OCTOBER 28, 2026 www.wintertexantimes.com 4 WINTER TEXAN TIMES BUTTERFLY From pg. 1 tors on Saturday, November 7 and Sunday November 8, from 9 a.m. to 2 p.m. The day will feature a native plant sale where the more you buy, the more you get. There will be arts and crafts, you can meet their resident reptiles, make seed bombs, participate in a Monarch migration game, explore the hackberry trail, and there will be plenty of birds and butterflies to be found. The event is held at this time each year because it is peak butterfly season. You can see as many as 60 species in one day during migration – and sometimes catch some rarities. Attendees of this event typically hail from at least half of the 50 states and multiple countries. They converge at the National Butterfly Center in the Rio Grande Valley to experience one of the most biologically diverse areas in North America. Go see for yourself why this region has earned worldwide recognition for its outstanding butterfly and birding spots, inviting thousands of visitors each year to discover its remarkable assortment of preserves, refuges, nature parks, trails, and more. Whether you are an accomplished naturalist or an enthusiastic beginner, the Texas Butterfly Festival is the place to be. Here, many eyes make for exciting discoveries, including US records, super rarities, subtropical strays, seldom-seen species, ‘life’ and chase butterfliers that may only be found in the Lower Rio Grande Valley, where the river winds its way toward the Laguna Madre at the Gulf of Mexico. This unique region encompasses no fewer than 11 different types of habitats, from tidal wetlands to riparian forest, brushland scrub to prairie savanna, and is home to more than 1,200 different species of plants, 500 species of birds, 200 vertebrate species, roughly 300 species of butterflies, and over 90 species of dragonflies. Nearly 150 species of North American butterflies can be seen only in the Lower Rio Grande Valley (LRGV), or by traveling to Mexico. More than 300 species of butterflies may be found in the LRGV, and more than 240 species have been seen at the National Butterfly Center, including rarities and US records. More information can be found at the website www.texasbutterflyfestival.com. The National Butterfly Cetner is located at 3333 Butterfly Park Dr. Or you can call (956) 5835400. The National Butterfly Center is part of the National American Butterfly Association. You can find out more at naba.org. If you can’t make it to community day, the center has plenty of opportunities for volunteering throughout the year as well as other events, trails, classes, and a gift shop. tral repertoire: Aaron Copland, Camille Saint-Saëns, and George Gershwin. The evening will also feature guest pianist Asiya Korepanova as soloist. The concert opens with Copland’s Fanfare for the Common Man, a powerful brass and percussion work originally composed in 1942. Known for its bold, ceremonial character, the piece offers a fitting opening to the orchestra’s anniversary season. Guest pianist Asiya Korepanova will then join the VSO for SaintSaëns’ Piano Concerto No. 2 in G Minor, Op. 22. The concerto is celebrated for its technical demands and contrasting musical styles, moving from a dramatic opening to an energetic finale. The evening concludes with Gershwin’s Porgy and Bess: Symphonic Picture, an orchestral arrangement of music from the composer’s landmark opera. Blending classical traditions with elements of jazz, blues, and American popular music, the work brings the concert to a colorful close. Music of the Greats is the first of five Masterworks concerts planned for the VSO’s 75th Anniversary Season. The season continues with A Touch of Frost on December 4; ¡Cumbanchera Sinfónica! on February 5, 2027; Voices of Courage on March 12, 2027; and Spartacus Adventurous on April 16, 2027. As the VSO marks this historic milestone, the orchestra invites audiences across the Rio Grande Valley to celebrate its musical legacy and the beginning of a new chapter. Tickets are available only through Ticketmaster. For more information about this concert, their season, and how to purchase tickets, visit their website at www.valleysymphony. org/. VSO From pg. 1 RAMBLINGS From pg. 1 or dangling earring on the other ear along with teasing up my hair, side ponytails, and spray on colored hairspray. Some families today really go all out as I have seen at church and community Trunk or Treats. Families will do huge, themed costumes of comic book or cartoon characters. I have seen book characters such as Harry Potter or Lord of the Rings. Then there are video game characters as well. It’s no longer all about being spooky, but more about having fun, showing some personality, and sharing your interests with others with what some kids choose to dress as today. Then, there are the home decorations that have changed up quite a bit. I don’t remember seeing a whole lot of homes decorated for Halloween when I was younger. But today, you can’t go through a neighborhood without seeing some sort of Halloween décor – gravestones, skeletons, spiders, etc. I think it’s all fun, but I can’t imagine storing all of those things. Christmas is enough for me. I have some small Halloween decorations I might put out, but I love my fall décor that usually comes out in mid-October and stays out until just after Thanksgiving when we start putting our Christmas stuff out. How do you celebrate Halloween? What do you enjoy about Halloween? Do you have fun and decorate or dress up for your park’s Halloween party? If you do, I want to see some photos. We would love to be able to include some of your holiday photos in our next edition of the Winter Texan Times. Just send your items to news@wintertexantimes.com. Malachite at National Butterfly Center. (Courtesy photo)
RkJQdWJsaXNoZXIy MTczOTk5Mg==