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Ed Proffitt, a professor of marine ecology at Texas A&M-Corpus Christi, and Max Portmann, right, a PhD student with the Proffitt-Delvin Lab of Coastal Ecology and Genetics, look at a young black mangrove tree near Oso Bay on April 18, 2024, in Corpus Christi, Texas. They can determine the age of the pant by the distance between leaf pairs, which indicates growth between seasons and years, Proffitt said.
Climate Change in Texas

Mangroves, expanding with the warming climate, are re-shaping the Texas coast

The tropical shrubs have been spreading north and growing more abundantly as climate change makes temperatures warmer. Scientists are unravelling what that means for coastal habitats.


Dead black mangroves line a salt marsh near Aransas Pass Lydia Ann Lighthouse on April 18, 2024, in Port Aransas, Texas. Large portions of Lighthouse Lakes Paddling Trail is surrounded by the dead shrubs.

Mangroves expanded in Texas before the 2021 freeze

Victoria Congdon, a marine scientist with Mission-Aransas National Estuarine Research Reserve, navigates the entrance of Lighthouse Lakes on April 18, 2024, in Port Aransas, Texas.
Max Portmann, a PhD student with the Proffitt-Delvin Lab of Coastal Ecology and Genetics, hikes through a black mangrove forest near Oso Bay on April 18, 2024, in Corpus Christi, Texas. In the right conditions, the shrubs can grow into trees 60 meters tall.
A whooping crane hunts in a salt marsh on April 1, 2024, in Aransas County, Texas. Few mangrove trees dot the shoreline. The woody shrubs crowd native plants, including Carolina wolfberry, a food source for the cranes.

Mangroves could be a problem for whooping cranes

Andy Stetter navigates the Intercostal Waterway on April 1, 2024, in Aransas County, Texas. The U.S. Fish and Wildlife wildlife biologist manages and monitors habitats at the Aransas National Wildlife Refuge.
A young black mangrove grows near dead pickleweed along Oso Bay on April 18, 2024, in Corpus Christi, Texas.

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