Reports and Journal Articles

The Municipality of Huatabampo is located along the coast of the Gulf of California in southern Sonora, Mexico. The vegetation is coastal thornscrub, the more xeric version of tropical deciduous forest. In 1890, Edward Palmer collected plants at… See more

This magnificent flora of the Sonoran Desert’s southern edge represents decades of meticulous work and the genius of Richard Felger (1934–2020) and his colleagues at their best. It is many things at once. A project of passion that was sparked by a… See more

Imagine that you are driving or biking into any one of a dozen small rural communities on either side of the US/Mexico border in the year 2040. You notice a beautiful building that appears as though it were made of locally sourced materials,… See more

The Mammals of Rancho El Aribabi fills an important gap in the detailed knowledge of the diversity and abundance of the mammals in the Sky Island region of the U.S. and Mexico borderlands. The multiyear camera trapping effort captures a thorough… See more

In island systems, nitrogen-rich seabird guano is a marine subsidy that can shape terrestrial plant communities. In zones of nutrient upwelling such as the Gulf of California, copious seabird guano is commonplace on bird islands. Several bird… See more

Since 1979, observations of monarch butter y (Danaus plexippus L.) in Sonora, Mexico have been low. There are 10 records of monarchs breeding in Sonora on Asclepias curassavica, A. lemmonii, A. linaria, and A. subulata (Apocynaceae). In July-August… See more

The New World tropics reaches its northern limit in Sonora, not as often stated at the Tropic of Cancer (23.37°N) just north of Mazatlán, Sinaloa. The northernmost tropical deciduous forest (TDF) is in Sonora (28.6˚N), 680 kilometers north-northwest… See more

The relationship between people and wildfire has always been paradoxical: fire is an essential ecological process and management tool, but can also be detrimental to life and property. Consequently, fire regimes have been modified throughout history… See more

We used data from eight years of camera trapping at Rancho El Aribabi, a cattle ranch and conservation property in northern Sonora, Mexico, to examine the ecology of the northern-most known breeding population of ocelots (Leopardus pardalis).… See more

RESUMEN Vivimos en el Antropoceno. La superficie completa de la tierra ha sido impactada por la actividad humana y nuestro uso del suelo. En este con- texto, la mayoría de los pastizales en zonas áridas y semiáridas tienen procesos de… See more

Sonora has a rich natural diversity, including reptiles and amphibians. Sonora’s location on the United States-Mexico border creates some unique conservation challenges for its wildlife. We compiled a list of the amphibian and reptile species… See more

The Sierra Madre Occidental (SMO) extends from northeastern Sonora and northwestern Chihuahua south through western Mexico to the Transverse Volcanic Axis in the state of Guanajuato, which forms a montane bridge to the Sierra Madre del Sur to the… See more

The flora of the lower Río Bavispe Valley from the Huásabas area south to the Río Áros at 430 to 1,510 m. elevations (1,410 to 4,954 ft.) was studied from 1995 to 2016. A total of 401 plant taxa in 74 families and 274 genera were recorded in the… See more

Aim: To evaluate changes in breeding bird communities and assess implications for conservation. Location: Madrean Sky Islands and northern Sierra Madre Occidental, Mexico. Methods: I compared observations from recent fieldwork (2009–2012) with an… See more

To address obligations linked to the recently approved Pima County Multi-species Conservation Plan, I identified and estimated the quality of habitat for the Cactus Ferruginous Pygmy-Owl (Glaucidium brasilianum cactorum; hereafter “pygmy-owls”) and… See more

Mexico is recognized globally as a mega-diversity country. The state of Sonora has very diverse fauna, fora, and vegetation. The diversity of horned lizards in the genus Phrynosoma (Phrynosomatidae) in the state of Sonora is a reflection of the… See more

In the Shadow of the Wall, a two-part Defenders of Wildlife report, explores these and other conservation consequences of extending the wall along the U.S.-Mexico border in detail. Part I: Wildlife, Habitat and Collaborative Conservation at Risk… See more

The Rock Horned Lizard (Camaleón de Piedra, in Spanish), Phrynosoma ditmarsi, is a poorly known Mexican endemic species with a distribution restricted to the state of Sonora. The International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN) has categorized… See more

Cañón del Nacapule cuts into the southeastern flank of the Sierra El Aguaje, a rugged volcanic range about 20 kilometers northwest of Guaymas. Nacapule is included in the Sonoran segment of the Gulf Coast subdivision of the Sonoran Desert. The bi-… See more

In this paper, we describe and present the results of our effort to establish a spatial delineation of the Mogollon Highlands region—an ecologically fascinating North American transition zone of continental importance. is dramatic landscape of… See more

Boundary Surveys The Treaty of Guadalupe Hidalgo in 1848 at the end of the United States-Mexico War established the boundary between the two nations, and expanded the United States to the Pacific Ocean. In 1853, the Gadsen Purchase added the area… See more

Climatic flux together with anthropogenic changes in land use and land cover pose major threats to wildlife, but our understanding of their combined impacts is limited. In arid southwestern North America, ferruginous pygmy-owls (Glaucidium… See more

The Municipio de Yécora is in the Tropical Madrean zone of the Sierra Madre Occidental in eastern Sonora, Mexico. The flora is very diverse with 1777 taxa in 150 families and 687 genera. The most important families and genera are Asteraceae (14.5%… See more

Natural landscapes have distinctive personalities. Each is the product of the interplay of geology, climate, vegetation, time, and often, human activities. The landscapes that form the Santa Catalina Mountains of southeastern Arizona give that range… See more