(Mission, TX) – The National Butterfly Center’s team, Rock, Paper, Scissortails!, won the Big Sit Competition for the Lower Coast region in this year’s Great Texas Birding Classic with a total of 101 species, beating out tallies from teams representing world-renowned attractions, including the South Padre Island Birding and Nature Center, and Estero Llano Grande State Park and World Birding Center.

In the Big Sit, teams of birders each select a 50’ circle from which to bird by sight and by ear. They do so for up to a 24-hour period between the dates of April 15 and May 15. Then they submit their checklist to Texas Parks & Wildlife Department for review, and the team with the highest species count within each geographical region wins.

Luciano Guerra, Outreach & Education Coordinator for the National Butterfly Center, is the organizer and captain for the center’s team. Responsible for recruiting accomplished birders, selecting, preparing and supplying the circle site, and scheduling the day for the Big Sit, he says experience pays, when competing for this coveted title.

“This is the eighth year we’ve entered the Big Sit, but our first win!” explains Guerra, “I chalk it up to the fact that we’re continuously improving the location and condition of our count circle. I won’t give away any secrets, but if you want to win it helps to have fresh eyes and good ears on your team, and lots of refreshments for the birds and your teammates!”

It takes several weeks to gear up for this “big day” in birding, so the entire staff contributes to the success of the National Butterfly Center’s team. They all share in this success, with the 18 team members. In fact, two more employees actually served on the team, this year, even though the first shift began at 5 a.m. on May 1, before the crack of dawn, with the last shift clocking out close to 9 p.m. Throughout the day, team members braved swarms of mosquitoes, wind and sunburn, and frequent inquiries from visitors wondering what in the world they were up to.

“If the annual Texas Butterfly Festival is our ‘Super Bowl’,” states Marianna Trevino Wright, executive director of the center, “The Big Sit is our all-star game. Although the species are different, it’s our chance to show we are truly exceptional in the Rio Grande Valley—a place known for being the best of the best in the U.S.A. for butterfliers and birders.

“While other ‘nature centers’ aim to spend tens of millions of taxpayer dollars on creating artificial attractions,” adds Wright, “The National Butterfly Center let’s Nature be the star. Moreover, we do it on a shoestring budget because it’s about the plants, not the buildings.”

With more than 240 species of butterflies and almost 300 species of birds documented at the center, it has earned its status as a world-renowned destination for naturalists and nature tourists, alike, who journey to Mission, Texas, for a special ‘safari’ experience on the banks of the Rio Grande River.

To learn more about the National Butterfly Center, and how you can join us, visit www.nationalbutterflycenter.org. Your annual membership or charitable gift impacts the beauty of our community and helps preserve the biologically diverse, natural treasures of deep South Texas.

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The National Butterfly Center is committed to ‘Growing Connections’ between people, plants, and the winged wonders that pollinate and propagate all that grows around us. We do this through educational and environmental initiatives that cultivate meaningful understanding of the processes that create sustainable ecosystems. The Center is open to the public, for visitors and members, seven days/week.