Successful Pronghorn Transplants Require Ecosystem Health

Pronghorn cannot be restored by themselves. Healthy grasslands need periodic grazing by keystone species like bison or cattle, lots of prey and lots of predators. Removing any of these components will unwind the system. Animals, plants and the soil life biome are interdependent and inseparable. Hurt any piece and you harm everything else. No wildlife challenge in far-West Texas is more important than pronghorn restoration.  But pronghorn must be addressed as part of an entire, interconnected system, not as if they are a separate element to be ‘managed’ by themselves, and especially not by removing so-called competitors. In this sense, pronghorn, cattle, coyotes and creosote bush are equally important to one another and the system as a whole. Until we approach pronghorn restoration with this holistic understanding, all the wild species of far-West Texas will continue in irregular, long-term decline, notwithstanding the sincerity and diligence of the individuals featured in this video.