Fort Hood Project

Karst Management and Survey

© The Nature Conservancy

Caves, by their nature, provide isolated pockets of stable, unique habitat in which specialized species evolve.  As a result, caves often contain unique species which have adapted to part-time or full-time life underground.  Karst, or cave-containing, topography, is found in several areas of Fort Hood, and there are scores of known karst features on the installation.  Biological surveys conducted by Dr. James Reddell under a contract with The Nature Conservancy have uncovered at least 18 species of animals new to science and found, as far as is known, only on Fort Hood.  One species of spider is known only from a single cave, while a species of salamander has a relatively broad range on the installation, but has not been found elsewhere.  Because the caves on Fort Hood are protected and in reasonably good condition, these animals have not been listed by the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service as Threatened or Endangered, as have some species close to urban areas in the southern Edwards Plateau.  A major goal of the Conservancy’s karst management on Fort Hood is to protect these important reservoirs of biodiversity and avoid imperiling the unique animals that inhabit them.