Virtual. Regpstration coming soon. 

Bill Gette has led many travel programs to West Texas, the area along the Rio Grande River from El Paso to Big Bend National Park. Much of this area is Chihuanhuan Desert. Annually, the region receives only 9.3 inches of rain (compared to 50 inches in Massachusetts). Most people think of deserts as barren landscapes with little wildlife. In fact, deserts are teeming with life, and the Chihunhuan Desert is considered one of the most biologically diverse. During his PowerPoint presentation, Bill will take you on a tour of West Texas with stops at an urban landscape in El Paso, Lake Balmorhea, the Davis Mountains, and Big Bend National Park. In each of these locations, Bill will show you the impact that available water and elevation have on the diversity of life.

At Rio Bosque Wetlands Park in El Paso, Bill will show you the many species of water birds that flock to the wetlands created by outflow from a wastewater treatment facility. Black-necked Stilts, American Avocets, Wilson’s Phalaropes, Northern Shovelers, and Cinnamon Teal are commonly seen there. At Lake Balmorhea, Bill will show you not only water birds but also species typical of the surrounding desert scrub, including Black-tailed Jackrabbit, Desert Cottontail, and Pyrrhuloxia. In the “sky islands” of the Davis Mountains, he will show you how increases in elevation transform desert scrub into grasslands and mixed forests of conifers and hardwoods. Bill will also take you on a virtual hike through the caldera of an extinct volcano in Big Bend National Park and high into the Chisos Mountains.

Brought to you in collaboration with Maynard Council on Aging.