STATEMENT: Biden administration announces Texas wildlife refuge expansions

Muleshoe, Aransas, and Big Boggy National Wildlife Refuges to increase protections for thousands of acres of habitat

WASHINGTON – On Tuesday, the United States Fish and Wildlife Service (FWS) released final land protection plans for three National Wildlife Refuges in Texas. The Muleshoe National Wildlife Refuge, located on the Texas-New Mexico border, will be expanded by up to 700,000 acres in western Texas, northwest of Lubbock. The Aransas and Big Boggy National Wildlife Refuges in the Texas Coastal Bend, on the coast of the Gulf of Mexico, will be expanded by 150,000 acres collectively.

Under the FWS land protection plans, these areas have been identified as limited acquisition boundaries. These boundaries are set so that the FWS has approval to purchase land within the area’s borders, making it easier for the agency to move quickly and protect at-risk wildlife and the wild spaces they inhabit.

In response, Environment Texas Research & Policy Center Executive Director Luke Metzger released the following statement:

“From the panhandle to the coast, Texas nature did all right today. We commend the Biden administration, Secretary Deb Haaland, and the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service for releasing these plans to protect thousands of acres of critical habitat for Texas wildlife. At-risk animals like the endangered whooping crane, the pronghorn, and endangered prairie-chicken are valuable to our state and deserve our protection. 

“Our incredible biodiversity, from the prairie to the coast, is something that all Texans can celebrate. Now, future generations will be able to appreciate these special places as we do. These expansions ensure that Texas nature will be left to be natural for generations to come.”

###