The most southern tip of Texas is considered one of the most biologically diverse regions in North America. During migration, species from the Central and Mississippi flyway converge in the Lower Rio Grande Valley (Valley).
The Valley is also where four climates (temperate, desert, coastal and sub-tropical) converge.
A documented 1,200 plant species within the Valley attracts and supports a diversity of wildlife, birds and butterflies that depend on the vegetation that can only be found here in the United States. Thousands of years of adaptations and changes on the landscape have created species-specific relations found only in portions of the lower Rio Grande delta.

The Lower Rio Grande Valley National Wildlife Refuge and its many partners have been working since 1979 to create a wildlife corridor along the Rio Grande from Falcon Dam to the Gulf of Mexico. Land that either has good habitat or connects to habitat is purchased for inclusion of the refuge from willing sellers. In addition to the refuge's efforts, Texas Parks and Wildlife and many non profit organizations, private landowners and local communities are also focused on restoring, protecting and connecting habitat in South Texas.

The Valley Nature Center's 6 acre park is home to a wide variety of the LRGV's native plants and animals. Many plants were transplanted during the past 35 years to this protected area from sites which were slated for development.
We are the oldest nature center in the Rio Grande Valley, and the only non-profit center fully dedicated to environmental education south of San Antonio and east of Eagle Pass. Our state of the art green facility was completed in October 2014. Interactive displays are a fun way for the whole family to learn about all of the wonderful and diverse plant and animals that are here in the Rio Grande Valley.

301 South Border Ave / PO Box 8125
Weslaco, TX 78599-8125
(956) 969-2475
info@valleynaturecenter.org

The Rio Grande Valley area is home to many tropical bird species found nowhere else in the United States. It is a major bird migration corridor; the convergence of two major flyways (the Central and Mississippi) affords the birder an abundance of Northern species migrating to avoid the winter cold and to take advantage of northern breeding habitats.
The World Birding Center is more than just a spot on the map. It is a network of nine distinctly different birding sites, set along a 120-mile historic river road – each sponsored by one of the Valley’s nine partner communities.
From a historic adobe hacienda to scenic bluffs high above the Rio Grande and pristine wilderness to teeming wetlands, the World Birding Center network offers visitors a dazzling array of birding adventures. Visitors will be treated to wilderness walks, float trips and hands-on, state-of-the-art educational exhibits, all under the umbrella of a world class birding experience.

Birders across the nation know Bentsen as a treasure trove of "Valley Specialties" or tropical birds found nowhere else in the United States. The 797-acre Bentsen-Rio Grande Valley State Park, together with over 1,200 acres of adjoining U.S. Fish and Wildlife refuge tracts, promises year-round nature adventures in the richest birding area north of the Mexican border.
Bentsen 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.
Bentsen-Rio Grande Valley State Park
2800 S. Bentsen Palm Drive (FM 2062)
Mission, TX 78572
956-584-2858

A 40-acre wetlands oasis in the midst of a lively urban landscape, the Edinburg Scenic Wetlands offers watchable wildlife year-round in a setting friendly to birds, butterflies and other water-loving creatures.
There's plenty for nature lovers to see and do at the World Birding Center's Edinburg Scenic Wetlands. Bird and dragonfly walks, wildflower tours, and nighttime excursions featuring "nature's night shift" are only a few. In addition, amateur naturalists can learn to create simple backyard wildlife sanctuaries.
714 S. Raul Longoria
Edinburg, Texas 78539
956-381-9922

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.
Estero Llano Grande has a well-deserved reputation as a can’t-miss birding destination. In late summer, when water is at a premium, hundreds of waders & shorebirds flock here, including the endangered Wood Stork, along with colorful coastal species like the Roseate Spoonbill and Ibis. Migrating waterfowl also make a beeline for the park’s narrow, shallow lake. Elsewhere, woodland & thorn scrub harbor all the must-see Valley specialties such as the Groove-billed Ani & Altamira Oriole. Adding spice to this mix, visitors may even spot rare Red-crowned Parrots and Green Parakeets.
3301 S. International Blvd. (FM 1015)
Weslaco, Texas
956-565-3919

Harlingen's Arroyo Colorado is close to major highways and an international airport, but remains a quiet wooded retreat from the hustle of urban life. Connected by the arroyo waterway, as well as hike-and-bike trails meandering through the city, Hugh Ramsey Nature Park to the east and the Harlingen Thicket to the west anchor an important reservoir of nature in a fast-changing world.
Harlingen’s wing of the WBC provides much-needed breeding grounds for many “Valley specialties” like the Green and Ringed Kingfishers, Common Pauraque, Groove-billed Ani, Long-billed Thrasher and Olive Sparrow. Endangered Red-crowned Parrots are found here, and during migration periods, the two sites are an important stopover for Neo-tropical/Nearctic travelers seeking food and rest.
(Hugh Ramsey Park)
1001 S. Loop 499
Harlingen, Texas 78550
956-427-8873

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.
Learn about the steam-driven irrigation pumps that transformed Hidalgo County into a year-round farming phenomenon.
Native Huisache, Texas Ebony, Anacua, Mesquite and many native trees, shrubs and flowers surround the Hidalgo Pumphouse in order to attract Valley birds and butterflies.
Tropical kingfishers – both green and ringed – like the combination of water and woodland along the Old Hidalgo Pumphouse’s now abandoned intake channel. Those floodplain woodlands also harbor the Great Kiskadee, Green Jay, Clay-colored Robin, Altamira Oriole and other Valley specialties. In winter, various colorful warblers, kinglets and gnatcatchers can be found chasing their insect meals. The Green Monk Parakeets can be found at the Hidalgo Pumphouse all year round, with nests in several trees alongside the intake channel and museum.
902 S. Second Street
Hidalgo, Texas 78557
956-843-8686

Quinta Mazatlan is now an urban sanctuary working to enrich people's lives by sharing knowledge about birds, plants, and environmental stewardship in South Texas. Quinta Mazatlan and its WBC partners promote birding and conservation of Valley habitat, especially as it benefits numerous avian residents and neo-tropical migrants.
For much of its existence since construction in 1935, the Spanish Revival Style mansion was a private and rather luxurious residence, complete with a Roman tub. It possessed the distinction then and now of being one of, if not, the largest adobe structures in Texas.
600 Sunset Drive
McAllen, TX 78504
(956) 681-3370

World Birding Center logoAs part of the World Birding Center, Brownsville’s Resaca de la Palma boasts the largest tract of native habitat in the World Birding Center network. Etched by ancient curves of the Rio Grande, its 1,200 semi-tropical acres provide a quiet retreat from the hustle and bustle of an international urban center only a few miles away.
The World Birding Center visitors center is the portal to over eight miles of trails, four decks that overlook the four miles of resaca, and a 2.76-mile tram loop that winds through the park. Tram tours are available.
Resaca’s many trails can be accessed by tram, hiking, biking or walking.
1000 New Carmen Ave. (off Hwy. 281 or FM 1732)
Brownsville, TX 78521
(956) 350-2920

A thriving steamboat port of the past, today’s City of Roma is a birdwatcher’s paradise!
Red-billed pigeons, ringed kingfishers, Couch’s kingbird, cave swallow, brown jays and Altamira orioles are some of the many species that attract birding enthusiasts to this area.
Situated at the westernmost end of the Valley, the Roma Bluffs World Birding Center provides information on wildlife-dependent recreation in the area, as well as natural history exhibits and a nature store.

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.
6801 Padre Boulevard
South Padre Island, TX 78597
956-761-6801

Frontera Audubon is 15-acre nature preserve in the heart of the City of Weslaco in the Rio Grande Valley of South Texas providing a haven for birds, butterflies and other wildlife that thrive among the native habitats of its Tamaulipan Thornscrub forest, orchard butterfly garden, wetlands, and ponds.
Frontera Audubon houses a Visitors’ Center and the Texas Historic Landmark, the Skaggs House, a Spanish Mediterranean style house built in 1927. The house was built for early Weslaco residents, C.L. “Lester” and Florence R. Skaggs who were bankers and citrus growers.
1101 S. Texas Blvd.
Weslaco, TX 78596
956-968-3275

Established in 1943 for the protection of migratory birds, Santa Ana National Wildlife Refuge happens to be positioned along an east-west and north-south juncture of two major migratory routes for many species of birds. It is also at the northern-most point for many species whose range extends south into Central and South America. The refuge is right in the middle of all this biological diversity, which is what makes this 2,088 acre parcel the ‘jewel of the National Wildlife Refuge System.’ Though small in size, Santa Ana offers visitors an opportunity to see birds, butterflies and many other species not found anywhere else in the United States beyond deep South Texas.
The refuge is located seven miles south of Alamo, Texas, on FM 907 about 1/4 mile east on U.S. Highway 281.
3325 Green Jay Rd.
Alamo, Texas 78516
(956)784-7500

In a region of Texas some call the last great habitat, thorn forest intermingles with freshwater wetlands, coastal prairies, mudflats and beaches. Dense patches of thorny brush rise among unique wind-blown clay dunes called "lomas."
The refuge was established in 1946 to provide habitat for wintering waterfowl and other migratory birds, principally redhead ducks. Today, there is an expanded emphasis that includes endangered species conservation and management for shorebirds. The refuge is a premiere bird-watching destination with more recorded species of birds than any other refuge in the National Wildlife Refuge System. The largest population in the United States of ocelots calls the refuge home, making it the center for conservation and recovery efforts for this endangered cat.
Laguna Atascosa National Wildlife Refuge encompasses more than 97, 000 acres, a portion of which are open to the public for wildlife related activities like wildlife watching, hunting, fishing, photography and environmental education.
22688 Buena Vista Rd.
Los Fresnos, TX 78566
956-244-2019

The purpose of STEC is to give people the experience of our native landscapes of South Texas. We have living Models of six different ecosystems found in the Rio Grande Valley. We also want to promote the restoration and preservation of our native landscape and bring awareness of the plants and animals that are threatened in the Valley. 

We have an abundance of wildlife sightings from our 25ft tall outlook ramp that views into the Coastal Prairie behind the center. There have been sightings of Nilgai, the Aplomado falcon, and so much more. We also have hundreds of native plants as well as a butterfly garden to be enjoyed. 

We host weekly and monthly events.

501 W. State Highway 100
Laguna Vista, Texas 78578

(956) 772-0210​
(956) 772-0212
info@stec-lv.org