“Can’t trust that day,” the song goes. But on Mondays in San Marcos, you can count on dedicated volunteers. Their early-morning cleanups protect a river teeming with life—turtles, herons, and rare Texas Wild Rice.

These familiar anurans offer two seasons’ worth of “NatureWatch” moments, from spawning choruses to tiny toads hopping into the leaf litter.

Every property tells a story. The HELM team helps landowners “read the land” and discover the potential of their acres to thrive with native plants and wildlife.

Don’t miss the Naturescapes Awards Reception at the San Marcos Activity Center on Saturday, September 27, 5:00 p.m. to 7:00 p.m..

Who hunts the monarch? Not a bird this time but a dragonfly—the aptly named Dragonhunter, fearless even of milkweed toxins.