The Houston metroplex and 24 surrounding counties possess 
striking natural beauty, unique biodiversity, and globally important 
ecological resources. With lively, engaging text and vivid color 
photographs and illustrations throughout, the Houston Atlas of 
Biodiversity highlights the variety, cultural importance, and global 
value of the natural environment found within the Houston 
Wilderness project area.

    Written by a consortium of authors in conjunction with the 
Houston Advanced Research Center (HARC) and Houston 
Wilderness, the Houston Atlas of Biodiversity focuses on 
habitats, animal and plant communities, and broad multi-county 
ecoregions. It demonstrates how local parks and preserves are part 
of an interconnected, diverse natural world that transcends 
traditional city or county jurisdictions. The atlas details each of the 
ten ecoregions in the Houston Wilderness area: Bayou Wilderness, 
Big Thicket, Coastal Marshes, Coastal Prairies, Columbia 
Bottomlands, Estuaries and Bays, Gulf of Mexico, Piney Woods, 
Post Oak Savannah, and Trinity Bottomlands. Special attention is 
taken to portray these ecological treasures engagingly and 
accurately, gently encouraging the reader toward a sense of pride 
and appreciation.

    The book is laced with stunning photography of places both 
familiar and unknown throughout the region and filled with detailed 
ecoregion maps. The Houston Atlas of Biodiversity is truly a one-
of-a-kind publication that will alert the reader to the magnificent 
ecological treasures of the Houston Wilderness region.

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HOUSTON WILDERNESS is a broad-based alliance of business, 
environmental, and government interests that act in concert to 
protect, preserve, and promote the unique biodiversity of the 
region's precious remaining ecological capital, from bottomland 
hardwoods and prairie grasslands to pine forests and wetlands, 
while also recognizing the importance of the region's natural assets 
to its cultural history, economic vitality, and future well-being.