Padre Island
National Seashore
What is Padre Island National Seashore?
Directions to Padre Island Seashore
0.2 mi
0.5 mi
1.3 mi
0.1 mi
Continue to follow US-79 S/US-84 W
11.6 mi
30.1 mi
427 ft
23.2 mi
Continue to follow Old San Antonio Rd/Texas Osr W
37.5 mi
36.6 mi
0.2 mi
62.8 mi
0.3 mi
0.4 mi
40.1 mi
0.2 mi
0.2 mi
7.0 mi
2.7 mi
0.4 mi
3.4 mi
0.2 mi
0.4 mi
35.8 mi
0.6 mi
0.9 mi
9.6 mi
17.8 mi
2.8 mi
9.5 mi
0.6 mi
4.4 mi
0.1 mi
10.0 mi
5.0 mi
Continue to follow Park Road 22
15.7 mi
331 ft
The Island's Biome
According to the National Park Service, the island's biome praire/grasslands. On the side facing the Gulf coast, the beach composes of white sand and is less than a hundred feets deep. Bordering the beach is a narrow dune ridge running throughout the entire island. Sometimes a natural or unnatural forces create a breache in the ridge, causing "blow out" dunes which flies across the island until it becomes vegetated.From these blowouts, dune fields form.
Sand Dunes
Sand Dunes just being Sand Dunes.
Example of Biome
Example of the Biome at work.
Sand Dune
Example of blowout.
Ecological Things
Average Rainfall: 37 inches.
There periods of heavy rain and periods of drought.
Most of pollution comes from plastic and styrofom that washes up onto the beach by waves.
Shows accurate detail of life and sequences of barrier island: Accretionary (Building), Equilibrium (Stable), and Erosion. Examples are like this: Equilibrium (northern half), erosion (southern half).
Biotic Animals
Listing of Animals Include:
Rio Grande Leopard Frog
Green Treefrog
Spotted Chorus Frog
Hurter's Spadefoot
Gulfcoast Toad
Texas Toad
Great Plains Narrowmouth Toad
Lots of Birds (>380)
Atlantic Ghost Crab
Blackback Land Crab
Blue Crab
Calico Box Crab
Ghost Shrimp
Mudflat Fiddler Crab
Portly Spider Crab
Sargassum Swimming Crab
Speckled Swimming Crab
Atlantic MidshipmanAtlantic Needlefish
Horaces Duskywing
Mournful Duskywing
Fiery Skipper
Southern Broken Dash
Celia's Roadside Skipper
Eufala Skipper
Ocola Skipper
And there is many other animals on the island.
Abiotic Factors
Sun
Wind
Water
Hurricanes
History of Padre Island
The history is pretty much what it looks like when Indians and Spanish settled here.
Four nations have owned Island at different times. The first was Spain until the Mexican Revolution, then Mexico owned, then Texas owned it after the Texas Revolution, then U.S. owned it after the Mexican-American War. Names it has been called besides Padre Island, La Isla Blanca (Spanish for White Island) and Isla de los Malaguitas (Island of the Malaquites, a band of Karankawa people).
First permanent settlement was located on the southern tip by priest Padre Nicolas Balli. Prior only native americans, spanish troops or ships, and the survivors of three shipwrecks.
At one point it was used a navy bombing range.
What to do...(Two Days)
If you have two days...
You can stop in for the free informational, then head off to the closed beach area for some fun in the sun. After that you can head over to one of the many camping sites avaible, some via walking so via 4-wheel drive. Then you can finish off the trip going to Port Mansfield Channel and take a good look at the local ecosystem from rock jetties built during the channels construction.
What to do...(One Week)
Along with what you can do on the two day suggestion, you can go kayaking, windsurfing, swimming, boating in their designated area. There is also a nature trail you can walk on, very short and accessible, to see beyond the beaches and dunes. Then there is a picnic shelter if you want to have a picnic.