List of nature centers in Texas
This is a list of nature centers and environmental education centers in the state of Texas.
To use the sortable tables: click on the icons at the top of each column to sort that column in alphabetical order; click again for reverse alphabetical order.
Name | Location | County | Region | Summary |
---|---|---|---|---|
Acton Nature Center of Hood County | Granbury | Hood | North Texas | website, 74 acres with over 5 miles of trails |
Armand Bayou Nature Center | Houston | Harris | Texas Coastal Bend | 2,500-acre urban preserve, includes a boardwalk through forest and marshes, live animal displays, bison and prairie platforms and butterfly gardens |
Austin Nature & Science Center | Austin | Travis | Texas Hill Country | website, operated by the City in 351-acre Zilker Park, includes hands-on educational exhibits, live native animals, an outdoor paleontology exhibit |
Bay Education Center | Rockport | Aransas | Texas Coastal Bend | Operated by the University of Texas at Austin Marine Science Institute, ecosystem of the Mission-Aransas National Estuarine Research Reserve |
Baytown Nature Center | Baytown | Harris | Texas Coastal Bend | Operated by the City, 450-acre recreation area and wildlife sanctuary |
Bear Springs Blossom Nature Center | Pipe Creek | Bandera | Texas Hill Country | website, 125 acres |
Bentsen-Rio Grande Valley State Park | Mission | Hidalgo | Texas Coastal Bend | 764 acres, headquarters of the World Birding Center, exhibit hall, observation tower, bird blinds, guided walks |
Bob Jones Nature Center | Southlake | Denton | North Texas | website, 758 acres, operated by the City |
Brazos Bend State Park | Needville | Fort Bend | Texas Gulf Coast | 4,897 acres, nature center operated by the state and Brazos Bend State Park Volunteer Organization[1] |
Canyon of the Eagles Lodge and Nature Park | Burnet | Burnet | Central Texas | website, resort and nature park, located on 940 acres of Lower Colorado River Authority land, includes the Eagle Eye Observatory, nature programs |
Cattail Marsh | Beaumont | Jefferson | Texas Coastal Bend | 900 acres, located at Tyrrell Park, operated by the city. The area is a constructed wetland with diked cells of shallow water and mud flats. It is located along Hillebrandt Bayou[2][3][4] |
Cedar Ridge Preserve | Dallas | Dallas | North Texas | website, formerly Dallas Nature Center, 600 acres, operated by Audubon Dallas, about 9 miles of trails, butterfly gardens, live mammals, birds, insects and reptiles |
Chihuahuan Desert Nature Center and Botanical Gardens | Fort Davis | Jeff Davis | Trans-Pecos | 507 acres features 20-acre botanical garden, greenhouse with about 200 species of Chihuahuan Desert cacti |
Cibolo Nature Center | Boerne | Kendall | Texas Hill Country | website, 100 acres |
Dogwood Canyon Audubon Center | Cedar Hill | Dallas | North Texas | website, 205 acres |
East Texas Ecological Education Center | Tyler | Smith | Northeast Texas | website, 82 acres, visitor's center, indoor and outdoor classrooms, wetlands, grasslands and ponds |
Eaton Hill Nature Center | Sonora | Sutton | Texas Hill Country | website, 37 acres |
Edinburg Scenic Wetlands | Edinburg | Hidalgo | Texas Coastal Bend | website, 40 acres, part of the World Birding Center, educational exhibits on fish and aquatic life, computer programs about birds and butterflies, telescopes and interpretive audio station |
Edith L. Moore Nature Sanctuary | Houston | Harris | Texas Coastal Bend | Operated by Houston Audubon, 17 acres along Rummel Creek |
Fort Worth Nature Center and Refuge | Fort Worth | Tarrant | North Texas | website, 3,621 acres of forest, wetlands and prairie, operated by the City |
Fredericksburg Nature Center | Fredericksburg | Gillespie | Texas Hill Country | website, 10 acres, located in Lady Bird Johnson Park |
Gulf Coast Bird Observatory | Lake Jackson | Brazoria | Texas Coastal Bend | website, interpretive center and research center for public education and volunteer-based avian monitoring programs |
Hana & Arthur Ginzbarg Nature Discovery Center | Bellaire | Harris | Texas Coastal Bend | website, located in 4-acre Russ Pitman Park |
Heard Natural Science Museum and Wildlife Sanctuary | McKinney | Collin | North Texas | Exhibits on Texas' venomous snakes, geology, seashells and marine life, North Texas ecosystems, 289-acre wildlife sanctuary with over 6 miles of trails |
Helotes Creek Nature Center | Helotes | Bexar | Central Texas | website |
Houston Arboretum and Nature Center | Houston | Harris | Texas Coastal Bend | 155 acres with over 5 miles of trails |
Jesse H. Jones Park & Nature Center | Humble | Harris | Texas Coastal Bend | website, operated by the County, 312 acres |
Kleb Woods Nature Center | Tomball | Harris | Texas Coastal Bend | website, 134 acres |
Lamar Bruni Vergara Environmental Science Center | Laredo | Webb | Texas Coastal Bend | website, part of Laredo Community College, contains representations of the Rio Grande ecosystem and live specimens of plant and animal life |
Lewisville Lake Environmental Learning Area | Lewisville | Denton | North Texas | website, operated by the University of North Texas, Texas A&M University, the City of Lewisville, and the Lewisville Independent School District, over 2000 acres with over 7 miles of trails |
Matagorda County Birding Nature Center | Bay City | Matagorda | Texas Coastal Bend | website, 34 acres |
McKinney Roughs Nature Park | Bastrop | Bastrop | Central Texas | website, 1,100 acres, operated by the Lower Colorado River Authority, includes the Mark Rose Natural Science Center |
Meadows Center for Water and the Environment | San Marcos | Hays | Texas Hill Country | Part of Texas State University, features glass-bottomed boat tours of the San Marcos Springs, a discovery hall and aquarium exhibit; formerly the Aquarena Center |
Miller Springs Nature Center | Lake Belton | Bell | Texas Hill Country | website, A 260-acre scenic natural area located between the Leon River and nearby 40 foot high bluffs with 10.7 miles of hike and bike trails through prairie, wetlands and forests. |
Mitchell Lake Audubon Center | San Antonio | Bexar | Central Texas | website, 1,200 acres including the 600-acre Mitchell Lake |
Rio Bravo Nature Center | Eagle Pass | Maverick | West Texas | website, environment of the Rio Grande |
River Bend Nature Center (Texas) | Wichita Falls | Wichita | North Texas | website, 18 acres |
River Legacy | Arlington | Tarrant | North Texas | website, adjacent 1,300-acre River Legacy Parks |
Riverside Nature Center | Kerrville | Kerr | Texas Hill Country | 9 acres, arboretum with wildlife and native plant sanctuary, located on the Guadalupe River |
Sabal Palm Sanctuary | Brownsville | Cameron | Texas Coastal Bend | Owned by the National Audubon Society and operated by the Gorgas Science Foundation, 557 acres, guided tours of the late 19th-century plantation house |
San Angelo Nature Center | San Angelo | Tom Green | Edwards Plateau | website, operated by the City, collection of native animals |
San Marcos Nature Center | San Marcos | Hays | Texas Hill Country | website, operated by the City in the 6-acre Crook Park, focus is the San Marcos River watershed ecosystem |
Sea Center Texas | Lake Jackson | Brazoria | Texas Coastal Bend | website, marine aquarium, fish hatchery and nature center operated by Texas Parks and Wildlife Department |
Shangri La Botanical Gardens and Nature Center | Orange | Orange | Texas Coastal Bend | 252 acres, includes themed gardens, children's garden, wetlands demonstration garden, Victorian greenhouse, exhibit hall |
Sibley Nature Center | Midland | Midland | West Texas | website, located in the 49-acre Hogan Park |
Sims Bayou Urban Nature Center | Houston | Harris | Texas Coastal Bend | website, operated by Houston Audubon, 1.1 acres, includes a log cabin, barn, gazebo, boat dock and seasonal wetland trails, open by appointment |
South Padre Island Birding and Nature Center | South Padre Island | Cameron | Texas Coastal Bend | website, 50 acres of dune meadows, salt marsh and intertidal flats, part of the World Birding Center |
South Padre Island Dolphin Research and Sea Life Nature Center | South Padre Island | Cameron | Texas Coastal Bend | website, focus in bottlenose dolphins and their marine environment |
South Texas Botanical Gardens & Nature Center | Corpus Christi | Nueces | Texas Coastal Bend | 180 acres, includes a butterfly house and bromeliad conservatory |
Spring Creek Greenway Nature Center | Spring | Montgomery | East Texas | website, adjacent to the 25-acre Peckinpaugh Preserve |
Texas Freshwater Fisheries Center | Athens | Henderson | East Texas | website, includes a production fish hatchery, aquaria and exhibits, Texas Freshwater Fishing Hall of Fame, Richard M. Hart and Johnny Morris Conservation Center |
Trinity River Audubon Center | Dallas | Dallas | North Texas | 120 acres with 5 miles of trails |
Twelve Hills Nature Center | Dallas | Dallas | North Texas | website, urban preserve and outdoor classroom |
Valley Nature Center | Weslaco | Hidalgo | Texas Coastal Bend | 6 acres, focus on getting children outdoors, environment of the lower Rio Grande Valley |
Westcave Outdoor Discovery Center | Round Mountain | Travis | Texas Hill Country | website, 75 acres, exhibits on area geology, water, weather, and energy and their connection to the Preserve's plants and animals |
Wildcat Bluff Nature Center | Amarillo | Potter | Texas Panhandle | website, over 600 acres |
Wild Basin Wilderness Preserve | Austin | Travis | Texas Hill Country | 227 acres with an environmental education center, operated by St. Edward's University, open to the public for trail hiking and events |
References
- ↑ "Nature Center". Brazos Bend State Park Volunteer Organization. Retrieved 18 October 2014.
- ↑ "Cattail Marsh". Golden Triangle Audubon. Retrieved October 24, 2015.
- ↑ Gerald E. McCleod (February 13, 2015). "Day Trips: Cattail Marsh, Beaumont". The Austin Chronicle. Retrieved October 24, 2015.
- ↑ Tammy McKinley (October 15, 2010). "Waste Water Renews Marsh". Hearst Newspapers II, LLC. Retrieved October 24, 2015.
External links
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