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Abstract
In 2001 Sky Island Alliance developed a citizen science program that uses track and sign identification and count surveys to monitor potential wildlife corridors throughout southeastern Arizona and southwestern New Mexico. The goal of the Wildlife Linkages Program is to protect and advocate for an interconnected landscape where wildlife, based on their ecological needs, can move easily between core habitats, the Sky Island mountain ranges. Currently, we train and engage volunteers in the monitoring of fifty 1.5-mile long transects within seven priority linkage areas; the majority of these study areas are located on public lands. To date we have conducted over 1,000 track count surveys and documented over 4,100 records for more than 40 different animal species in the region. Sky Island Alliance has successfully applied the resulting species presence data to land-use policy and permanent land conservation, incorporating wildlife data and corridor priorities into the Sonoran Desert Conservation Plan, the Santa Cruz County Comprehensive Plan, the Pima County Wildlife Connectivity Assessment, and the Arizona Wildlife Linkages Assessment.
Parent Publication
Keywords
Madrean Archipelago,
Sky Islands,
southwestern United States,
northern Mexico,
natural environment,
fauna,
flora,
research,
management,
biodiversity,
climate change
Citation
Lamberton-Moreno, Jessica A.; Avila-Villegas, Sergio. 2013. Decade of wildlife tracking in the Sky Islands. In: Gottfried, Gerald J.; Ffolliott, Peter F.; Gebow, Brooke S.; Eskew, Lane G.; Collins, Loa C. Merging science and management in a rapidly changing world: Biodiversity and management of the Madrean Archipelago III and 7th Conference on Research and Resource Management in the Southwestern Deserts; 2012 May 1-5; Tucson, AZ. Proceedings. RMRS-P-67. Fort Collins, CO: U.S. Department of Agriculture, Forest Service, Rocky Mountain Research Station. p. 256-262.
