Texas Coastal Bend
The Texas Coastal Bend refers to the flat area of land along the Texas coast. It is home to many cities including Brownsville, Corpus Christi, Kingsville, Port Lavaca, Galveston, Victoria, Beaumont, and Houston. The Coastal Bend includes the barrier islands of Texas and the Laguna Madre. According to the United States 2010 Census the Texas Coastal Bend had a population of 7,180,624.
Culture
The Texas Coastal Bend enjoys a rural, urban, and suburban mix of mainly Hispanic and Anglo traditions. African American and Asian/Pacific Islander population and their cultural traditions are well represented throughout this region as well. Much of the rural and suburban areas of the Coastal Bend are predominantly white.
Summer weather commonly threatens severe hurricane winds and flooding in the predominantly flat counties threaded by the Gulf Intracoastal Waterway.
The main population centers are Brownsville, Corpus Christi, and Houston.
Counties
Most populous cities
| City | 2011 Census Estimate Population[1] | County |
| Houston | 2,145,146 | Harris County |
| Corpus Christi | 307,953 | Nueces County |
| Brownsville | 178,430 | Cameron County |
| Pasadena | 152,281 | Harris County |
| McAllen | 133,742 | Hidalgo County |
| Beaumont | 118,548 | Jefferson County |
| The Woodlands | 93,847 | Montgomery County |
| Pearland | 93,305 | Brazoria County |
| League City | 84,856 | Galveston County |
| Sugar Land | 81,700 | Fort Bend County |
| Mission | 79,368 | Hidalgo County |
| Edinburg | 79,147 | Hidalgo County |
| Baytown | 73,322 | Harris County |
| Pharr | 72,513 | Hidalgo County |
| Missouri City | 69,774 | Fort Bend County |
Flora and fauna
The Coastal Bend is a habitat for many types of vegetation[2] and wildlife. Aransas National Wildlife Refuge is among the most prominent centers for wildlife. Wildlife found in the area includes the rare whooping crane, American alligators, nine-banded armadillos, West Indian manatees, and numerous other species of wildlife.
The Texas Coastal Bend is an area of demarcation between ranges of various vegetative species. For example, the California Fan Palm (Washingtonia filifera) is found only west of the Texas Coastal Bend, or more specifically the Balcones Fault.[3]
Bays
Bays in the area include:
- Baffin Bay
- Laguna Madre
- Corpus Christi Bay
- Aransas Bay
- Copano Bay
- Matagorda Bay
- San Antonio Bay
- Galveston Bay
- Nueces Bay
- Oso Bay
- Trinity Bay
- East Bay
- West Bay
See also
References
- C. Michael Hogan. 2009. California Fan Palm: Washingtonia filifera, GlobalTwitcher.com, ed. Nicklas Stromberg
- Roy L. Lehman, Ruth O'Brien, Tammy White. 2005. Plants of the Texas Coastal Bend, Texas A&M University Press, 352 pages ISBN 1-58544-408-1, ISBN 978-1-58544-408-3
Line notes
- ↑ "Population Estimates - People and Households - U.S. Census Bureau". Census.gov. Retrieved 2012-10-30.
- ↑ Roy L. Lehman, Ruth O'Brien, Tammy White. 2005
- ↑ C. Michael Hogan. 2009
