The Laguna Madre of Texas and Tamaulipas, Revised Edition: Volume 36

The Laguna Madre is the only hypersaline coastal lagoon on the North American continent and only one of five worldwide. The lagoon is renowned for its vast seagrass meadows, huge wintering redhead population, and bountiful fishing grounds. In 2000, the Nature Conservancy, whose mission is the conservation of biodiversity through protection of habitat, recognized the need to amass all known information about the Laguna Madre and implement a science-based conservation agenda. From those efforts came the first edition of this book.

Now completely revised and updated, this second edition of The Laguna Madre of Texas and Tamaulipas is the culmination of two decades of additional research and continued conservation efforts in the region. Nearly 100 years of literature on the Laguna Madre and surrounding environments has been synthesized here. With 150 figures and illustrations, the book takes a broad and comprehensive look at both the Texan and Tamaulipan Laguna Madre. The value of this book for scientists, conservationists, resource managers, and policy makers involved in the future of the Texas and Mexico coasts is clear. Coastal residents, birders, anglers, and nature lovers who want to learn about and take care of the Laguna Madre will find this to be an indispensable guide.

KIM WITHERS is associate professor of biology in the Department of Life Sciences at Texas A&M University-Corpus Christi. BRIAN R. CHAPMAN (1946-2021) retired as a senior research scientist at the Texas Research Institute for Environmental Sciences at Sam Houston State University. He is coauthor of The Natural History of Texas and coeditor of Texans on the Brink: Threatened and Endangered Animals. JOHN W. (WES) TUNNELL JR. (1945-2018) was associate director and endowed chair of biodiversity and conservation science at the Harte Research Institute for Gulf of Mexico Studies and Regent's Professor, Fulbright scholar, and retired professor of biology at Texas A&M University-Corpus Christi. He is coauthor of Encyclopedia of Texas Seashells: Identification, Ecology, Distribution, and History and other books. FRANK W. JUDD (1939-2020) was distinguished professor and head of the department of biology at the University of Texas-Pan American. He is the author of The Texas Tortoise: A Natural History.