A retired environmental engineer
from Austin, Texas, Mike McCloskey is
on a mission.
The bucolic Texan purchased his
Twistflower Ranch, a 5,800-acre spread
in West Texas near the town of Iraan
some 20 years ago after his retirement.
His quest has been a race against time to
restore the ranch to its natural state.
McCloskey says in the mid-1800s,
the region historically was mostly
shortgrass prairie. However, today, the
casual observer looking at this part of
the Chihuahuan Desert would in all
likelihood consider it a barren wasteland
unfit for fauna. The countryside once
flourished with gramma, tobosa and
burro grasses but is now inundated with
tarbush (flourensia cernua).
Overgrazing by cattle and sheep
affected the native prairie so dramatically
that tarbushes, also a native species,
replaced the dominant grasses. The
tarbush’s network
of roots spread
like tentacles
horizontally
through the soil,
where the resinous
shrub becomes
invasive to
beneficial grasses.
As a result,
since the late 1800s
the landscape in
this southwestern
region of the
country, once
inhabited by Native
American tribes and other indigenous
peoples dating back some 6,000 years,
went into decline. In 2018, studies were
done by the Shumla Archaeological
Research and Education Center on some
ancient rock art McCloskey discovered
on the property. Shumla’s report helped
provide some clues to understanding the
timeframe ancient people may have used
Twistflower Ranch prior to European
American settlement.
Lithic studies conducted by
archeologists on McCloskey’s ranch
show that Native Americans for
centuries had utilized and preferred this
part of the country. The shortgrass prairie
offered an abundance of game animals
and natural resources required to sustain
life. Above the bank of one dry riparian
streambed on the ranch is a supply of
chert, rock used in prehistoric times inthe construction of stone tools.
Additionally, near the chert location
are limestone shelves or strata where
grinding and midden pits for debris
occurred.
McCloskey, in his early seventies,
has worked diligently for nearly two
decades restoring the property. The ranch
has two riparian zones, one of which
he says hasn’t been grazed in 19 years.
The rancher also has worked with state
and federal agencies, applying for grants
to help him with the cost of expensive
chemicals required to kill the sea of
tarbush shrubs in his pastures.
The initial area that McCloskey
treated consisted of a modest 60 acres. In
2017, the amount of acreage he treated
increased tenfold to some 600 acres in
the riparian zones on the ranch. And he
was in the middle of a contract treating
additional acreage during the spring of
2018.
What’s key
is the ranch is
not devoid of
wildlife. On the
contrary, mule
deer, whitetail
deer, javelina,
gray fox and other
mammals scratch
out a living in this
part of Texas. In
fact, McCloskey
has built cabins
and a lodge,
and each fall he
caters to big game
hunters. McCloskey, though, prefers
wing shooting. He annually hunts scaled
quail and dove with friends, where the
restoration of prairie grasses has had a
huge impact on both game and nongame
avian populations.
McCloskey has attempted to make
his property available for more than
just hunting. He opens his ranch up for
a fee to hikers and those interested in
archeological education, stargazing,
nature photography, botany tours and
birding.
The rancher points out the good part
about Twistflower is it’s in the middle of
nowhere, and the bad part about it is it’s
in the middle of nowhere. The idea of
people driving four, five or more hours
from home can be impractical when
contemplating whether it’s worth their
time McCloskey says.Texas
Shortgrass:
One Man’s
Quest to
Restore the
Prairie
JOHN FLORES,
TEXTANDPHOTOS
Scaled quail numbers have declined 57 percent over
the past half century.
Restoration of shortgrass prairie has positive impacts
on avian populations. This varied bunting sneaks a
drink of fresh water from a desert pond.
A grinding site located along a riparian creek bed
where ancient civilizations hunted and gathered in the
shortgrass prairie.