[Illustration: Wild turkey, Rio Grande Valley] [Illustration: Mother coyote feeds her young (Kalmbach Photo)] [Illustration: Whooping Crane—fast becoming extinct] [Illustration: Waterfowl are plentiful off Padre] [Illustration: Bullfight] [Illustration: Charro Days mean music] [Illustration: Charro Days street scene] [Illustration: Everybody gets in on Charro Days] [Illustration: Corpus Christi skyline from the waterfront] [Illustration: Queen Isabella Causeway] [Illustration: Padre Island waters have big fish, the beaches beauty] [Illustration: Hidalgo bridge to Reynosa (Struby Photo)] [Illustration: Ships at dock, Port Brownsville] [Illustration: Mr. Padre Island himself: John L. Tompkins] [Illustration: Treasure during Buccaneer Days] [Illustration: (uncaptioned)] _Playfolk and Sportsmen_ On Padre Island, and in the surrounding Rio Grande Valley, are many and varied forms of recreation. Between Padre and the Texas coast lie the teeming waters of the famous Laguna Madre, where many varieties of fish await to challenge the fisherman. Whether he prefers fishing in the bay, from the jetties, surf fishing or deep sea fishing, this area provides many thrilling catches for the sportsman. Boats may be chartered for personal use or an individual may join one of the party-boats that make daily runs. Twenty miles out of Port Isabel, for instance, the red snapper catch is so well assured that many skippers don’t charge if their guests fail to return with some. Laguna Madre is a natural spawning ground for many varieties of fish, such as trout, flounder, redfish, croaker, whiting, sheephead, snook, drum, ladyfish, and the jackcravelle, who loves to break rods, tear up reels and take lures away. Already two hundred and seventy-two varieties of salt water fish have been pulled from the waters around Padre, and more than eight hundred varieties are believed to exist within convenient boating distance. Thirty-eight varieties of game fish alone are contained in the surrounding waters. For the fisherman who prefers a lure, advice from Padre Island is, “Fish, like men, are attracted by an extra bit of finery; those little frills that transform the ordinary into a ravishing dish so delectable that they can’t be ignored. Flirt with the fish; doll up your hook. Sheath a common hook in the latest styles of feather, set it off with just the right touch of glittering metal, and often the fish just can’t resist it. A pork rind, one of the most widely used baits, can be added to a spoon with devastating effect. It improves the action of the wobbling spoon and will often produce strikes when nothing seems to do the trick.”