A scissor-tailed flycatcher
Preserving a great diversity of life
Clymer Meadow offers a glimpse back through time
As development and urbanization continue to encroach on the Texas Blackland Prairie , roads , industry , subdivisions and fences threaten to further diminish and fragment what little remains .
Once a 12 million-acre sea of grassland that extended north nearly to the Red River and south to near San Antonio , only 5,000-20,000 acres – less than 1 % -- of native Blackland Prairie still exists .
The more the North Texas prairie vanishes , the more important and unique Clymer Meadow Preserve becomes . The preserve , about 15 minutes northwest of Greenville , is among the largest and most diverse remnants of Blackland Prairie anywhere . It ’ s 1,443-acres present an open window to thousands of years of natural history , and the preserve serves as a key site for ecology research and education .
Clymer Meadow Preserve is named for Jim
Clymer , a pioneer from Hunt County who acquired large tracts of native prairie in the 1850s . The preserve is owned by The Nature Conservancy ( TNC ), which acquired its first parcel in 1986 and added additional acreage on about 20 subsequent occasions , according to Brandon Belcher , a Texas A & M-Commerce graduate and North Texas preserves manager for TNC .
At Clymer Meadow , one will find tallgrass prairie interspersed with colorful wildflowers , an abundance of wildlife as well as an unusual wetland habitat . The preserve features shallow , moisture-drawing basins called “ gilgai ,” which retain water and nurture greater diversification of plants and animals .
In managing Clymer Meadow , the goal of TNC is not to wall itself off from the rest of the region but to engage with surrounding communities , says Belcher ,
SUMMER 2022 13 GREENVILE LIFE