Copano Bay
Encyclopedia
Copano Bay is a northwestern extension of Aransas Bay
, west of Rockport, Texas
in Refugio and Aransas
counties. It is supplied with seawater from the Gulf of Mexico
via Aransas Bay, and fed freshwater from the Aransas River
, Mission River
and Copano Creek. As an estuary
, the bay is home to a diverse ecosystem consisting of various birds including the endangered whooping crane
, and numerous finfish including the redfish
as well as shellfish such as oysters. It is classified as a nursery for shrimp, which prohibits production from the bay. Copano Bay is also an historic location for human usage and settlement that dates back to the 18th century, beginning with the historic port of El Copano
and the 19th century settlements of St. Mary's of Aransas
and Copano
. The present-day towns of Bayside
, Copano Village and Holiday Beach
were all founded in the 20th century. Oil and natural gas are pumped from below the bay's surface, and contribute to the livelihood of the local economies.
, for whom the bay is named. The Copane were one of five groups making up the Karankawas, hunter-gatherers who occupied the mid-Texas coast.
Cabeza de Vaca is thought to have been the first European to sight the bay in the early 16th century, evidenced by the descriptions in his logs that match the detail of the area. In 1766, Spaniard Diego Ortiz Parrilla is believed to be the first European to explore the bay. He named it Santo Domingo (Saint Dominic
), but it was later changed to Copano, after the port of Copano
was officially opened in 1785 on the northwestern shore. The port later served as a strategically important locale during the Texas Revolution
and the American Civil War
, and was the site of a settlement that is now completely abandoned. The town of St. Mary's of Aransas
was founded southwest of Copano and thrived as a port and wood mart, until numerous shipwrecks caused by the bay's hidden reefs concluded its use in 1875. Like Copano, it is now abandoned.
Further to the southwest, at the mouth of the Aransas River
, the town of Black Point was established in the 1840s. The site was attacked by Indians several times before the settlement was abandoned. However, it was reestablished in the early 20th century as the present-day city of Bayside
. Bayside developers aimed to attract fruit and vegetable growers to the plots made available and advertised nationwide, but large amounts of land were purchased by speculators, raising demand and forcing further annexation. The 2000 census reported that 360 people lived in the city. The cities of Fulton
and Rockport were established on Aransas Bay in the late 19th century, and later expanded development along most of the eastern shore of Copano Bay. Such developments include Copano Village, which registered 210 residents in 2000, and the 1,000 resident Holiday Beach
community just west of Goose Island State Park
on Lamar Peninsula.
Copano Bay is approximately twelve-by-six-miles, oriented from the southwest to the northeast. It is found mainly on undeveloped land, though ranches are located on parts of the west, south and north shores. The main extensions include Mission Bay, which stretches to the north to the mouth of the Mission River
, and Port Bay to the west, which forms the southern boundary of the Live Oak peninsula. The peninsula is located on the eastern shore of Copano Bay and is lined with beach homes and residences, which begin just west of the inlet Salt Lake to the head of Live Oak peninsula at the confluence of Copano and Aransas Bay. This opening is spanned by the Copano Bay Causeway and the Copano Bay Fishing Pier
, which once served as the main crossing to the Lamar peninsula. Holiday Beach is found on the northeastern shore of Copano Bay on the Lamar Peninsula. Just north of the community is the mouth of Copano Creek, which marks the bay's northernmost point. From here, the shoreline turns to the southwest past the Copano Bay Oil and Gas Field and four sloughs before reaching the ruins of the ghost town
Copano at Copano Point, marked by white cliffs. At the point, the Copano Reef juts out almost halfway across the bay. Further southwest, past the mouth of Mission Bay, Bayside stretches along the coast to the mouth of the Aransas River. The shoreline turns to the southeast from this point, past the Egery Flats and Egery Island through Swan Lake and to the mouth of Port Bay.
The bay's maximum deapth is 3 metres (9.8 ft), and in contrast to nearby Laguna Madre
, is not hypersaline
. The Mission and Aransas Rivers are the main freshwater sources: small rivers with deep banks that carve through a landscape lined with hardwood trees. Their inflows increase during significant rainfall and reach their seasonal highs during the autumn. These rivers have not been dammed and thus flow free. At both mouths, marshes covering several square miles stretch from the confluences with Copano Bay and forming several saline lakes.
, which attracts a large number of redfish
. Abundant collections of Black drum
, Flounder
and Trout
, can also be found in the bay. Oysters grow in large numbers to form elongated reefs "oriented perpendicular to tidal flow" in the estuary. The reefs provide habitat for fish and sustenance for a wide variety of birds including the Black-bellied Whistling-duck, Black-necked Stilt
, Brown Pelican
, Gull-billed tern
, Reddish Egret
, Roseate Spoonbill
, Seaside Sparrow
, White-faced Ibis
and the Whooping Crane
. The dominant species of gastropod in the bay is Eulimastoma harbisonae.
In 2003, the United States Department of the Interior
granted $574,000 to Texas Parks and Wildlife to purchase over 900 acres (3.6 km²) of prime birding habitat at Egery Flats and the mouth of the Aransas River, to prevent further development.
busted in the marsh in Refugio County, two miles (3 km) west of Copano Bay near the Aransas River, spilling 1,000 gallons of oil over a 10 acres (40,468.6 m²) area. The oil did not seep into Copano Bay, preventing a minor environmental disaster.
Copano Bay is off limits to shrimping due to its designation as a nursery bay.
Aransas Bay
Aransas Bay is a bay on the Texas gulf coast, approximately northeast of Corpus Christi, and south of San Antonio. It is separated from the Gulf of Mexico by San José Island . Aransas Pass is the most direct navigable outlet into the Gulf of Mexico from the bay...
, west of Rockport, Texas
Rockport, Texas
Rockport is a city in Aransas County, Texas, United States. The population was 7,385 at the 2000 census. It is the county seat of Aransas County. The coastal community has approximately 8000 citizens. Large windswept live oaks are a dominating feature of the area and the state's oldest live oak,...
in Refugio and Aransas
Aransas County, Texas
Aransas County is a county located in the U.S. state of Texas. It is part of the Corpus Christi Metropolitan Statistical Area. As of 2000, the population was 22,499. Its county seat is Rockport. Aransas County was formed in 1871 from Refugio County.-Geography:According to the U.S...
counties. It is supplied with seawater from the Gulf of Mexico
Gulf of Mexico
The Gulf of Mexico is a partially landlocked ocean basin largely surrounded by the North American continent and the island of Cuba. It is bounded on the northeast, north and northwest by the Gulf Coast of the United States, on the southwest and south by Mexico, and on the southeast by Cuba. In...
via Aransas Bay, and fed freshwater from the Aransas River
Aransas River
The Aransas River is a short river in south Texas in the United States. It drains an area of the south Texas coastal plains into the Gulf of Mexico. It rises in Bee County southwest of Beeville and north of Skidmore, from the confluence of three creeks: Olmos, Aransas, and Poesta...
, Mission River
Mission River
The Mission River is a river in Texas. It is formed by the confluence of Blanco and Medio creeks in central Refugio County and runs southeast, past Refugio, for twenty-four miles to its mouth on Mission Bay, an inlet of Copano Bay...
and Copano Creek. As an estuary
Estuary
An estuary is a partly enclosed coastal body of water with one or more rivers or streams flowing into it, and with a free connection to the open sea....
, the bay is home to a diverse ecosystem consisting of various birds including the endangered whooping crane
Whooping Crane
The whooping crane , the tallest North American bird, is an endangered crane species named for its whooping sound. Along with the Sandhill Crane, it is one of only two crane species found in North America. The whooping crane's lifespan is estimated to be 22 to 24 years in the wild...
, and numerous finfish including the redfish
Redfish
Redfish is a common name for several species of fish. It is most commonly applied to members of the deep-sea genus Sebastes, or the reef dwelling snappers, Lutjanus. It is also applied to the slimeheads or roughies , and the alfonsinos ....
as well as shellfish such as oysters. It is classified as a nursery for shrimp, which prohibits production from the bay. Copano Bay is also an historic location for human usage and settlement that dates back to the 18th century, beginning with the historic port of El Copano
Copano, Texas
Copano, Texas or El Copano is a ghost town on the northwestern shore of Copano Bay in Refugio County. It is located north of present day Bayside, on Copano Point. The port, which holds the distinction as the first in South Texas, was founded in the early 18th century by the Spanish, and named for...
and the 19th century settlements of St. Mary's of Aransas
St. Mary's of Aransas, Texas
St. Mary's of Aransas is a ghost town near the present community of Bayside in Refugio County, Texas, United States. It served as a settlement and major port until the late 19th century after the emergence of Rockport.-History:...
and Copano
Copano, Texas
Copano, Texas or El Copano is a ghost town on the northwestern shore of Copano Bay in Refugio County. It is located north of present day Bayside, on Copano Point. The port, which holds the distinction as the first in South Texas, was founded in the early 18th century by the Spanish, and named for...
. The present-day towns of Bayside
Bayside, Texas
Bayside is a town in Refugio County, Texas, United States. The population was 360 at the 2000 census.-Geography:Bayside is located at ....
, Copano Village and Holiday Beach
Holiday Beach, Texas
Holiday Beach is an unincorporated community in Aransas County, Texas, United States. According to the Handbook of Texas, the community had an estimated population of 1,000 in 2000.-Geography:Holiday Beach is located at...
were all founded in the 20th century. Oil and natural gas are pumped from below the bay's surface, and contribute to the livelihood of the local economies.
History
Copano Bay was inhabited by the nomadic Aransas Indians, who constructed camps along the shore, 4,000 years ago. The Aransas people left the area approximately 700 years ago, and were replaced around 1400 CE by the Copane IndiansKarankawa
Karankawa were a group of Native American peoples, now extinct as a tribal group, who played a pivotal part in early Texas history....
, for whom the bay is named. The Copane were one of five groups making up the Karankawas, hunter-gatherers who occupied the mid-Texas coast.
Cabeza de Vaca is thought to have been the first European to sight the bay in the early 16th century, evidenced by the descriptions in his logs that match the detail of the area. In 1766, Spaniard Diego Ortiz Parrilla is believed to be the first European to explore the bay. He named it Santo Domingo (Saint Dominic
Saint Dominic
Saint Dominic , also known as Dominic of Osma, often called Dominic de Guzmán and Domingo Félix de Guzmán was the founder of the Friars Preachers, popularly called the Dominicans or Order of Preachers , a Catholic religious order...
), but it was later changed to Copano, after the port of Copano
Copano, Texas
Copano, Texas or El Copano is a ghost town on the northwestern shore of Copano Bay in Refugio County. It is located north of present day Bayside, on Copano Point. The port, which holds the distinction as the first in South Texas, was founded in the early 18th century by the Spanish, and named for...
was officially opened in 1785 on the northwestern shore. The port later served as a strategically important locale during the Texas Revolution
Texas Revolution
The Texas Revolution or Texas War of Independence was an armed conflict between Mexico and settlers in the Texas portion of the Mexican state Coahuila y Tejas. The war lasted from October 2, 1835 to April 21, 1836...
and the American Civil War
American Civil War
The American Civil War was a civil war fought in the United States of America. In response to the election of Abraham Lincoln as President of the United States, 11 southern slave states declared their secession from the United States and formed the Confederate States of America ; the other 25...
, and was the site of a settlement that is now completely abandoned. The town of St. Mary's of Aransas
St. Mary's of Aransas, Texas
St. Mary's of Aransas is a ghost town near the present community of Bayside in Refugio County, Texas, United States. It served as a settlement and major port until the late 19th century after the emergence of Rockport.-History:...
was founded southwest of Copano and thrived as a port and wood mart, until numerous shipwrecks caused by the bay's hidden reefs concluded its use in 1875. Like Copano, it is now abandoned.
Further to the southwest, at the mouth of the Aransas River
Aransas River
The Aransas River is a short river in south Texas in the United States. It drains an area of the south Texas coastal plains into the Gulf of Mexico. It rises in Bee County southwest of Beeville and north of Skidmore, from the confluence of three creeks: Olmos, Aransas, and Poesta...
, the town of Black Point was established in the 1840s. The site was attacked by Indians several times before the settlement was abandoned. However, it was reestablished in the early 20th century as the present-day city of Bayside
Bayside, Texas
Bayside is a town in Refugio County, Texas, United States. The population was 360 at the 2000 census.-Geography:Bayside is located at ....
. Bayside developers aimed to attract fruit and vegetable growers to the plots made available and advertised nationwide, but large amounts of land were purchased by speculators, raising demand and forcing further annexation. The 2000 census reported that 360 people lived in the city. The cities of Fulton
Fulton, Texas
Fulton is a town in Aransas County, Texas, United States. As of the 2000 census, this South Texas coastal fishing community had a population of 1,553...
and Rockport were established on Aransas Bay in the late 19th century, and later expanded development along most of the eastern shore of Copano Bay. Such developments include Copano Village, which registered 210 residents in 2000, and the 1,000 resident Holiday Beach
Holiday Beach, Texas
Holiday Beach is an unincorporated community in Aransas County, Texas, United States. According to the Handbook of Texas, the community had an estimated population of 1,000 in 2000.-Geography:Holiday Beach is located at...
community just west of Goose Island State Park
Goose Island State Park
Goose Island State Park is a state park in the U.S. state of Texas, located north of the city of Rockport on the coast of the Gulf of Mexico. The park covers . It is surrounded by both St. Charles and Aransas Bays....
on Lamar Peninsula.
Features
Mission River
The Mission River is a river in Texas. It is formed by the confluence of Blanco and Medio creeks in central Refugio County and runs southeast, past Refugio, for twenty-four miles to its mouth on Mission Bay, an inlet of Copano Bay...
, and Port Bay to the west, which forms the southern boundary of the Live Oak peninsula. The peninsula is located on the eastern shore of Copano Bay and is lined with beach homes and residences, which begin just west of the inlet Salt Lake to the head of Live Oak peninsula at the confluence of Copano and Aransas Bay. This opening is spanned by the Copano Bay Causeway and the Copano Bay Fishing Pier
Copano Bay Fishing Pier
The Copano Bay Fishing Pier is a pier in Aransas County, Texas, United States used primarily for recreational fishing. The pier has two separate sections. One is 2500 feet long on the south side of the bay and the other is 6190 feet, or 1,886.712 meters, long on the north side.The pier was...
, which once served as the main crossing to the Lamar peninsula. Holiday Beach is found on the northeastern shore of Copano Bay on the Lamar Peninsula. Just north of the community is the mouth of Copano Creek, which marks the bay's northernmost point. From here, the shoreline turns to the southwest past the Copano Bay Oil and Gas Field and four sloughs before reaching the ruins of the ghost town
Ghost town
A ghost town is an abandoned town or city. A town often becomes a ghost town because the economic activity that supported it has failed, or due to natural or human-caused disasters such as floods, government actions, uncontrolled lawlessness, war, or nuclear disasters...
Copano at Copano Point, marked by white cliffs. At the point, the Copano Reef juts out almost halfway across the bay. Further southwest, past the mouth of Mission Bay, Bayside stretches along the coast to the mouth of the Aransas River. The shoreline turns to the southeast from this point, past the Egery Flats and Egery Island through Swan Lake and to the mouth of Port Bay.
The bay's maximum deapth is 3 metres (9.8 ft), and in contrast to nearby Laguna Madre
Laguna Madre
The Laguna Madre extends well into Mexico, to the mouth of the Río Soto la Marina in the state of Tamaulipas. It is separated from the Gulf of Mexico on the east by a number of barrier islands, including Barra Los Americanos, Barra Jesús María, and Barra Soto la Marina, and is bounded on the west...
, is not hypersaline
Hypersaline lake
A hypersaline lake is a landlocked body of water that contains significant concentrations of sodium chloride or other mineral salts, with saline levels surpassing that of ocean water . Specific microbial and crustacean species thrive in these high salinity environments that are otherwise...
. The Mission and Aransas Rivers are the main freshwater sources: small rivers with deep banks that carve through a landscape lined with hardwood trees. Their inflows increase during significant rainfall and reach their seasonal highs during the autumn. These rivers have not been dammed and thus flow free. At both mouths, marshes covering several square miles stretch from the confluences with Copano Bay and forming several saline lakes.
Ecosystem
Copano Bay serves as a nursery for shrimpShrimp
Shrimp are swimming, decapod crustaceans classified in the infraorder Caridea, found widely around the world in both fresh and salt water. Adult shrimp are filter feeding benthic animals living close to the bottom. They can live in schools and can swim rapidly backwards. Shrimp are an important...
, which attracts a large number of redfish
Redfish
Redfish is a common name for several species of fish. It is most commonly applied to members of the deep-sea genus Sebastes, or the reef dwelling snappers, Lutjanus. It is also applied to the slimeheads or roughies , and the alfonsinos ....
. Abundant collections of Black drum
Black drum
The Black Drum is a saltwater fish similar to its cousin, the Red Drum. It is the only species in the genus Pogonias. Though most specimens are generally found in the 5-30 lb range, the black drum is well known as the largest of all the drum family with some specimens reaching excesses of...
, Flounder
Flounder
The flounder is an ocean-dwelling flatfish species that is found in coastal lagoons and estuaries of the Northern Atlantic and Pacific Oceans.-Taxonomy:There are a number of geographical and taxonomical species to which flounder belong.*Western Atlantic...
and Trout
Trout
Trout is the name for a number of species of freshwater and saltwater fish belonging to the Salmoninae subfamily of the family Salmonidae. Salmon belong to the same family as trout. Most salmon species spend almost all their lives in salt water...
, can also be found in the bay. Oysters grow in large numbers to form elongated reefs "oriented perpendicular to tidal flow" in the estuary. The reefs provide habitat for fish and sustenance for a wide variety of birds including the Black-bellied Whistling-duck, Black-necked Stilt
Black-necked Stilt
The Black-necked Stilt is a locally abundant shorebird of American wetlands and coastlines. It is found from the coastal areas of California through much of the interior western United States and along the Gulf of Mexico as far east as Florida, then south through Central America and the Caribbean...
, Brown Pelican
Brown Pelican
The Brown Pelican is the smallest of the eight species of pelican, although it is a large bird in nearly every other regard. It is in length, weighs from and has a wingspan from .-Range and habits:...
, Gull-billed tern
Gull-billed Tern
The Gull-billed Tern formerly Sterna nilotica , is a seabird of the tern family Sternidae...
, Reddish Egret
Reddish Egret
The Reddish Egret is a small heron. It is a resident breeder in Central America, The Bahamas, the Caribbean, the Gulf Coast of the United States, and Mexico. There is post-breeding dispersal to well north of the nesting range...
, Roseate Spoonbill
Roseate Spoonbill
The Roseate Spoonbill, Platalea ajaja, is a gregarious wading bird of the ibis and spoonbill family, Threskiornithidae...
, Seaside Sparrow
Seaside Sparrow
The Seaside Sparrow, Ammodramus maritimus, is a small American sparrow. The 11 Ammodramus species inhabit marshes and grasslands.Adults have brownish upperparts with grey on the crown and nape, and a grayish buff colored breast with dark streaks; they have a dark face with grey cheeks, a white...
, White-faced Ibis
White-faced Ibis
The White-faced Ibis is a wading bird in the ibis family Threskiornithidae.This species breeds colonially in marshes, usually nesting in bushes or low trees. Its breeding range extends from the western USA south through Mexico, as well as from southeastern Brazil and southeastern Bolivia south to...
and the Whooping Crane
Whooping Crane
The whooping crane , the tallest North American bird, is an endangered crane species named for its whooping sound. Along with the Sandhill Crane, it is one of only two crane species found in North America. The whooping crane's lifespan is estimated to be 22 to 24 years in the wild...
. The dominant species of gastropod in the bay is Eulimastoma harbisonae.
In 2003, the United States Department of the Interior
United States Department of the Interior
The United States Department of the Interior is the United States federal executive department of the U.S. government responsible for the management and conservation of most federal land and natural resources, and the administration of programs relating to Native Americans, Alaska Natives, Native...
granted $574,000 to Texas Parks and Wildlife to purchase over 900 acres (3.6 km²) of prime birding habitat at Egery Flats and the mouth of the Aransas River, to prevent further development.
Industry
Oil and natural gas wells are located both onshore and offshore of Copano Bay. Three oil and natural gas fields are found on the bay, including the Copano Bay Oil and Gas Field, just west of Holiday Beach, the South Copano Bay Oil Field, just offshore from Bayside, and the West Fulton Beach Gas and Oil Field to the west of the Live Oak peninsula. In 1997, a pipeline owned by Koch IndustriesKoch Industries
Koch Industries, Inc. , is an American private energy conglomerate based in Wichita, Kansas, with subsidiaries involved in manufacturing, trading and investments. Koch also owns Invista, Georgia-Pacific, Flint Hills Resources, Koch Pipeline, Koch Fertilizer, Koch Minerals and Matador Cattle Company...
busted in the marsh in Refugio County, two miles (3 km) west of Copano Bay near the Aransas River, spilling 1,000 gallons of oil over a 10 acres (40,468.6 m²) area. The oil did not seep into Copano Bay, preventing a minor environmental disaster.
Copano Bay is off limits to shrimping due to its designation as a nursery bay.