Our first full day in Texas begins with a guided boat tour out to Aransas National Wildlife Refuge in search of overwintering Whooping Cranes. The Whooping Crane is the rarest crane species and one of the rarest birds in the world. In addition to cranes, expect to spot 30 to 60 different species during the 3.5-hr coastal birding boat tour.  After lunch, continue to the Lower Rio Grande Valley with birding in Corpus Christi and beyond en route.  Evening arrival to McAllen where we’ll stay the next two nights. One of our evenings in McAllen will include a stop at the local Green Parakeet roost.

Accommodations: Hampton Inn and Suites McAllen

Meals: Breakfast and Lunch

Full day of birding famed Valley hotspots including Bentsen – Rio Grande State Park, Santa Ana National Wildlife Refuge, and Quinta Mazatlan World Birding Center.

Accommodations: Hampton Inn and Suites McAllen

Meals: Breakfast and Lunch

Bentsen – Rio Grande Valley ~ Birders across the nation know Bentsen as a treasure trove of “Valley Specialties” – tropical birds found nowhere else in the US. 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.

Santa Ana National Wildlife Refuge ~ Located at a crossroads of biodiversity, it is home to species such as Green Jays, Common Pauraques, Plain Chachalacas and Great Kiskadees, which reach the northern limit of their range in this area.  At the same time, the refuge offers important habitat for birds from the Central and Mississippi flyways that funnel through the area on their way to and from Central and South America.

Full day of birding with stops dependent on recent sightings. Likely locations are Hidalgo County hotspots including Valley Nature Center, Frontera Audubon Center, and Estero Llano Grande State Park – the jewel of the Valley in Chip’s eyes. Evening arrival to Harlingen where we’ll spend the next two nights.

Accommodations: Hampton Inn and Suites Harlingen

Meals: Breakfast and Lunch

Full day of birding at Cameron County hotspots including Laguna Atascosa National Wildlife Refuge, Laguna Vista Nature Trail, and several spots on South Padre Island. We’ll end our day of birding at Brownsville’s parrot roost.

Accommodations: Hampton Inn and Suites Harlingen

Meals: Breakfast, Lunch and Farewell Dinner

Laguna Atascosa National Wildlife Refuge ~ This Refuge occupies one of North America’s most biologically diverse regions and sees an impressive 417 species of birds — a number that represents nearly half the total for the continent as a whole. Migrants skirt the Gulf to the east and the desert to the west to funnel through this Central Flyway starting point. Many of the residents species reach their northernmost range here along the Rio Grande.

South Padre Island Convention Center and Laguna Madre Trail~ Boardwalks over marshes, gardens with drips, and adjacent tidal mud flats provide visitors up-close encounters with the variety of species that inhabit the region’s wetland habitats. Permanent residents include Brown Pelican, Laughing Gull, herons, egrets, Clapper Rail, and American Alligator.  Wintering species include Peregrine Falcon, Sora, Osprey, and Belted Kingfisher.

Day 6 (Mon, Feb 13): For our last day, we have time visit area hotspots in search of species we haven’t seen yet as we make our way back to Corpus Christi in time for our evening flight home. Possible birding locations include Hugh Ramsey Nature Park and Kaufer-Hubert Memorial Park.

Meals: Breakfast and Lunch

Please plan to depart CRP Airport at 6 pm or later.