BIG BEND NATIONAL PARK

remote region, southwestern Texas, U.S., 250 mi (400 km) southeast of El Paso, along the Rio Grande opposite Mexico. Established in 1944, it occupies 1,252 square miles (3,243 square km). Named for a wide bend in the Rio Grande, which skirts its southern edge, it has magnificent mountain and desert scenery, deep canyons carved by the river, and spectacular geologic formations. There are more than 1,000 species of plants, including stunted oak, pion pine, yucca, strawberry cactus, and creosote bushes. Wildlife includes coyotes, pumas, kit foxes, mule deer, and roadrunners.