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Red Rock State Park
Red Rock State Park is a state park of Arizona, United States, featuring a red sandstone canyon outside the city of Sedona, Arizona, Sedona. The main mission of this day-use park is the preservation of the riparian habitat along Oak Creek. Red Rock State Park serves as an environmental education facility for the public and for school or private groups, and provides limited passive recreational opportunities. Natural history Red Rock State Park includes a stretch of Oak Creek, which upstream flows through the famous Oak Creek Canyon in Coconino National Forest. The rich riparian zone along the creek supports a diverse array of species. Trees in this habitat include Populus fremontii, Fremont cottonwood, Platanus wrightii, Arizona sycamore, Fraxinus velutina, velvet ash, and Alnus oblongifolia, Arizona alder. Oak Creek supports rare native fish, several frog species, and the threatened species, threatened Sonora mud turtle. Away from the creek the dominant trees are Prosopis ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Mogollon Rim
The Mogollon Rim ( or or ) is a topographical and geological feature cutting across the northern half of the U.S. state of Arizona. It extends approximately , starting in northern Yavapai County and running eastward, ending near the border with New Mexico.The Mogollon Rim is not to be confused with the Mogollon Mountains in New Mexico located somewhat east of the eastern end of the Rim. The official estimate of the eastern end is near Show Low, AZ, Show Low, although some sources extend it farther east. See It forms the southern edge of the Colorado Plateau in Arizona. Description The Rim is an escarpment defining the southwestern edge of the Colorado Plateau. Its central and most spectacular portions are characterized by high cliffs of limestone and sandstone, namely the Kaibab Limestone and Coconino Sandstone cliffs. The escarpment was created by erosion and geologic fault, faulting, cutting dramatic canyons into it, including Fossil Creek Canyon and Pine Canyon. The na ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Prosopis Velutina
''Prosopis velutina'', commonly known as velvet mesquite, is a small to medium-sized tree. It is a legume adapted to a dry, desert climate. Though considered to be a noxious weed in states outside its natural range, it plays a vital role in the ecology of the Sonoran Desert. Distribution The velvet mesquite is native to the Sonoran, Mojave, and Chihuahuan Deserts. It grows at elevations below 4,000 to 5,000 feet in desert grasslands and near washes. The main distribution is in central and southern Arizona and in adjacent Sonora, Mexico. Near waterways, mesquites can form deciduous woodlands called bosques. Description Velvet mesquite can grow to 30–50 ft (9–15 m) tall or more. It grows larger in areas with ample water, smaller in open, dry grasslands. The youngest branches may be green and photosynthetic. Young bark is reddish-brown and smooth. As it matures, it becomes a dark, dusty gray or brown and takes on a shredded texture. Yellow thorns up to one inch ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Introduced Species
An introduced species, alien species, exotic species, adventive species, immigrant species, foreign species, non-indigenous species, or non-native species is a species living outside its native distributional range, but which has arrived there by human activity, directly or indirectly, and either deliberately or accidentally. Non-native species can have various effects on the local ecosystem. Introduced species that become established and spread beyond the place of introduction are considered naturalized. The process of human-caused introduction is distinguished from biological colonization, in which species spread to new areas through "natural" (non-human) means such as storms and rafting. The Latin expression neobiota captures the characteristic that these species are ''new'' biota to their environment in terms of established biological network (e.g. food web) relationships. Neobiota can further be divided into neozoa (also: neozoons, sing. neozoon, i.e. animals) and neophyt ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
North American River Otter
The North American river otter (''Lontra canadensis''), also known as the northern river otter and river otter, is a semiaquatic mammal that endemism, only lives on the North American continent, along its waterways and coasts. An adult North American river otter can weigh between . The river otter is protected and insulated by a thick, water-repellent coat of fur. The North American river otter, a member of the subfamily Lutrinae in the weasel family (Mustelidae), is equally versatile in the water and on land. It establishes a burrow close to the water's edge in river, lake, swamp, coastal shoreline, tidal flat, or estuary ecosystems. The den typically has many tunnel openings, one of which generally allows the otter to enter and exit the body of water. Female North American river otters give birth in these burrows, producing litters of one to six young. North American river otters, like most predators, prey upon the most readily accessible species. Fish is a favored food among t ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Collared Peccary
The collared peccary (''Dicotyles tajacu'') is a species of artiodactyl (even-toed) mammal in the family Tayassuidae found in North, Central, and South America. It is the only member of the genus ''Dicotyles''. They are commonly referred to as ''javelina, saíno'', or ''báquiro'', although these terms are also used to describe other species in the family. The species is also known as the musk hog. In Trinidad, it is colloquially known as ''quenk''. Taxonomy Although somewhat related to true Old World pigs, and frequently referred to as a pig, this species and the other peccaries are no longer classified in the pig family, Suidae. Although formerly classified in the genus ''Pecari'', studies in 2020 placed them in the genus ''Dicotyles'', based on an unequivocal type-species selection; these studies have been accepted by the American Society of Mammalogists. Currently, the IUCN still places them in the genus ''Pecari''. Description The collared peccary stands around tall at th ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Mule Deer
The mule deer (''Odocoileus hemionus'') is a deer indigenous to western North America; it is named for its ears, which are large like those of the mule. Two subspecies of mule deer are grouped into the black-tailed deer. Unlike the related white-tailed deer (''Odocoileus virginianus''), which is found throughout most of North America east of the Rocky Mountains and in the valleys of the Rocky Mountains from Idaho and Wyoming northward, mule deer are only found on the western Great Plains, in the Rocky Mountains, in the southwest United States, and on the west coast of North America. Mule deer have also been introduced to Argentina and Kauai, Kauai, Hawaii. Taxonomy Mule deer can be divided into two main groups: the mule deer (''sensu stricto'') and the black-tailed deer. The first group includes all subspecies, except ''O. h. columbianus'' and ''Sitka deer, O. h. sitkensis'', which are in the black-tailed deer group. The two main groups have been treated as separate species, but ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Coyote
The coyote (''Canis latrans'') is a species of canis, canine native to North America. It is smaller than its close relative, the wolf, and slightly smaller than the closely related eastern wolf and red wolf. It fills much of the same ecological niche as the golden jackal does in Eurasia. The coyote is larger and more predatory and was once referred to as the American jackal by a behavioral ecologist. Other historical names for the species include the prairie wolf and the brush wolf. The coyote is listed as Least Concern, least concern by the International Union for Conservation of Nature, due to its wide distribution and abundance throughout North America. The species is versatile, able to adapt to and expand into environments modified by humans. It is enlarging its range by moving into urban areas in the eastern U.S. and Canada. The coyote was sighted in eastern Panama (across the Panama Canal from their home range) for the first time in 2013. The coyote has 19 recognized sub ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Cougar
The cougar (''Puma concolor'') is a large Felidae, cat native to the Americas. Its Species distribution, range spans from the Canadian Yukon to the southern Andes in South America and is the most widespread of any large wild terrestrial mammal in the Western Hemisphere. It is an adaptable, Generalist and specialist species, generalist species, occurring in most American habitat types. This wide range has brought it many common names, including puma, mountain lion, catamount and panther (for the Florida sub-population). It is the second-largest cat in the New World, after the jaguar (''Panthera onca''). Secretive and largely solitary by nature, the cougar is properly considered both nocturnal and crepuscular, although daytime sightings do occur. Despite its size, the cougar is more closely related to smaller felines, including the domestic cat (''Felis catus'') than to any species of the subfamily Pantherinae. The cougar is an ambush predator that pursues a wide variety of pre ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Important Bird Area
An Important Bird and Biodiversity Area (IBA) is an area identified using an internationally agreed set of criteria as being globally important for the conservation of bird populations. IBA was developed and sites are identified by BirdLife International. There are over 13,000 IBAs worldwide. These sites are small enough to be entirely conserved and differ in their character, habitat or ornithological importance from the surrounding habitat. In the United States the Program is administered by the National Audubon Society. Often IBAs form part of a country's existing protected area network, and so are protected under national legislation. Legal recognition and protection of IBAs that are not within existing protected areas varies within different countries. Some countries have a National IBA Conservation Strategy, whereas in others protection is completely lacking. History In 1985, following a specific request from the European Economic Community, Birdlife International ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Common Merganser
The common merganser (North American) or goosander (Eurasian) (''Mergus merganser'') is a large seaduck of rivers and lakes in forested areas of Europe, Asia, and North America. The common merganser eats mainly fish. It nests in holes in trees. Taxonomy The first formal description of the common merganser was by Swedish naturalist Carl Linnaeus in 1758 in the 10th edition of his ''Systema Naturae''. He introduced the current binomial name ''Mergus merganser''. The genus name is a Latin word used by Pliny and other Roman authors to refer to an unspecified waterbird, and ''merganser'' is derived from ''mergus'' and ''anser'', Latin for "goose". In 1843 John James Audubon used the name "Buff-breasted Merganser" in addition to "goosander" in his book ''The Birds of America''. The three subspecies differ in only minor detail: * ''M. m. merganser'' – Linnaeus, 1758 is found throughout northern Europe and northern Asiatic Russia. * ''M. m. orientalis'' – Gould, 1845 (syn. ''M. m ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Wood Duck
The wood duck or Carolina duck (''Aix sponsa'') is a species of perching duck found in North America. The drake wood duck is one of the most colorful North American waterfowl. Description The wood duck is a medium-sized perching duck. A typical adult is from ( or 1.5 feet max.) In length with a wingspan of between . The wood duck's weight ranges from 454-862 g (16.0-30.4 oz). This is about three-quarters of the length of an adult mallard. It shares its genus with the Asian Mandarin duck (''Aix galericulata''). The adult male has stunning multicolored iridescent plumage and red eyes, with a distinctive white flare down the neck. The female, less colorful, has a white eye-ring and a whitish throat. Both adults have crested heads. The male's call is a rising whistle, ''jeeeeee''; the females utter a drawn-out, rising squeal, ''do weep do weep'', when flushed, and a sharp ''cr-r-ek, cr-e-ek'' for an alarm call. Behavior Their breeding habitat is wooded swamps, shallow l ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Common Black Hawk
The common black hawk (''Buteogallus anthracinus'') is a bird of prey in the family Accipitridae, which also includes the eagles, hawks, and Old World vultures. Description The adult common black-hawk is long and weighs on average. It has very broad wings, and is mainly black or dark gray. The short tail is black with a single broad white band and a white tip. The bill is black and the legs and cere are yellow. The adults resemble zone-tailed hawks, but have fewer white bars on their tail and are larger in size. Sexes are similar, but immature birds are dark brown above with spotting and streaks. Their underparts are buff to whitish with dark blotches, and the tail has a number of black and white bars. Subspecies It formerly included the Cuban black-hawk (''Buteogallus gundlachii'') as a subspecies. The mangrove black hawk, traditionally considered a distinct species, is now generally considered a subspecies, ''B. a. subtilis'', of the common black-hawk. Distribution and hab ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
