In a deal expected to provide access to more caves on state-owned land, The Texas Cave Management Association (TCMA) Board of Directors will work with the Lady Bird Johnson Wildflower Center to manage resources on the property in South Austin.
The new cooperative agreement, approved at the board’s August meeting, will enable TCMA to visit, explore and help preserve several caves located within the state botanical garden and arboretum of Texas.
Among other recent actions, the board voted to reopen its Robber Baron Cave Preserve, which has been closed while an endangered species habitat management plan was underway.
Additionally, directors approved TCMA’s membership in the Texas Hill Country Conservation Network, joining more than three dozen other like-minded organizations.
The wildflower center, which features more than 900 species of native Texas plants in both garden and natural settings, also contains caves that can be new resources fir educational tours and other visitation. The University of Texas, which operates the center, also seeks to protect endangered species and their habitat under a permit through the Balcones Canyonland Conservation Plan, issued by the U.S. Fish & Wildlife Service pursuant to the Endangered Species Act.
The Balcones Canyonland Preserve has 62 caves covered by the permit. Caves on the Wildflower Center property are part of the Barton Springs-Edwards Aquifer recharge zone, and restoring filled caves on the property is expected to promote natural aquifer recharge, enhance water quality, provide ecosystems and nutrient input for cave ecosystems, provide resources for cave education, and reduce flooding potential.
The new agreement arose from a desire to more fully utilize the umbrella UT Permanent Lands deal with TCMA, which envisions a vast amount of property containing caves and karst.
Robber Baron Cave Preserve, located in San Antonio, will be reopened following some additional work detailed under the management plan.
In January, the board elected new leadership, approved a budget, and set goals and objectives for 2025 following a year of progress in which TCMA received a prestigious national conservation award and expanded its preserves. Our new TCMA officers are:
– Rachael Lindsey, President
– Jim “Crash” Kennedy, Vice President
– Ben Dau, Treasurer
– Jay Jorden, Secretary
Outgoing President Joe Ranzau has stepped down because of personal commitments, but he remains as a director. The board issued a statement thanking him for his exemplary service leading the organization.
Among new goals and objectives for 2025 are strengthening outreach to members and stakeholders; building a strong TCMA brand; pursuing new cave acquisitions; and improving our existing system of preserves along with how visitors interact with them. That includes enhancing an online permitting program for preserve visitation.
Members can look forward to an enhanced website and new logo as part of the TCMA brand focus, among other upgrades to raise our visibility as an influential conservation organization. A new press kit being finalized will also expand TCMA’s visibility to conservationists and the public.
Board member Scott Nicholson, who has been working with fellow director Cruz St. Peter on branding, said, “We need to look like a conservation organization that owns millions of dollars worth of critical preserves and infrastructure – because we are. This is very important.”
Both directors have worked with a graphic designer on a new logo and brand identity that will be replicated across all TCMA preserves and communications. As part of that, the organization’s 14 preserves will all have new kiosks with signage and site-specific information for a consistent look and feel.
The initiative’s rollout, which includes continued work to mark property boundaries, will be staggered across this year and in 2026.
Members can look forward to an enhanced website and new logo as part of the TCMA brand focus, among other upgrades to raise our visibility as an influential conservation organization. A new press kit being finalized will also expand TCMA’s visibility to conservationists and the public.
Board member Scott Nicholson, who has been working with fellow director Cruz St. Peter on branding, said, “We need to look like a conservation organization that owns millions of dollars worth of critical preserves and infrastructure – because we are. This is very important.”
Both directors have worked with a graphic designer on a new logo and brand identity that will be replicated across all TCMA preserves and communications. As part of that, the organization’s 14 preserves will all have new kiosks with signage and site-specific information for a consistent look and feel. The initiative’s rollout, which includes continued work to mark property boundaries, will be staggered across this year and in 2026.
Thanks to the efforts of volunteers from TCMA and an Eagle Scout, a new kiosk has already been built at Godwin Ranch Preserve in Williamson County. Also, Preserve Manager Eléonora Chouquetta reported that a yearlong project to build a wildlife watering station was completed in December.
In other preserve news from 2024, public education and outreach continued at Whirlpool Cave Preserve in Austin, including partnering with Hill Country Conservancy during a fun run and outing in which 75 people visited the cave. Also, multiple survey teams entered Brooksjack Cave on the Carta Valley Preserve.
A successful two-day graffiti mitigation workshop was organized at one of TCMA’s newest preserves, Wurzbach Bat Cave, a San Antonio property acquired in 2024 from TxDOT. The workshop was led by Val Hildreth-Werker, head of the National Speleological Society (NSS) Conservation Division and co-editor of Cave Conservation and Restoration. The TCMA workshop was also supported by the American Cave Conservation Association.
In July 2024, the NSS presented its prestigious Group Conservation Award to TCMA at the national caving organization’s convention in Sewanee, Tennessee. The Awards Committee, chaired by Dallas-Fort Worth caver Bill Steele, cited TCMA’s efforts to save Honey Creek Cave from harm.
Among plans for 2025, comprehensive management plans will be finalized for each TCMA preserve, using templates for the Carta Valley Caves and Lost Oasis preserves. On a related note, updated agreements are under review for 0-9 Water Well and Amazing Maze Cave with The University of Texas System Lands, as well as a Robber Baron Cave Habitat Conservation Plan.
Along with the new officers, current TMCA board members are: Joe Ranzau, Greg Mosier, Eléonore Le Corvaisier, Jenna Crabtree, Bree Jameson, Scott Nicholson, Tobin Hays, Drew Thompson, Ethan Perrine, and Cruz St. Peter.
Keep in touch with TCMA at our website (www.tcmacaves.org) and on our Facebook page (www.facebook.com/groups /46868704142).
TCMA board in action: 2025 gains, 2026 goals
