Honey Mesquite (Prosopis glandulosa) - Notice the small tree on the left side of the road, opposite the signpost. Both the littleleaf leadtree and the honey mesquite are members of the legume family. Note the similarities of the leaves and seed pods to that of a pea, which is also a legume. Mesquite trees are more abundant today than in the past. Long term climate variation was already leading to a decline of native grassland habitat. In addition, during Big Bend's ranching era cattle ate the sweet and protein-rich pods of mesquite once the grasses became less abundant. The hard seeds of the mesquite pass through the digestive tract of cattle, which transports the seeds some distance away from the mother tree, increasing the spread of the mesquite tree.