Put the dates of November 9-13 on your calendar for the upcoming Rio Grande Valley Birding Festival. And you might want some extra days before or after to continue adding birds to your list, your memory card, or just your memory.

The Valley is always full of colorful birds, friendly people, and plenty of birders. Throw in a few tacos here and there, and you have a Fiesta. 

The festival will offer over 120 field trips for the five days, keynote speakers, afternoon presentations, a rousing trade show (called Birders Bazaar), a silent auction, a souvenir booth, and the fabulous art and photographs from local students. Come reunite with birders from across the country – seeing old friends and making new ones. Be sure to plan your trip to arrive on Tuesday to attend the Welcome Reception Tuesday evening. There will be music, noshes, and sips. 

Watch the website for more information about the event. Check out the updated 2022 schedule online for the latest information regarding field trips, photo track, keynotes, and seminars, as well as an array of special events.

Online registration is currently open, but closes at the end of the day October 28, and events are filling up fast. While everyone who participates pays a registration fee, visitors/participants have the option of purchasing a Kiskadee Pass – an all-event pass that gets you into the talks – during online registration for a savings or buying tickets separately at the door. All field trips are priced according to entry fees/vehicles used/number of guides allotted. 

There are many field trip offerings to choose from, with trips going to the traditional spots, and as always, some new trips added for return visitors. Special trips in the field with featured speakers to further enhance their presentations will be super exciting. With the coast about 30 miles away, hints of the Chihuahuan Desert only two hours to the west, and the ribbon of the Rio Grande to our south, there is a lot of habitats and a huge diversity of birds to offer.

Field trips include Laguna Madre, Arroyo Colorado, Bahia Grande, Bentsen-RGV State Park, bird banding, birding for new birders, Boca Chica, Cactus Creek, butterflies, Quinta Mazatlan, Estero Llano Grande, King Ranch, wetlands, Laguna Atascosa, Port Isabel, parrots, Port Mansfield, and many of the other local hotspots, parks, and refuges.

If you have questions, feel free to call the registration office at (209) 227-4823 or visit the website at rgvbf.org.