Texas endured a dramatic climatic shift in July—one that’s already rewriting the story of our drought and breaking 131 year records. But even as optimism swells, persistent vulnerabilities remind us the path to recovery is far from over.
[Read more…] about A Flood of Change: What July’s Historic Rains Mean for Texas’ Drought Outlook
We’re thrilled to welcome our guest blogger, Mr. Mike Mecke, to the West Texas Rangelands blog! Mr. Mecke brings a wealth of knowledge and passion for land stewardship, drawing from his unique background as a San Antonio native who as of 2008 retired into the Texas Hill Country outside of Kerrville. He is a graduate of Texas A&M University with Biology and Agriculture degrees. He later earned a Masters of Science in Rangeland Ecology & Watershed Management at the University of Wyoming. Helping people by improving agricultural management, land stewardship, water resources conservation and water resources planning has been the primary aspects of his career. We’re excited for him to share his insights and practical expertise with our West Texas rangeland community. Take it away sir!
That is a really great headline written by Ms. Emily Seldomridge, writing for Texas Water Solutions a few years ago and it is fantastic advice for ranchers, farmers, agencies or water utilities. Caught my attention right away, which a title should do. You can’t beat developing a good conservation plan and then applying it. The blog article contains some very good conservation proposals as well. This is a rewrite of my Ranch & Rural Living magazine article some years ago.
Hel-loooooo La Niña. Until June-July-August (hopefully).
The percentage of the state under drought conditions (D1-D4) has alarmingly increased from 49% to 68% in just four weeks. Extreme drought or worse has jumped from 17% to 29% during the same period, and exceptional drought has more than doubled from 6.3% to 14%. Overall, a staggering 85% of the state is now abnormally dry or worse (D0-D4).
While the eastern parts of Texas saw typical March precipitation patterns, a significant portion of West and Far West Texas received less than 0.01 inches of rainfall. Consequently, despite the localized flooding in the Lower Rio Grande Valley,, almost the entire state experienced substantially less than normal rainfall for March 2025.
The current La Niña Advisory, is expected to be short-lived, with a high probability (62%) of transitioning to neutral conditions by late summer. The U.S. Seasonal Drought Outlook through May predicts continued drought or drought development for most of Texas, excluding the far east. Furthermore, the three-month temperature outlook favors above-average temperatures, while the precipitation outlook leans towards rainfall deficits for the majority of the state.
It’s going to get worse before it gets better.
This is growing season drought.
For the full article, check it out here!
Ever wonder the effectiveness of herbicides on honey mesquite during drought? Well, researchers from our department were wondering the same thing and studied how drought effects herbicide efficacy in herbaceous and woody plants. There were chamber studies conducted to evaluate the influence of water stress and triclopyr on the absorption and translocation of clopyralid in greenhouse-grown honey mesquite. Clopyralid is an auxin-type herbicide highly effective at honey mesquite control. It is often used alone or in combinations with other active ingredients to form common honey mesquite foliar-applied herbicides like Sonora™ and Sendero™.
[Read more…] about Drought and Triclopyr on Clopyralid Efficacy in Honey Mesquite
Hurricane season is coming fast and furious! NOAA is predicting an above-normal hurricane season, forecasting 17 – 25 named storms (winds higher than 39 mph), 8-13 hurricanes (winds of 74 mph or higher) and 4-7 major hurricanes (Cats 3, 4, or 5 with winds of 111 mph or higher). The sea-surface temperatures are already exceeding last year’s temperatures. The figure above shows the differences in temperatures from this year and previous years. With all this in mind, NOAA is predicting an 85% above-normal season. The season stretches from June 1st – November 30th.
As the climate is changing so is the frequency and severity of short-term drought events. A new study by Dr. Bill Rogers and others (the study has over 169 authors from around the world!) showed that while drought has intensified, the effects on the functioning ecosystem remain largely unresolved and unrecovered. This is due to the differences in variations of drought and differences in ecosystems that potentially mediate drought impacts. This fascinating new research from Dr. Rogers and team used a coordinated distributed experiment to quantify the impact of short-term drought on grassland and shrubland ecosystems from across the world. [Read more…] about Extreme Drought Impacts have been Underestimated in Grasslands and Shrublands Globally
This is likely no surprise to you, but drought persists across the western U.S. and is intensifying in some areas. No geographic area is immune to the potential of drought at any given time. The U.S. Drought Monitor provides a weekly drought assessment, and it plays an important role in USDA programs that help farmers and ranchers recover from drought.
[Read more…] about Five Facts About the United States Drought Monitor
The National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration released its winter outlook. For Texas, we are looking at near-normal temperatures and wetter-than-normal conditions. While there are some potential drought improvements, it is expected to hang around. Figure 1b below gives us a three-month precipitation outlook.
The last three years have been years of La Niñas, while there is some chatter of a super El Niño coming, right now there is a 71 % chance of a strong El Niño developing (defined as a sea-surface temperature greater than or equal to 1.5 degrees Celsius). Figure 6a illustrates El Niño conditions exceeding 95% chance of extending through the winter, with growing chances of more neutral conditions in early Spring 2024.
[Read more…] about Monthly Drought Update and El Niño Possibility!
Despite being weak, El Niño conditions continue to be in place, after the event was deemed officially underway a month ago. This is the first El Niño in four years and there is a 90% chance that these conditions will remain throughout winter.
[Read more…] about Weak El Niño Now, But Likely to Grow Through Winter