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Clark County Wetlands Park
preserves and enhances natural and cultural resources and provides educational, recreational, and research opportunities for the public.
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Thank you for subscribing to Wetlands Park Footprints newsletter. Share with your friends and let us know what you think at wetlands@clarkcountynv.gov.
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 Stalking Twilight - Saturday, August 17
Experience Wetlands Park at night! Join us for an evening walk with a Park naturalist. Discover nighttime animals and the important role they play in our ecology. Space is limited. Advanced registration required. All ages. Fee: $5 (ages 0-2 free). Register here.
Summer brings indoor programs for all to attend! Explore your artistic side with our Studio WP Art Programs. Enjoy an evening at Wetlands Park on a Discovery Walk with a Park naturalist. Bring the whole family for Nature Tales & our new Stalking Twilight program. Learn from guest experts during an Evening Lecture Series. View our July Program Guide or our calendar. To learn more about our programs and to register, visit programs.ccwetlandspark.com.
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  Thank you to our participating partners and community for making Discovery Day on June 8 a success! Twenty-five agencies and organizations throughout the valley joined us for this indoor event where nearly 600 participants enjoyed crafts, games, and other activities including live animal encounters. Happy Ending Chocolate provided delicious ice cream tacos as a sweet and refreshing treat.
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 Best of Show, "Spring Flow" by Mason Mansung Kang, oil. Photo ©Wetlands
Unbound II
Wetlands Park in collaboration with the Office of Public Arts presented the 2nd Annual Plein Air Exhibit, Unbound II, that remained on display in the SONGallery from May 4 through June 27. Every spring, local artists are invited to paint or draw en plein air at Wetlands Park during our annual Art Day event. The work in this exhibit was completed during Art Day 2024.
Juror Linda Smith presented the following awards at the art exhibit reception on May 25.
Best of Show: "Spring Flow" by Mason Mansung Kang, oil
Honorable Mention: "View From Wetlands Trail" by Stasia Fisher, oil
Honorable Mention: "Windy Wetlands Day" by Linda Shaffer, mixed media
Honorable Mention: "Dragonfly" by Narz Dela Rosa, watercolor
Seedlings: Artists of the Future
Wetlands Park is delighted to present Seedlings: Artists of the Future, an invitational exclusively open to youth attendees of Nature Art for Kids classes from January - July. The kids will participate in the art installation as part of a lemonade reception on Sunday, July 7 at 12:30 pm. Seedlings will be on display until July 28. Sign up for July's Nature Art for Kids for an opportunity to be featured in this art exhibition located in the SONGallery.
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re/growth
Our 3rd Annual Juried Show, re/growth, is scheduled be on display in the SONGallery from August 3 to November 7. Re/growth centers on celebrating parks and other wild places as a breath of fresh air, a revitalizing change of scenery, and a catalyst for the turning of a new leaf. We invite the public to join us at the opening reception on August 10 from 5 pm to 7 pm.
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 The Nevada Watercolor Society 2024 Signature Show on display in The Nest gallery. Photo KP ©Wetlands
Wetlands Park is pleased to share that the Nevada Watercolor Society's 2024 Signature Show is now on display in The Nest gallery located in the Information Kiosk of the Nature Center. These creative art pieces are scheuled to be on display from June 2 through July 27. Select art pieces are for sale. View a list of all works. To learn more about the Nevada Watercolor Society, please visit their website. Visit The Nest gallery during our hours of operation, Tuesday-Sunday, 9 am to 3 pm.
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 Wetlands Park volunteers, Bob and Linda Durkin. Photo KP ©Wetlands
Passionate volunteers are priceless. They are the heart and voice of Wetlands Park. Bob and Linda Durkin are a powerful volunteer duo that have dedicated many years to the Park. We were able to catch up with them to find out what inspired them to become volunteers at Wetlands Park.
Tell us a little bit about yourselves and your background. Bob is from Brooklyn, New York and Linda is from Farmington, Michigan. We have two sons and one (grand daughter) dog. We moved to Las Vegas 18 years ago. We came for the sunshine and have come to love the natural beauty of Nevada.
How long have you been volunteering at Wetlands Park? We've been volunteering for over 10 years.
How did you come to volunteer at the Wetlands? We used to walk the trails before there was a visitor center. We loved the greenery and sound of the wash. The Park reminded us of Michigan.
What kinds of things do you do during a typical volunteer shift at Wetlands Park? We volunteer in the Exhibit Hall and Information Kiosk and like to help with Park events. We are also Wetlands Walkers and Wetlands Park Trailkeepers.
Why do you like volunteering at Wetlands Park? We love nature- it restores your soul. We are so fortunate to have the Wetlands. Any way we can help, we will gladly do it.
What advice would you give someone thinking about volunteering at Wetlands Park? Try volunteering. There are so many ways to volunteer. We're sure you'll find at least one role you'll love doing.
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Wetlands Park is seeking volunteers in all areas, including environmental education, outreach, visitor services, and outdoor stewardship.
Is volunteering at Wetlands Park right for you? The first step to becoming a volunteer is to attend a Get involved at Wetlands Park class. You'll learn about Wetlands Park, volunteer opportunities, and the process to become a Clark County Volunteer. Youth age 12 and up may volunteer with a guardian.
Get involved at Wetlands Park
Sign up at volunteer.ccwetlandspark.com
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 Two red racer snakes mating at Wetlands Park. Photo by Matthew Thomas.
Nature Close-up: Red Racer Snake
Summer has arrived in the Las Vegas Valley. Although we may stay indoors to keep cool, the red racer snake, a Wetlands Park resident, is rejoicing under the sun.
Red Racer is one of six subspecies of “coachwhip” snakes that are found widely across the southern half of the U.S. into Mexico. These snakes possess intriguing scales on their tails that resemble a braided whip, hence their common name, coachwhip. Their impressive body length, which can be as long as 66 inches, makes the red racer the longest snake in the Mojave Desert. The color of their scales blend from a light brown to a soft-red-hue that help this snake to camouflage well in desert habitats. The red racer is a daytime hunter and can travel up to seven miles per hour to pursue lizards and other prey including bats, birds, snakes, and amphibians. Female red racers will lay a clutch of four to twenty eggs in the early summer that will hatch in 45 to 70 days. (Click here to watch a short video of Wetlands Park staff encountering two red racers entangled in their mating performance).
Although red racers are non-venomous, they will strike if threatened and can deliver a painful bite. If you happen to spot this amazing reptile before it slithers away, be mindful of their space and do not handle them.
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 Take a Walk at Wetlands and Join the Club
Wetlands Walkers is a self-guided program to encourage the community to connect with nature by walking the Park’s trails with friends, family, or independently. Record your mileage after walking one of the Park’s many trails and earn rewards at various milestones. Reward notifications issued once a month via email. Anyone can join!
Wetlands Park Discovery Walks make it easy and fun to earn miles.
Upcoming Discovery Walks (Walker membership not required but pre-registration is)
Bat Walk: Sunday, July 21, 7:00 pm to 9:00 pm
Stalking Twilight: Saturday, August 17, 7:00 pm to 9:00 pm
As a group, walked mileage is tallied to reach a yearly goal matching the migration distance of one of the Park's visiting species. In 2024 the Walkers are recognizing the yellow-rumped warbler and have a collective goal of trekking 4,000 miles.
Can we collectively reach 4,000 miles by the end of the year? As of June, the Walkers have reached 3,644 miles. Let's keep walking, we're almost there.
To learn more about the Wetlands Walkers program, the yellow-rumped warbler, to sign up, or to log your miles, please visit our website, walkers.ccwetlandspark.com. Please visit programs.ccwetlandspark.com to sign up for a guided walk.
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 Trio of Mallards in flight along the Wetlands Loop Trailhead near Mile 3. Photo submission by Mark Damon.
Have you taken a photo in Wetlands Park that you would like to share? Want to see your Wetlands Park photo featured in an upcoming newsletter?
Submit your high-resolution photo(s) to: wetlands@clarkcountynv.gov Include your name, date, and location of the photo.
Post about it on Social media!
#CCWetlandsPark
#CallforWPphotos
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Wetlands Park Navigator mobile app is brought to you with support of Wetlands Park Friends. Download the mobile app through Apple App Store and Google Play Store.
The Navigator provides content including tours, maps, directions, and other Park information in English, Spanish, and Tagalog. Try it out to explore a new part of Wetlands Park the next time you visit us!
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