Sunset looking out over the Gulf of Mexico from the sand dunes on Boca Chica.
SpaceX’s ambitions of turning a serene strip of Texas beach — where even water and sewer lines are scarce — into a scene out of science fiction lovers’ dreams has set the stage for a drama over land grabs, risks to the environment and questions about the company’s transparency.
The company’s plans, which have been set back a couple of years so SpaceX can reinforce the ground under its construction site, will at times limit access to Boca Chica Beach, a public stretch of coast that locals call their own.
Hills covered in thick brush, called lomas, are the favored shelter habitat for locally endangered ocelots and jaguarundis.
A white egret takes off from the saline mudflats of Boca Chica, just south of Highway 4, adjacent to the Rio Grande and Mexico.
A coyote traverses grassland between lomas at Boca Chica.
A crab guards its meal — a small fish.
A great blue heron lurks in tall grass, waiting for fish, while a female common mallard passes in the background.
