Wildlife biologists warn the ongoing drought is impacting entire ecosystems. They also say the likely return of the La Niña pattern in the winter could make things worse.
Brad Dabbert with Texas Tech says more animal species are experiencing minimal survival conditions, resulting in lower reproductive rates and higher mortality rates. He says prolonged triple digit temperatures coupled with the worst one-year drought in state history are destroying plants that wildlife depend on for food and shelter.
"They need moisture during the winter and so that will have an impact. After frost, food becomes more limiting. A lot of animals rely on what's being produced during the summer and we don't have that and it just becomes worse," he said.>
Dabbert says a decline in the number of herbivores signals predator species populations will likely decrease soon as well.
