Birding Hotspots: Estero Llano Grande State Park

I just returned from a week in south Texas yesterday and am already missing the warm temperatures and more exotic birds! While spending time in the Rio Grande Valley (RGV), I had the opportunity to go birding at one of my favorite birding hotspots in the area, Estero Llano Grande State Park. The park is located in Weslaco and is a short drive from wherever you might be staying in the lower RGV. It offers an incredible mix of habitats and a huge list of potential birds and butterflies that you might see.

The land for the park was purchased in 2000 and after some restoration, was opened to the public in 2006. It now includes lakes, shallow wetlands, and a wooded area known as the tropical zone. Like so many restoration and conservations stories, it took the birds and other wildlife no time at all to find this amazing place! You can learn more about the park on their website here. You can also see a full list of all the reported bird species for this park on eBird by following this link.

If you would like to learn more about the birding options in this park, you can click here to see a guide to birding Estero Llano Grande on my website, NuttyBirder.com. I hope you enjoy these photos that I took while birding at the park this year!

Alligator Pond is a great place to find both species of night-herons including this Yellow-crowned Night-Heron

Plain Chachalacas can be found throughout the Rio Grande Valley.

Black Phoebe's can be found hunting for insects at the park.

Estero Llano Grande is a great place to find Ringed Kingfisher as well as this Green Kingfisher.