King Ranch | Cattle Ranching, Agriculture, Wildlife (2024)

FAQs

What is some of the wildlife at King Ranch? ›

King Ranch is home to tens of thousands of migratory birds as well as many game and non-game species, including bobwhite quail, white-tailed deer, nilgai antelope, and Rio Grande turkey. King Ranch stewards what is probably the largest and most diverse population of wildlife on a single ranch in the nation.

Over the course of over 160 years, King Ranch led some of the first cattle drives, developed the Santa Gertrudis and Santa Cruz breeds of cattle, bred the finest Quarter Horses, and produced champion Thoroughbreds—all under its iconic Running W® brand.

Today, King Ranch – Florida is involved in sugar cane, sod, sweet corn, green bean and specialty lettuce production. Additionally, King Ranch is the largest juice orange producer in the United States.

Ranching is the practice of raising herds of animals on large tracts of land. Ranchers commonly raise grazing animals such as cattle and sheep. Some ranchers also raise elk, bison, ostriches, emus, and alpacas. The ranching and livestock industry is growing faster than any other agricultural sector in the world.

Commercial Cattle

King Ranch sells bulls, females, feeders, and calves to producers and other segments of the industry via Private Treaty.

Today, King Ranch sprawls across 825,000 acres of South Texas land, an area larger than the state of Rhode Island. As the home of 35,000 cattle and over 200 Quarter Horses, King Ranch is one of the largest ranches in the world today.

By crossbreeding Brahman bulls, native to India, with British Shorthorn stock, the ranch produced the Santa Gertrudis, recognized as the first American breed of beef cattle and the first cattle breed to be recognized in the world in more than a century. This era also launched the famed King Ranch horse legacy.

King Ranch, largest ranch in the United States, composed of a group of four tracts of land in southeastern Texas, totaling approximately 825,000 acres (333,800 hectares).

The historic 825,000-acre King Ranch in South Texas is the largest cattle ranch in the US. In Kenedy County, Texas, it raises cattle and grows cotton, grain, and other commodities.

The estimated total pay range for a Cowboy at King Ranch is $77K–$143K per year, which includes base salary and additional pay. The average Cowboy base salary at King Ranch is $102K per year. The average additional pay is $0 per year, which could include cash bonus, stock, commission, profit sharing or tips.

Does the Kleberg family still own the King Ranch? ›

The ranch was founded in 1852 by steamboat captain Richard King, but its success is widely credited to the family of King's attorney Robert Justus Kleberg, who married one of King's daughters, Alice Gertrudis. Their descendants have managed the ranch ever since.

Formal purchase began in 1853, when they bought a Spanish land grant, Rincón de Santa Gertrudis, of 15,500 acres on Santa Gertrudis Creek in Nueces County. A short time later they purchased the Mexican land grant, Santa Gertrudis de la Garza grant, of 53,000 acres.

Ranchers primarily produce meat. Hides are used to make leather, and sheep and goats can be sheared for their wool and mohair. So there you have it. Farmers and ranchers use land to produce our food and fiber, but in slightly different ways.

Most people realize that wildlife predators often pose a problem for ranchers when they kill sheep, cattle and horses. The ranchers expend a great deal of money to keep predators in check. The reduced numbers of predators also benefit deer, antelope, elk, small mammals and birds.

Ranching is one of the oldest agricultural activities. It refers to the act of managing and caring for a herd of animals—such as cows, sheep or goats—on a grazing area to produce milk, meat, hides, or other animal products.

King Ranch is the largest ranch in the United States. At some 825,000 acres (3,340 km²; 1,289 sq mi) it is larger than both the land area of Rhode Island and the area of the European country Luxembourg. It is mainly a cattle ranch, but also produced the racehorse Assault, who won the Triple Crown in 1946.

Nilgai have cemented themselves as a mainstay in the South Texas ecosystem with a growing estimated population over 50,000, which is particularly enticing when considering the restrictions prohibiting hunters from harvesting them on their native soil.

They are among the most abundant free-ranging exotic ungulate in Texas, with an estimated population of 15,000 individuals now living in south-central and southern Texas. The majority of Texas nilgai are found in free-ranging populations on several large ranches in Kenedy and Willacy counties.