Arizona Sky Island Birds

                  working together to assess wildfire and climate change effects

 

  • Why is this study important?

    The Sky Islands of southeastern Arizona, USA, contain a unique avifauna occupying diverse habitats created by the mixing of Madrean and Cordilleran flora and fauna. The avifauna within these mountains includes many Neotropical migratory bird species whose northern breeding range extends to these mountains, as well as many species typical of Western North American montane forests. Many species are of conservation concern and are priority bird species. Within the last two decades, this region has been under increased stress associated with ongoing droughts and wildfires. These fires, which likely are associated with climate change and profoundly impact native wildlife and their habitat, have impacted nearly every mountain range in the region. The largest wildfire was the 2011 Horseshoe Two fire, which burned 90,307 ha of the Chiricahua Mountains.  We know little about the effects of fire on birds in this region and further, few studies even describe habitat requirements of these birds, which is necessary for predictive models in response to climate change.

  • What have we done?

    RMRS scientists studied distribution, abundance, and habitat associations of forest birds across montane forest and woodland types in the Santa Rita, Santa Catalina, Huachuca, Chiricahua, and Pinaleño Mountains from 1991 to 1995. This project sampled over 300 bird count stations and more than 1,200 forest structure/habitat plots, classified into forest cover types. Since then more than 80% of the bird count stations and vegetation plots were burned by wildfires. The initial RMRS project provides a unique and valuable opportunity to assess climate change and wildfire effects on bird habitats and populations, as well as serve as a baseline for future long-term monitoring.

  • What will we do?

    Our efforts will use empirical avian habitat and population data for predictive climate change models for evaluating effects on birds. We will resample all bird-count stations and vegetation plots using the same protocols as our previous study. We will quantify changes to habitat structure and composition and bird communities that occurred over the 20-year period.

  • What can you do?

    RMRS scientists initiated a pilot study in 2012 in the Chiricahua Mountains to re-sample transects in coordination with Friends of Cave Creek Canyon, a Non-Governmental Organization out of Portal, Arizona. Based on this pilot study, we established new bird monitoring transects near trails and roads near the initial RMRS transects in 2013. This citizen science model could be used within all Sky Island mountain ranges for long-term sustainable monitoring of avian communities. You can become part of a long-term monitoring effort!

     

    Contact us to see how to join.

     

    Summary of Past Citizen Science Data