability Study
Sulphur River Bottom HIS 0.76
Middle Neches River HIS 0.89
Lower Neches River HIS 0.79
Big Thicket National Preserve HIS 0.73
•24 confirmed sightings
•67% sightings since
1990
•70% in Northeastern
Counties
•Where are bears
coming from
Panhandle Sightings
21 Sightings
6 confirmed Dallam,
Carson, Hartley,
Oldham, Potter
Counties
2 mortalities – Dallam
Carson – east of
Amarillo
Human ISSUES
Highways
Depredation Conflicts– female bear and two cubs
killed 14 angora goats and one sheep
– Damage to remote hunting camps
– Destruction of horse feed
Illegal/Accidental kills –– 2002 Val Verde Co. shot
170-pound sow in self-defense two cubs orphaned
– Electrocution
Landowner and public attitudes and actions
Biological Issues
Females share range limiting dispersal
Suitable habitat separated by Chihuahuan Desert
Continued habitat loss and fragmentation– 17,045,000 in 1990
– 20,851,520 in 2000
– projected 27,183,000 by 2025.
east Texas lack of breeding females
Crider (In Press) documented cub survival in Serranias del Burro dropped to 20% in drought years
Addressing Issues
University of Michigan – East Texas Landowner Attitude Survey
Texas Tech – GIS study identify, characterize and map potential habitat, and construct a predictive model of Trans Pecos Population
Texas Tech – West Texas Landowner Attitude Survey
East Texas Black Bear Working Group – East Texas Black Bear Management Plan
Published in Outdoor Annual Black Bears are state Threatened species
CITES Listed Animals
Bobcat and River Otter
– Neither species endangered in the US
– Listed because they look like other endangered cats
and otters of the world
– TPW Regional Offices also have tags along with
some taxidermists
CITES tag must be acquired and attached for
sale/or movement out of state regardless of
commercially or recreationally harvested
River Otter
TPW surveys 23 counties every 3 years to track population
Population stable to expanding
Recent otter taken in San Saba County
Issues – highways, habitat loss
Bobcat
Avg. 35 lbs up to 50lbs
Tail 6 – 12 inches
Spotting heavy in some light in others
Distributed across Texas – density varies
Populations stable to expanding
Mink
eastern one-half of
state westward to
northern Panhandle in
habitats near
permanent water
Reduced harvest in
recent years suspect
increased population
Long-tailed weasel
Little known about
population
Low economic
importance
Eastern, southern,
western Texas
Swift or Kit FoxSmallest of foxes
found in western third of state
live in the open desert or grasslands and adapted to pasture, plowed fields, and fencerows
Recently removed from Candidate list for endangered
Issues – depredation by coyotes, rangeland conversion
Red Fox
Introduced for sport
found east, central and central Trans-Pecos
Not common
mixed woodland uplands interspersed with farms and pastures
Gray Fox
Distributed statewide
common in wooded
sections east of the
Shortgrass plains and
in the pinyon-juniper
community above
desert
Populations stable to
expanding
Beaver
Increasing
number of
nuisance
complaints
Populations
expanding
Eastern, south
and central
Texas
SkunksHooded skunk – Status: declining; reasons
unclear
– Needs: monitoring
Western Spotted skunk– Status: declining?
– Threat: loss of prairie habitat
– Ongoing research: ecology of striped skunks Angelo State Univ.
Eastern spotted skunk– Status: once common now
rare some areas and declining
– Threats: insecticides
Skunks
Hog nosed skunk: 2
subspecies: common and
eastern
Status:– eastern
subspecies extirpated;
– south Texas Plains
extirpated?
– Hill country remain
common
Needs: ecology,
behavior, management
recommendations
Raccoon and Ringtail
Raccoon found
throughout state
Ringtail throughout
Texas excepting
extreme south Texas
Ringtail population
status unknown
Raccoon stable and
increasing
American BadgerStatus: locally abundant
Possible eastward range expansion
Threats: habitat fragmentation from development
Needs: management recommendations and continued monitoring
Ongoing research: IAFWA best management trapping practices; possible study on badger genetics Angelo State Univ.
COYOTE
Non-game animal but most important economic
furbearer
Coyote abundant in suburban areas
red and blond coyotes were mistakenly identified
as coy dogs because their coats were not of the
more common tri-color pelage
Predation on cats and dogs
– Pet missing/partially eaten – coyote, hawk, owl
– Pet ripped apart – domestic dog
Gray Wolf
formerly ranged over the western two-thirds of the state
last authenticated reports of gray wolves in Texas were 2 in 1970 Brewster County
Gray wolf collared in Michigan killed in Missouri in 2001
Red Wolf
eastern half of Texas
are now extirpated from Texas
Coyote for comparison
Texas provided breeding stock for captive program
One wild population South Carolina
Mexican Wolf – Lobo Wolf
smallest of the wolves
in North America.
60 to 90 pounds
4 to 5 feet length
Wolf-dog Hybrid
wolf-dog hybrids are poorly adapted as pets and are difficult to train
Hybrids are frequently destructive, attack people and domestic animals, and are generally too wary of people to be effective guard animals.
Some problem or unmanageable hybrids have been intentionally released into the wild in Michigan – no evidence of this in Texas.
wolf-dog hybrid ownership is prohibited in nine states, restricted in 17 states, and requires a special permit in three others,
Milwaukee Journal (1992) reported that there are an estimated 300,000 to 1,500,000 wolf-dog hybrids in private possession
Mountain Lion
Non-game animal
Open season
Occurs throughout state
– Most mortalities occur in
south Texas and the Trans
Pecos
Population Status
– Reported mortalities steady
since 1985
– between 114 and 180
TPW does not relocate
mountain lion
Reporting a Mountain Lion
Sighting/Road kill
Report sightings
– utilize sightings, hunter
or trapper reported
mortality, and
confirmed road kills to
track population
– sightings form
John Young
(512)912-7047
Mountain Lion or ???
Description – reddish brown to tawny
Tip of nose to tail males in excess of 7 feet
Males 100 to 150 lbs
Females 55-90 lbs
Immature puma have light to heavy spotting
When its NOT a cougar
– Black in color no matter what grandpa says
– Multiple cats seen at once ―They jumped over my fence‖
MYTHICAL BLACK PANTHER
Does not occur in Texas
rare black phase of the spotted leopard (Panthera pardus) in Africa, Asia, and Indonesia
jaguar (Panthera onca), from northern Mexico through much of South America
Despite numerous reports of black panthers, a black specimen or skin has never seen the light of day in Texas or anywhere else in North America
biologists will remain highly skeptical of black mountain lion reports until an actual skin or specimen lands on someone’s desk
Exotic Cats
Serval
Tiger -"'Pet' Tiger Kills 3-year-old Boy in Texas." Austin American-Statesman 12 October 2001
JUNGLE CAT HYBRIDS/CHAUSIES
BENGAL CATS, a.k.a. Asian Leopard Hybrids.
Pixie-bob – bobcat house cat cross
These cats do not require any special permits and can be shipped to any air port in the U.S
Mammal Resources
Wildlife Fact Sheets TPWDwww.tpwd.state.tx.us/nature/wild/mammals/pduromouse.htm
Texas Mammals Onlinehttp://www.nsrl.ttu.edu/tmot1/Default.htm
Mammals of Texas – 4th edition by Schmidly