On March 19th, with a perfectly clear evening, we were treated to a terrific view of the super full moon rising over Retama Village. John took this shot of moon from the east end of Hummingbird Lane about an hour after moonrise. The moon started out very yellow, and became increasingly white as it rose.

Since mid-March, birdwatchers have been enjoying watching a pair of White-tailed Kites construct a nest east of the Hawk Tower in Bentsen RGV State Park. On March 16th, the pair were very active, mating near their nest site and carrying nesting material. John was able to take several photos of the pair.

Bentsen RGV State Park has always had a lot of bobcats, easily seen by park visitors because they seem to be more used to humans than most wild bobcats. If you spend a lot of time in the park you will probably see several different individuals. This morning, John and I were treated to a lovely bobcat sighting. Bobcat photo added taken in the park 4/6/11.

Interpretive Programs for March, April and May 2011 at Bentsen Rio Grande Valley State Park from their interpretive program flier available at the Visitor’s Center.

The Hawk Tower in Bentsen RGV State Park reopened to public access on Feb 24th. During the Bentsen Hawk Watch, from March 5th through May 2nd 2011, the tower will be manned by volunteers counting the hawks, kites, falcons, eagles, vultures and caracaras seen migrating north from Central and South America.

Guided Bird Walks at Estero Llano Grande State Park are on Wednesdays, Saturdays and Sundays at 8:30 am.  These walks are led by experienced volunteer guides and they usually have a spotting scope with them so that you can get a good look at the interesting birds. Estero Llano Grande has numerous ponds and thus [...]

This rare bird from coastal Mexico is seen in the Rio Grande Valley every few years, but it is usually very difficult to get a glimpse of the bird and even a definitive ID. Occasional sightings of a possible pair had been reported in early January 2011.  This morning February 14 at 7:40 am, park [...]

Bentsen RGV State Park is hosting a guided Plant Walk every Friday from 1:30 pm to 3:30 pm during February. Description: Meet some of Bentsen’s native plants. Find out how humans have used them, which plants are preferred by animals, and possible landscape uses. These tours/walks usually start near the Visitors Center where you pick [...]

Bird activity was high this morning at Bentsen RGV State Park after the freeze and we saw most of the local specialty birds on the Monday morning Bird Walk.  Many more birds use the feeding stations that are maintained all over the park under these cold weather conditions.  If you have a hummingbird feeder out [...]

We were delighted to see a Mexican Silverspot show up at the end of January and start laying eggs on our Corky Passion Vine.  This is one of the more rare fritillary butterflies that show up in the RGV and butterfly enthusiasts are always excited to see one.  This is a new species for the [...]