Dunes of Bajia Grande (Series)

These pieces layer historical maps of the Bahia Grande. Once one of the Gulf Coast’s most biodiverse hypersaline saltwater nurseries, it was devastated in the 1930s by the Brownsville Ship Channel and dried up during the Dust Bowl. This habitat is critical for endangered species such as the ocelot and the aplomado falcon. Though restored and now part of the Laguna Atascosa National Wildlife Refuge since 2000, the basin sits near the expanding Starbase complex in Boca Chica. The composition is warped by ripples, disturbing the dune shapes and the grounds they lay on, echoing how ecosystems are vulnerable to human land use and industrial activity. The Bahia Grande is now recognized as one of the most successful wetlands restoration projects in the U.S.—but that status remains in jeopardy.