Black-Capped Vireo

Balcones Canyonlands Preserve includes more than 24,000 acres in western Travis County devoted to the protection of endangered species and their habitat.

LCRA is a managing partner in the 1996 Balcones Canyonlands Conservation Plan (BCCP), which is a multi-agency conservation effort that operates under a permit issued by the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service. While this permit was issued to the City of Austin and Travis County, LCRA and other organizations also own and manage preserves dedicated to the BCCP.

Other participants include The Nature Conservancy of Texas, Travis Audubon Society, and several private landowners.

The BCCP's goal is to expand the land under protection to more than 30,400 acres of prime habitat in western Travis County for eight endangered species. The BCCP benefits two rare songbirds, the golden-cheeked warbler and black-capped vireo, and six karst invertebrates. The BCCP also covers an additional 27 species (karst and plants) that are candidates for endangered species listing.

LCRA's Wheless, McGregor and Westcave preserves
In the late 1990s, LCRA's Board of Directors committed Wheless, McGregor and Westcave preserves to habitat conservation. The three preserves total more than 2,500 acres and are managed in support of the BCCP principles. As a result, access to the preserves is restricted.

This land also translates into "mitigation credits" for LCRA infrastructure projects. This conservation strategy helps the recovery of the endangered species and simplifies the endangered species permitting process for LCRA projects in western Travis County.

New habitat for songbird
LCRA's staff identified the Wheless Preserve as having good conditions for the habitat of black-capped vireo, a rare songbird that nests in Texas in the spring and summer. As a result, new vireo habitat is being developed, starting with brush management initiated in 2002.

The BCCP helps LCRA address its legislative mandate to develop natural science laboratories, promote soil conservation and preserve fish and wildlife within its 11-county service area along the lower Colorado River.