Critters
September 23, 2025
Stepping on This Rarely Seen Gulf Creature Won’t Kill You. But You Will Be Shocked.
The nocturnal numbfish has charming, emoji-like markings, but it is not as cute as it looks.
Critters
Stories and updates on some of the state’s many animals
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Critters
September 20, 2025
New Discoveries in West Texas Show Us How Little We Know About Bugs
Led by a dedicated group of entomologists, a first-ever survey of Davis Mountains arthropods yields new scientific breakthroughs.
Critters
September 10, 2025
Texas Could Lose 100 Years of Bird Data if Federal Cuts Go Through
Bird banding, effectively cut in the White House’s proposed 2026 budget, is science’s best tool for understanding the health of avian populations.
Critters
September 4, 2025
College Station Wasn’t Ready for All That Bird Poop
College Station was simply not prepared for that amount of bird poop.
Critters
August 26, 2025
This Solitary Wasp Is Indifferent to Humans, Cruel to Spiders, and Neglectful of Her Children
The mud dauber just wants a nice place for you to raise her kids.
TM Out Loud
August 22, 2025
Why Crabbing Is Still a Texas Gulf Coast Tradition
It may not be glamorous or extreme, but crabbing is still a favorite way to catch your dinner along the Texas Gulf Coast.
Critters
August 7, 2025
Why Fire Ants Are Even More Evil Than You Thought
Their attacks up your legs are so meticulously coordinated you almost have to respect it.
Critters
July 31, 2025
All Hail the Mighty Snail
Meet the Texans who love (like, really love) their pet gastropods.
Hunting & Fishing
July 30, 2025
Crabbing Is a Coastal Texas Tradition With Legs—and Claws
Generations of Texans enjoy the cheap, immediate thrill of catching blue crabs from dry land. You just need chicken parts, some string, and a bucket.
Critters
July 29, 2025
Why Is Fort Worth Called Panther City?
Someone made a catty comment, and a mascot was born.
Critters
July 24, 2025
How the Rio Grande Valley Fell in Love With a Flock of Slapstick Parrots
Technically feral, the red-crowned amazon made Texas its adopted home and charmed its way into becoming Brownsville’s official bird.
Critters
July 10, 2025
Cars Hit Millions of Monarch Butterflies Each Year. Nets Might Help.
Last year the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service proposed listing the species as threatened. But TxDOT has already been working on a solution—with mixed results.
Critters
June 24, 2025
This Flesh-Eating Beetle Is Probably in Your Home
But relax—more than likely, it’s just chowing down on your favorite sweater.
Critters
May 27, 2025
Here’s How to Help a Beached Bottlenose Dolphin
Keep calm, mind the blowhole, and call dolphin 911.
Critters
May 18, 2025
My Quest to Find the Elusive, Two-Foot-Long Texas Alligator Lizard
After encountering the large but elusive reptile a few years ago, I was determined to find one again.
Critters
April 29, 2025
Rutting Season Is the Best—and Worst—Time to See a Bison
Summertime is wild and wooly at Caprock Canyons State Park.
Critters
March 25, 2025
Don’t Fear Your Neighborhood Gray Fox (Unless You’re a Chicken)
You'll be lucky to even see the crafty canid.
TM Out Loud
March 13, 2025
The Master Falconer (and the Large Birds) Who Keep Grackles at Bay
Steve Oleson, and his hawks Rico and Meego, on the nonstop job of clearing nuisance birds.
News
March 4, 2025
After Elon Musk Fired Her, She Kept Showing Up to Work—for Free
The billionaire and his followers are out to cull federal employees they think are lazy and overpaid. But without people like Bianca Sicich, the Attwater’s prairie chicken could go extinct.
Critters
February 26, 2025
Texas Conservationists Have Gone to Extremes to Save the Desert Bighorn Sheep. Now They’re Facing Their Biggest Obstacle Yet.
A heroic effort by scientists and hunters has revived the Texas bighorn sheep population, even as new threats loom.
Critters
February 25, 2025
Can the American Bumblebee Get a Little Help From Man’s Best Friend?
If you enjoy your tomatoes and potatoes, you'd better hope so.
Critters
February 20, 2025
Shiner Beer Says Its Bock Is the GOAT. So Why Does Its New Ad (and Iconic Logo) Feature a Sheep?
To solve this malty mystery, we spoke to a German linguist and took a deep dive into beer history.
Critters
January 30, 2025
It’s Peak Birding Season in Texas. These Festivals Are Some of the Best.
Where to find your flock around the state.
Working Life
January 29, 2025
When Grackles Gather, This Falconer Makes Them Scatter
If Texas storefronts get swarmed by nuisance birds, they call falconer Steve Oleson and his hawks, Rico and Meego, to drive away the pests.
Critters
January 28, 2025
More Reasons to Love the Black-Tailed Prairie Dog
This adorable rodent is good for our grasslands, researchers say.
Agriculture
January 27, 2025
A Flesh-Eating Worm Is Crawling Our Way. Can a Pause on Cattle Imports Keep It at Bay?
The New World screwworm was eradicated from the state decades ago, but now officials are warning it could be poised to return.
Best Thing in Texas
January 3, 2025
Quoth the Raven: “Post Some More”
The internet adores this chatty raven and its friendship with a Texas barista who feeds it ice chips and teaches it to speak.
Critters
December 20, 2024
The Monarch May Soon Be Listed as Threatened—With Big Implications for Texas Butterfly Breeders
The beloved orange insect has suffered a sharp decline in numbers, but scientists, commercial interests, and politicians disagree on the best way to protect it.
Best Thing in Texas
December 16, 2024
Texas Horny Toads Could Be Making a Comeback
The state’s official reptile may be on the rebound, thanks to nature lovers from around the state. We’ll call that a win.
Critters
December 13, 2024
Welcome to Wahoo Winter!
From now until mid-March, one of the fastest—and tastiest—fish in the Gulf will be easier to catch.
Critters
December 2, 2024
Scientists Have Discovered a New Bee in Texas. It’s Blue and Lives Underground.
The reclusive, solitary species was first spotted in 1987. Its identity was a mystery that took decades to solve.
Texas History
November 18, 2024
The Longhorn’s Long Journey to Becoming a Texas Icon
How did this ungainly creature develop into a Texas symbol? And what is its role in the twenty-first century? Photographer Joel Salcido traveled thousands of miles—including across the Atlantic—to find out.
Critters
November 14, 2024
Welcome to Prime Kestrel-Watching Time in Texas
This small but fierce falcon puts on a show.
Critters
November 14, 2024
Nine Texas Animal Webcams to Alleviate Your Existential Dread
Spy on curious meerkats in El Paso, adore the Houston Zoo’s baby giraffe, or watch North Texas bats snooze in tiny hammocks.
Critters
November 11, 2024
Why Texas Bats Need a Better Commute
A new study tracked bat activity in Fort Worth and found that these “sky puppies” need just the right kind of tree canopy to thrive.
Critters
November 8, 2024
Collecting 100,000 Cicada Shells Ain’t Easy
Diego Miró-Rivera climbed hundreds of trees during the “cicada apocalypse” to gather exoskeletons, which he turned into a series of collages on display now at the Line hotel in Austin.
Best Thing in Texas
November 7, 2024
Perhaps You Need the Houston Zoo’s New Pygmy Hippo in Your Life Right Now
Moove over, Moo Deng: Akobi is now our favorite ungulate.
Critters
October 31, 2024
An East Texas Woodpecker Is No Longer Listed as Endangered, but It May Still Be in Trouble
The red-cockaded woodpecker has rebounded thanks to protections that came with its designation as an endangered species. Will removing those protections put it at risk again?
Critters
October 17, 2024
Why Running Over an Armadillo Should Feel Even Worse This Year
Now known as the Mexican long-nosed armadillo, it’s living its best life.
Critters
October 17, 2024
Albert the Alligator Is Living the Good Life in Beaumont
The gator made national headlines after being seized from a home in New York, where he'd become so sick he could barely move or eat. Now he’s thriving at a sanctuary in southeast Texas.
Best Thing in Texas
October 11, 2024
Good Luck, Little Lizards: The San Antonio Zoo Releases Fifty Horny Toad Hatchlings
More Texas horned lizards are now scuttling around Blanco County, thanks to the San Antonio Zoo—and a team of dogs that are trained to track the threatened species.
Critters
October 3, 2024
Texas Ranchers Used to Hate Prairie Dogs. Now Some Are Fans.
Research from West Texas shows that cattle prefer to graze on areas where prairie dogs live, refuting long-held stereotypes.
Critters
September 30, 2024
Please Don’t Squish the Wolf Spider!
Our state is home to at least 64 species of wolf spider. While they may look creepy, they’re harmless (unless you’re a cockroach).
Critters
September 17, 2024
Why Everyone Wants to Save the Bobwhite Quail
Hunters and bird lovers alike root for its comeback.
Best Thing in Texas
September 5, 2024
Happy Trails to Zip the Dog, Rescued After a 69-Day Search
Trail runners, pet lovers, and strangers came together to find the two-year-old Chihuahua-terrier mix.
Critters
August 29, 2024
We Regret to Inform You of Another Texas Nightmare Worm
The stinging fireworm’s venom causes pain, nausea, and dizziness—but you’ll almost certainly never see one of these weird marine creatures.
Critters
August 16, 2024
Texans, Get Ready: Black Bears Are Back, Baby
These elusive beauties roam the state once again.
Critters
August 13, 2024
It’s Scorpion Season. Here’s What to Do if You See One.
The pain inflicted by a scorpion isn’t much worse than that from a bee or wasp sting—at least, not in the physical sense.
Critters
August 7, 2024
More Than 4,000 Moth Species Flit Across Texas. One Scientist Photographed 550 in His Yard.
Smaller, obscure moths are Curtis Eckerman’s favorites: “I love seeing the little jewels that you can’t normally see.”
Critters
July 18, 2024
The Texas Coral Snake Just Wants to Be Left Alone
The most colorful of our venomous reptiles deserves to be revered.
