The 100-acre National Butterfly Center is the premier location in the United States to experience the beauty, drama, and emotion of wild butterflies. A project of the nonprofit North American Butterfly Association, the center is designed to attract incredible numbers of beautiful, wild butterflies. Clouds of butterflies may be found at the National Butterfly Center because, by planting thousands of plants that the butterflies need for nectar and for caterpillar growth, we have created an outdoor paradise that sustains large populations and hundreds of species of wild butterflies.
This Harlingen park has 9 acres, an inclusive//handicap accessible playground, a covered picnic shelter, and access to the Arroyo Hike & Bike trail.
Park amenities include a 1.5 walking trail, 54 acres of wooded park land, nature trails, observation blind overlooking the Arroyo Colorado, restrooms, and a covered picnic area.
Park amenities include a 1-mile walking trail, 80 acres, 4 lit softball fields, 2 soccer fields, fishing pong and pier, 2 basketball courts, handicap-accessible playground, covered picnic shelters, park pavilion, barbecue pit, and restrooms.
Amenities include the 1-mile Harlingen Hometown Heroes trail with handicap accessible exercise equipment, 47 acres, 18 lit tennis courts with pro shop (HEB Tennis Center), Veterans Memorial, Pendleton Pool, park pavilion, barbecue pit, 6 little league baseball fields, scenic pond with fountain, picnic tables, restrooms, playgrounds, and a basketball court.
Boca Chica State Park is located near Brownsville in southeastern Cameron County, Texas. Boca Chica is part of the Lower Rio Grande Valley National Wildlife Refuge, as is Brazos (Santiago) Island.
Bentsen-Rio Grande Valley State Park and World Birding Center is a great place to begin a south Texas nature adventure. Guided tours offer our visitors a chance to see wildlife in their natural habitats. Special programs for teachers, students and young naturalists are available as well as citizen science projects such as Hawk Watch and the Christmas Bird Count. Make sure to check our program calendar for special events and workshops scheduled throughout the year.
Estero Llano Grande in Weslaco attracts a spectacular array of South Texas wildlife with its varied landscape of shallow lake, woodlands and thorn forest. Even beginning birders and nature lovers will enjoy exploring this 230 plus-acre refuge, which is convenient to all the Rio Grande Valley has to offer.
The Magic Valley’s early 20th Century transition into an agricultural powerhouse is retold at the Old Hidalgo Pumphouse, which also embraces nature conservation as a wing of the World Birding Center. Visitors to this museum on the Rio Grande can learn about the steam-driven irrigation pumps that transformed Hidalgo County into a year-round farming phenomenon. They also can wander the museum’s grounds, where hummingbird gardens are planned, and where many of the Valley’s amazing bird species are regular visitors as well.
Brownsville’s Resaca de la Palma boasts the largest tract of native habitat in the World Birding Center network. Visitors can enjoy over 8 miles of off-road trails, four observation decks that overlook four miles of resaca wetland, and a 2.76-mile paved loop by tram, hiking and biking. Bikes, binoculars, and Explorer Packs are available for rent.
History and nature meet on scenic bluffs above the Rio Grande, where the World Birding Center in Roma can be found on the old plaza of a once-thriving steamboat port. Part of a national historic district, the WBC Roma Bluffs includes a riverside nature area of three acres: The gateway to unforgettable birding adventures across Starr County.
We are the Rio Grande Valley’s premier destination for birdwatching. Our unique location on South Padre Island is the perfect place to observe the birds, butterflies, and natural wildlife in coastal South Texas. Visit us on South Padre Island, walk the bayfront boardwalks, take a birding tour and explore the natural life of the Rio Grande Valley.
Sea Turtle, Inc. is open for visitors year round. A key part of our mission is to educate the public about sea turtles, our work and how to save these wonderful animals. We offer educational talks to any size group, ranging from individual families to large crowds.
The multi-use facility includes eight fields and one championship field which meets the needs of various sports including soccer, football, rugby, and ultimate Frisbee as well as numerous community and special events including the annual McAllen Marathon. In addition to the fields, the park’s amenities include practice fields, lighted tennis courts, a basketball court, playground, water feature, concession area, and restroom facilities. A permit is required for use of this facility.
Andy Bowie Park is located on the north end of South Padre Island, on the Gulf of Mexico, directly across from the South Padre Island Convention Center. Some of the amenities offered at Andy Bowie Park are two large surfside picnic pavilions, BBQ areas, RV sites, food concessions, beach rental concessions, fishing area, swimming area, restrooms and showers, a flagship hotel and access to a pristine beach. The park is open 7 days a week. For R.V. reservations please call the park office at (956) 761-3704.
Isla Blanca Park is located on the southernmost tip of South Padre Island and is the crown jewel of the Parks system. Entrance is $10/vehicle. Located within the park, there is over a mile of pristine beach along the Gulf of Mexico that offers an abundance of waterfront recreational facilities. Our beachfront facilities make the clear gulf waters accessible to all. Isla Blanca Park offers two large beachfront pavilions with onsite food and beach rental concessions, ample parking, walking trail, jetties and surf fishing, a jetties bait stand, over 600 full hook-up R.V. sites, cabana rentals, tent sites, a boat ramp, numerous restroom/shower facilities and shaded picnic areas.
Bejarano McFarland Memorial Park is located in the colonia of Laguna Heights, within the city limits of Port Isabel. The park is approximately 2.0 acres in size and borders the Laguna Madre bay. The amenities offered at the park consist of a Bird Watch Overlook with interpretative signs that extend 110 feet into the Laguna Madre, outdoor basketball court, playground, multi-purpose trail, a large picnic pavilion with bbq pits and a butterfly garden.
E.K. Atwood Park (Beach Access 5) is located on the Gulf of Mexico, approximately 1.6 miles north of Andy Bowie Park. E.K. Atwood is open seven days a week and provides vehicular beach access. The park also provides a parking area (with fee), a beachside covered pavilion with picnic tables, restrooms and a boardwalk accessing the beach.
El Ranchito Park is located near the intersection of Highway 281 and Park Ranch Road, just southeast of San Benito. The newly constructed park offers a number of recreational elements and amenities such as regulation size little league multi-use field, full-sized soccer field, a walking trail, basketball court, playground, butterfly garden, benches, and picnic pavilions.