If you have never been to Rio Bosque Wetlands Park in the Lower Valley of east El Paso you are in for a pleasant experience especially during the cooler months of winter when the refuge is not only home to resident birds like Burrowing Owls and Harris Hawks, but also winter and migrant birds like those reported the week of November 11-17 including a number of North American ducks like Redheads and Buffleheads.   This time of year you may also see small mammals like cottontails, jackrabbits, rock squirrels and hispid cottonrats.   

Earlier this year we featured a story about John Sproul who is the manager of the refuge and coordinates volunteer activities like the removal of invasive tumbleweeds this last weekend.   John Sproul periodically sends out bird reports and all you need to do to get on his email list is write him at jsproul@utep.edu.   For more information on the park itself you can check out the Rio Bosque Wetlands Park website.

Because the park is not on the way to shopping centers or most places people in El Paso drive to, chances are pretty good that you will not find many people on the trails making most visits very peaceful.   At this time of year you will not only see waterfowl along the waterways closest to the border wall, but also resident birds like Verdin and Pyrrhuloxia and migrants like Great Egrets.  

Rick LoBello, Education Curator

Photos by Ad Konings