Conservation Opportunity Areas of Texas

About the Model

The Conservation Opportunity Areas (COA) of Texas model highlights places across the state where conservation or restoration actions can have the greatest impact. It uses the Ecological Mapping Systems of Texas dataset along with several other ecological factors, including:

• Species of Greatest Conservation Need (SGCN) and other target species
• Conservation threats
• Landcover connectivity
• Restoration potential
• Landscape fragmentation

Together, these inputs help users identify areas that support important species, habitat and natural communities. The COA is designed as a landscape-level decision-support tool that can guide strategic conservation planning, restoration efforts and management actions, including those outlined in the Texas State Wildlife Action Plan.

Land use or other activities within these areas will not be subject to any new regulations or restrictions due to this model. The data presented are based on the best available information at the time of data analysis; as such, recent changes to the landscape and to wildlife habitat may not be reflected.

How to Use the Model

The COA can support a wide range of conservation and planning needs:

• Land Use Planning: identifying areas to avoid or prioritize
• Grant Applications: strengthening proposals and decisions with ecological justification
• Habitat Restoration: prioritizing restoration efforts where it could have the greatest impact
• Public Education: helping Texans learn about local habitats and their ecological value

Current Model Version

The current version of the model is v2026.

Integration of TPWD's Natural Resource Divisions

The COA ties together conservation priorities from all three Natural Resource Divisions: Coastal Fisheries, Wildlife and Inland Fisheries and displays their spatial data in one place.

Coastal Fisheries

Coastal SGCN species and habitat data inform the Conservation Opportunity Coastal Index, a companion model that highlights conservation, research, and restoration opportunities along the Texas coast.

Wildlife

SGCN and target species important to the Wildlife Division are incorporated directly into the COA model.

Inland Fisheries

Data from the Native Fish Conservation Areas database are included as an input layer representing Inland Fisheries priorities, with both modeled inputs and a separate summary layer available.

Methodology Summary

The COA model incorporates a variety of ecological datasets, including observation records and habitats for SGCN and other target species, riparian and coastal priorities, mapped conservation threats, and connectivity between valuable landcover types. Spatial prioritization software evaluates all input data to produce a modeled conservation value.

These values are combined with information on potential restoration effort and landscape fragmentation to create qualitative categories that highlight habitat importance and potential management actions (conservation vs. restoration focus). These categories can be used to identify areas where natural communities, critical habitats, SGCN and other indicator species may occur, supporting ecosystem-based management and planning.

The Conservation Opportunity Coastal Index combines expert input, key coastal habitat data, and 40 years of species observations. It includes major habitat types such as oyster and serpulid reefs, seagrass beds, mangroves, and salt marshes, along with environmental factors like salinity and proximity to tidal passes and river inlets. The index focuses on species closely tied to these habitats, and while it does not predict species presence, localized observations help highlight areas where targeted research or conservation efforts may be most effective.