Wild+Life E-news
Wild+Life is a monthly e-newsletter with news about wildlife-watching activities, wildlife natural history, habitat and research projects benefiting wildlife, fun facts and upcoming events. Sign up to get Wild+Life delivered to your inbox every month.
September 2022
In This Issue
- Partner Projects: Watch California condors take their first flights in wild
- Wild Arizona: Drought and wildlife in Arizona
- Wild Arizona: Renovating wildlife waters
- Walk on the Wild Side: Raymond Wildlife Area
- Upcoming Events: Virtual speaker wildlife series
- Video of the Month: Meet Cuddles, the desert rosy boa
Partner Projects: Watch California condors take their first flights in wild
The public is invited to celebrate National Public Lands Day at 1 p.m. (Mountain Daylight Time) Sept. 24 by observing the release of captive-bred California condors into the wild at Vermilion Cliffs National Monument in northern Arizona.
The event also will be live-streamed via The Peregrine Fund’s YouTube channel beginning at 12:30 p.m. (MDT). Viewers can set a reminder to join the release, which is scheduled for 1 p.m. (MDT) — noon local time in northern Arizona (Mountain Standard Time) — but ultimately depends on when the birds choose to leave their release pen. There will be a picture-in-picture set up with a camera trained on the release pen; videos and interviews with condor biologists and conservationists who work with these massive birds will be included. Viewers also will be able to have their questions answered live by the team.
The Arizona-Utah California Condor conservation effort is a partnership of federal, state and private entities, including The Peregrine Fund, Bureau of Land Management in Utah, Bureau of Land Management’s Vermilion Cliffs National Monument, Arizona Game and Fish Department, U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, Grand Canyon and Zion national parks, Utah Division of Wildlife Resources, and Kaibab and Dixie national forests, among other supporting groups and individuals.
This is the 27th year that the partnership has marked National Public Lands Day with a public release event at Vermilion Cliffs. In 2020, due to COVID-19 restrictions, the team took the celebration online, which attracted more than 10,000 viewers.
Those who attend this year’s event will have the opportunity to talk to condor biologists, learn about the birds and their habitat, and enjoy a festival-like atmosphere while waiting for the birds to take that first leap off the cliff. Details about attending the event in person are below.
- Bring: Spotting scope or binoculars, sunscreen, water, snack, chair and layered clothing.
- Details: Informational kiosk, shade structure and restroom at the site. The event will follow the CDC guidelines in place for outdoor gatherings at the time of the event.
- Directions: Take Highway 89A from Kanab or Page to the Vermilion Cliffs (from Flagstaff, take Highway 89 to Highway 89A). Turn north onto BLM Road 1065 (a dirt road next to the small house just east of the Kaibab Plateau) and continue almost three miles.
- Map: https://on.doi.gov/3dW2f4m
The historical California Condor population declined to just 22 individuals in the 1980s when the greater California Condor Recovery Program was initiated to save the species from extinction. As of May 2022, there were 113 condors in the rugged, canyon country of northern Arizona and southern Utah. The total world population of endangered California condors numbers more than 550 individuals, with more than half of them winging across the skies of Arizona, Utah, California and Mexico.
For more information about the California condor recovery project, visit https://peregrinefund.org/projects/california-condor
Wild Arizona: Drought and wildlife in Arizona
The Arizona Game and Fish Department (AZGFD) can’t manage the state’s wildlife species without taking into account the impacts of this severe, prolonged drought. From fish to birds, reptiles to invertebrates, and mammals big and small, each faces unique, drought-related challenges and needs specialized solutions.
The Biological Drought Mitigation Team recently compiled the department’s diverse drought mitigation efforts into a single plan. AZGFD is grateful to this group of wildlife experts who plan ahead and work to reduce the effects of this ongoing drought on the state’s 800-plus native wildlife species so they can continue to thrive.
Wild Arizona: Renovating wildlife waters
More than 80 years ago, concrete or metal water catchments were created by the Arizona Game and Fish Department (AZGFD), U.S. Forest Service, and Bureau of Land Management to aid thirsty quail across the desert landscape.
At a time before serious drought occurred, these were the first water catchment systems in the state, small in scale, each holding approximately 1,000 gallons of water. With consistent rainfall that occurred back then, these wildlife waters were intended to be self-sustaining. It was quickly discovered that large wildlife populations were also using the water sources, creating the need for more available wildlife waters.
As years passed, metal tanks with a 20-year lifespan and collection aprons were added to the catchments to increase their water capacity. When the metal tanks rusted, AZGFD installed fiberglass tanks until fiberglass prices skyrocketed, causing staff to discontinue their installation. Polyethylene tanks, with a 40-year shelf life and the capacity to hold 10,000 gallons of water or more, became the contemporary and affordable solution that are used to this day. Wildlife water managers had high hopes that these tanks would be sustainable for many years to come. Then came the drought.
“Since the drought began, catchments don’t stay filled and the alternative would be devastating to all species using them. Wildlife is still challenged even though we currently maintain 3,000 water catchments,” said Joe Currie, habitat planning program manager.
Working toward sustainability and significantly reducing water hauling trips to all locations is the department’s goal for the program. While maintenance of catchments continues, habitat planning program managers intend to install large polyethylene systems to increase capacity, putting an end to water hauling. The top 10 older wildlife waters that need repair, consistent maintenance or are inoperable are a priority for complete replacement with larger sustainable tanks that will last for 40 years.
Installing man-made structures in new wilderness locations needs federal approval through an extensive application process, taking two to 13 years to receive installation clearance.
“I’m always working on applications years in advance due to National Environmental Policy Act requirements and the paperwork process. I apply for batches of wildlife water installments all at once because it saves money and time,” Currie said.
Once paperwork is federally approved to replace legacy systems, it takes funding to do so. Today the department has 70 shovel-ready catchments to install with the need to secure funding as the next step. Wildlife waters used to cost $90,000 each, but due to inflation and supply limitations, each now costs closer to $120,000.
How can you help? Learn more about the program and make a donation at SendWater.org or by texting SENDWATER to 41444.
— Anna Johnson, associate editor
Walk on the Wild Side: Raymond Wildlife Area
Raymond Wildlife Area, located about 20 miles southeast of Flagstaff, is regarded as one of the state’s premier locations for watchable wildlife opportunities in northern Arizona.
The wildlife area consists of almost 15,000 acres of desert scrub grassland and pinon-juniper woodland that provides a year-round range for pronghorn, mule deer and bison (and winter range for elk).
In addition to watchable wildlife opportunities, there is a hiking trail on the east side of the wildlife area’s headquarters. Yeager Canyon Trail offers a light to moderate two-mile hike. Camping is allowed only in designated sites, located directly west of headquarters.
The wildlife area is about a one-hour drive east of Flagstaff. To get there, take Interstate 40 to exit 225 (the “Buffalo Range” exit). Proceed south of Interstate 40, following the signs about 10 miles on a maintained gravel road to headquarters.
Upcoming Events: Virtual speaker wildlife series
The Arizona Game and Fish Department (AZGFD) has partnered with the Southwest Wildlife Conservation Center (SWCC) to host virtual wildlife lectures. In addition to partnering with SWCC, the department’s Wildlife Viewing Program will conduct its own critter-based lectures twice each month.
Coming up:
- Foxes of Arizona — 6:30 p.m. Sept. 20 (AZGFD). Description: You’ve heard sayings like “a fox can be smarter than a wolf,” or someone is being “sly, like a fox.” Few creatures have such a storied and interesting history as does the fox. Learn about Arizona’s three resident species, focusing on their biology, behavior, and natural history. Register
- Wolves and Coyotes — 6:30 p.m. Sept. 29 (SWCC). Description: Learn about the highly adaptable coyote, an extraordinarily intelligent and opportunistic species. That will be followed by a deeper look into the history of Arizona’s wolves. Find out what caused them to become extinct and how AZGFD, along with other federal and state agencies, have reintroduced the Mexican gray wolf back into our ecosystem. Register
- Wildcats of Arizona — 6:30 p.m. Oct. 13 (AZGFD). Description: Arizona is home to four different species of wildcats, including the third-largest felid in the world. Wildcats of all species are capable of taking prey much larger than themselves and seemingly impossible feats of athleticism. Feared, vilified, and worshiped, wildcats have had a varied relationship with humans from the beginning of time. From jaguars to bobcats, learn about these misunderstood predators, as well as their current ecology and biology. Register
Video of the Month: Meet Cuddles, the desert rosy boa
Check out this video starring Cuddles, a desert rosy boa that cannot be returned to the wild and now serves as an “ambassador” animal at the Arizona Game and Fish Department’s Wildlife Center.
Quick fact: The desert rosy boa is one of the slowest snakes in the world, moving at about 1 mph. There are other snakes that can crawl up to 12 mph.
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