What's New at Rio Bosque
A Beaver is Back
After an absence of almost 6 months, a beaver is again frequenting the old river channel at Rio Bosque. It is working hard on several of the dams built in 2022, suggesting that it may be the same beaver as the previous resident. Or maybe there is more than one.
A New Mural!
On August 1-2, a group of young artists working with the painted a new mural on the east wall of the park's visitor center. It features a long-spined purplish prickly pear (Opuntia macrocentra) and joins the mural the collarborative installed on the south wall of the visitor center in March 2022.
An Invaluable Buffer
The corridor of undeveloped open space east of the park on the other side of the Riverside Canal provides an invaluable buffer for the park. El Paso Water is ensuring that corridor will be protected by dedicating it for a carbon-sequestration project, where the focus will be on expanding native plant life to capture and store carbon as part of El Paso's .
Birds of the Bosque
Rio Bosque is a wildlife refuge that has hosted 266 different bird species. Click here to learn more about noteworthy birds spotted this last month.
Water Delivery
For sustaining wetland and riparian ecosystems at Rio Bosque Wetlands Park, water is the critical resource. The park relies on three different sources:
- treated wastewater,
- groundwater, and
- irrigation water from the Rio Grande
You can learn more about these sources and current water conditions at the park here.
Rio Bosque Newsletter
The Rio Bosque newsletter keeps readers abreast of current happenings at the park. The current issue addresses two land-use proposals that would have negative impacts on the park.
Become a Friend of the Rio Bosque
The Friends of the Rio Bosque is a volunteer-support group that is active in all aspects of the park such as:
- Education Programs
- Outreach
- Ecosystem Monitoring
- Fundraising
- Faunal Monitoring
Learn more about becoming a friend here.
Community
Rio Bosque is a place where El Pasoans go to relax, reconnect with nature, and learn about our local natural resources.
The Park staff hosts:
- Community work days, where volunteers can help maintain trails, natural communities, and water flow
- Birding tours where participants can see some of the 262 bird species that have been identified in the Park
Learn more