The city encompasses two national wildlife refuges. Located in northeast Cameron County, Laguna Atascosa National Wildlife Refuge protects several endangered species, including the Texas ocelot ("Leopardus pardalis albescens"), a rare wild cat, and the Aplomado falcon ("Falco femoralis"). The refuge measures . The Lower Rio Grande Valley National Wildlife Refuge is located in northwest Cameron County and measures . The refuge contains trails that are connected to the Great Texas Coastal Birding Trail. The Boca Chica State Park and Brazos Island State Park are state parks that were transferred by separate lease agreements to the Lower Rio Grande Valley refuge center in 2007. They measure and , respectively. Laguna Madre is located on the eastern side of the county. It is a long, shallow, hypersaline lagoon, and is one of the most protected lagoon ecosystems in the United States.