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Circle Ranch in West Texas

Experience From the High Deserts of Texas to the Rocky Mountain West.

For 20 years, our family owned and managed Circle Ranch, 32,000 acres of high desert located in the Sierra Diablo Mountains of far-West Texas. Our goal? Leaving the land more diverse, and therefore healthier, than we found it.

Our Philosophy

Wildlife and habitat only prosper when their ecosystem is in balance.

A pronghorn herd in desert grasslands of West Texas

Our Resources

The objective of biodiversity conservation is to maintain viable native animal and plant populations of all kind.

a native Elk roaming the desert grasslands of West Texas

Elk Removals Featured

Are Elk Native to Texas--Historical and Archaeological Evidence for the Natural Occurence of Elk in Texas

This paper began as an effort to persuade Texas Parks and Wildlife Department (TPWD) to cease its efforts to eradicate elk on the state lands which it manages in far-West Texas. Our assumption was that TPWD was acting out of a sincere misunderstanding of science, which could be corrected.

Reducing Wildfire Fuels at Scale Cost Effectively

Fighting Wildfires

Reducing Wildfire Fuels at Scale Cost Effectively

This lecture outlines a novel cost-effective, humane, nature-based management Plan for Wild Horses that provides benefits for all public lands stakeholders.

What Happens To Solar Panels At The End Of Their Lifespan?

What Happens To Solar Panels At The End Of Their Lifespan?

While solar panels are almost entirely recyclable, up to 90% make the inevitable trip to a landfill because it's less expensive to dump them rather than recycle.

Colorado Man Wakes Up to Discover a Mountain Lion Eating an Elk on His Front Porch

Colorado Man Wakes Up to Discover a Mountain Lion Eating an Elk on His Front Porch

A mountain lion takes down an elk in a Glenwood Canyon backyard, much to the homeowner’s surprise

The Joys of Jump-Shooting Ducks

Wildlife & Hunting

The Joys of Jump-Shooting Ducks

Late-season jump-shooting on moving water.

If Not from Soil, Where Does a Tree Get Its Bulk?

If Not from Soil, Where Does a Tree Get Its Bulk?

Where Do Trees Really Get Their Bulk From? Not the Soil!

Trail Camera Captures 'Truly Amazing' Two-Legged Bear in West Virginia: Watch

Trail Camera Captures 'Truly Amazing' Two-Legged Bear in West Virginia: Watch

The photographer believes the bear to be an approximately 8-year-old male.

Screwworms In S. Mexico Has USDA, States Working On Plan

Screwworms In S. Mexico Has USDA, States Working On Plan

In late November the Chief Veterinary Officer of Mexico notified USDA Animal and Plant Inspection Service of a positive detection of New World Screwworm (NWS) in Mexico.

Wyoming Elk Migration

Wyoming Elk Migration

The Jackson Elk Herd, at approximately 11,000 animals, is one of the largest in the Greater Yellowstone Ecosystem and the largest in the state of Wyoming.

How L.A. Bureaucracy Made It Harder to Clear Flammable Brush

California wildfires

How L.A. Bureaucracy Made It Harder to Clear Flammable Brush

A mishmash of government agencies failed to keep public lands safe from deadly wildfires, residents say

Giant Irish Elk: The Largest Deer To Ever Live | Extinct Animals Documentary

Giant Irish Elk: The Largest Deer To Ever Live | Extinct Animals Documentary

Known as the "Giant Deer", the Irish Elk was last seen nearly 11,000 years ago.

LA FIRES: Can Saving American Wild Horses Help Reduce The Loss of Life And Economic Losses By Preventing & Reducing Wildfires & Toxic Smoke?

Wild Horse Fire Brigade

LA FIRES: Can Saving American Wild Horses Help Reduce The Loss of Life And Economic Losses By Preventing & Reducing Wildfires & Toxic Smoke?

The devastating grass and brush fueled wildfires in Los Angeles we are all witnessing may be just a glimpse of the upcoming summer in the western United States

Inspiration Texas Style

Inspiration Texas Style

Wyman Meinzer tells the stories behind select images from his book Inspiration Texas Style

The Battle of Bighorns

The Battle of Bighorns

The battles involve rams charging at each other and colliding their massive horns. These clashes can reach speeds of up to 40 miles per hour, generating forces that are significantly greater than what would cause injury to a human skull.

Desert Bighorn Sheep and Chukar in Nevada

A wonderful Desert Bighorn Sheep video from Nevada’s Department of Wildlife. The gamebirds are Chukar (Alectoris chukar), a much-treasured partridge originally native to the foothills of the Himalayas. American stock originated in Afghanistan and Nepal. Chukar have naturalized across much of the West in areas where their native food

Restoring Biodiversity - 1/21/2025

Restoring Biodiversity - 1/21/2025

Wild horses can help prevent forest fires. The effort to bring horned lizards back to Texas. Young fox kits play near Orvis headquarters. And more...

The Effort to Bring Horned Lizards Back to Texas

The Effort to Bring Horned Lizards Back to Texas

This once ubiquitous little animal is undoubtedly the victim of pesticides.

ORVIS Moment of Chill: Playing in the Yard

ORVIS Moment of Chill: Playing in the Yard

Young fox kits play around their den, just off the walkway near Orvis headquarters in Sunderland, Vermont. NOTE: this post was originally published to this site in February, 2022.