The endangered toad named for Houston has not lived there since about 1970, and this sandy county is its last real stronghold. It needs two things that rarely occur together: soil loose enough to burrow into and stay damp through a Texas summer, and shallow ponds that hold water long enough in late winter for tadpoles to develop but dry out before fish can colonize. The deep sand under the pines here provides the first and the seasonal ponds the second. The 2011 fire burned straight through the core of that habitat, and the recovery of the toad and the recovery of the forest are now the same problem.
Getting there
30.1000, -97.2700
Locations are approximate and may be inaccurate, on private land, or otherwise inaccessible. Check before you travel.
Hear it from the road
Whistlestop tells you this story automatically when you drive past. No searching, no tapping, nothing to ask.
