Protecting Endangered Golden-cheeked Warblers and Reducing Global Warming

Mature stands of Oak-Juniper woodlands that occur in the Texas Hill Country not only provide valuable nesting habitat for endangered Golden-cheeked Warbler, they may also be the best carbon capturing habitat community in Texas.   Ashe’s Juniper, also known as cedar, have the unique ability to capture and hold large amounts of carbon dioxide that contribute to greenhouse gases that can cause global warming.   According to Dr. Joseph White of Baylor University Ashe’s Juniper has the capacity to capture and hold carbon better than bottomland hardwoods and grassland communities based on combined measurements and computer modeling.  Bottomland hardwoods and grasslands were long thought to be some of the best habitats to tie up the excess carbon, however, according to Dr. White Ashe’s Juniper (cedar) is eight times more effective than bottomland hardwoods and 85 times more effective than grasslands in capturing and holding carbon. For Oak-Juniper woodlands, the primary habitat for the warbler, pure juniper stands may capture only twice as much atmospheric carbon dioxide.  However, the tradeoff between habitat protection and carbon sequestration are optimized in the Oak-Juniper woodlands where both bird conservation and greenhouse gases reduction are both achieved . 

In 2006, the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency estimated that a family of four, living in a typical suburban area would produce 41,500 lbs of carbon dioxide per year.  Based on this value, Dr. White estimates that 10 acres of Central Texas Oak-Juniper woodlands would offset this emission each year.  This is compared to a pure cedar stand that would 6 acres or a grassland that would require 1400 acres to offset the family’s carbon output.