The Southeastern Arizona Bird Observatory (SABO) is a nonprofit membership-supported scientific and educational organization founded in 1996 in Bisbee,

Arizona Arizona ( ; nv, Hoozdo Hahoodzo ; ood, Alĭ ṣonak ) is a state in the Southwestern United States. It is the 6th largest and the 14th most populous of the 50 states. Its capital and largest city is Phoenix. Arizona is part of the Fou ...

, USA. The mission of the Southeastern Arizona Bird Observatory is to promote the conservation of the birds of southeastern Arizona, their habitats, and the diversity of species that share those habitats through research, monitoring, and public education. The observatory's founders are Tom Wood and Sheri Williamson, former managers of

The Nature Conservancy The Nature Conservancy (TNC) is a global environmental organization headquartered in Arlington, Virginia. it works via affiliates or branches in 79 countries and territories, as well as across every state in the US. Founded in 1951, The Natu ...

's Ramsey Canyon Preserve.

Monitoring bird diversity

Southeastern Arizona is at a biogeographic crossroads, where the

Rocky Mountains The Rocky Mountains, also known as the Rockies, are a major mountain range and the largest mountain system in North America. The Rocky Mountains stretch in straight-line distance from the northernmost part of western Canada, to New Mexico in ...

meet the

Sierra Madre Occidental The Sierra Madre Occidental is a major mountain range system of the North American Cordillera, that runs northwest–southeast through northwestern and western Mexico, and along the Gulf of California. The Sierra Madre is part of the American C ...

Mexico Mexico (Spanish: México), officially the United Mexican States, is a country in the southern portion of North America. It is bordered to the north by the United States; to the south and west by the Pacific Ocean; to the southeast by Guatema ...

and the

Chihuahuan Desert The Chihuahuan Desert ( es, Desierto de Chihuahua, ) is a desert ecoregion designation covering parts of northern Mexico and the southwestern United States. It occupies much of far West Texas, the middle to lower Rio Grande Valley and the lower P ...

blends into the

Sonoran Desert The Sonoran Desert ( es, Desierto de Sonora) is a desert in North America and ecoregion that covers the northwestern Mexican states of Sonora, Baja California, and Baja California Sur, as well as part of the southwestern United States (in Arizona ...

. Isolated mountain ranges known as "

sky islands Sky islands are isolated mountains surrounded by radically different lowland environments. The term originally referred to those found on the Mexican Plateau, and has extended to similarly isolated high-elevation forests. The isolation has si ...

" are home to a variety of animal and plant species found nowhere else in the

United States The United States of America (U.S.A. or USA), commonly known as the United States (U.S. or US) or America, is a country primarily located in North America. It consists of 50 states, a federal district, five major unincorporated territorie ...

. The San Pedro River flows north from the mountains of northern

Sonora Sonora (), officially Estado Libre y Soberano de Sonora ( en, Free and Sovereign State of Sonora), is one of the 31 states which, along with Mexico City, comprise the Administrative divisions of Mexico, Federal Entities of Mexico. The state is d ...

, Mexico providing a highway for millions of migrating birds every spring and fall. The Santa Cruz River and

Sonoita Creek Sonoita Creek is a tributary stream of the Santa Cruz River in Santa Cruz County, Arizona. It originates near and takes its name from the abandoned Pima mission in the high valley near Sonoita. It flows steadily for the first of its westwa ...

also provide

riparian A riparian zone or riparian area is the interface between land and a river or stream. Riparian is also the proper nomenclature for one of the terrestrial biomes of the Earth. Plant habitats and communities along the river margins and banks ar ...

habitat for breeding and migrating birds and other wildlife. Much of the best remaining wildlife habitat in the region is in the

Coronado National Forest The Coronado National Forest is a United States National Forest that includes an area of about 1.78 million acres (7,200 km2) spread throughout mountain ranges in southeastern Arizona and southwestern New Mexico. It is located in parts of C ...

, national and state parks, national wildlife refuges and conservation areas, state wildlife areas, military reservations, and

Nature Conservancy The Nature Conservancy (TNC) is a global environmental organization headquartered in Arlington, Virginia. it works via affiliates or branches in 79 countries and territories, as well as across every state in the US. Founded in 1951, The Natu ...

preserves. The Southeastern Arizona Bird Observatory has conducted various monitoring projects both independently and in cooperation with public agencies. Its longest-running research project, in cooperation with the

United States Bureau of Land Management The Bureau of Land Management (BLM) is an agency within the United States Department of the Interior responsible for administering federal lands. Headquartered in Washington DC, and with oversight over , it governs one eighth of the country's la ...

and Friends of the San Pedro River, is a study of the

hummingbird Hummingbirds are birds native to the Americas and comprise the biological family Trochilidae. With about 361 species and 113 genera, they occur from Alaska to Tierra del Fuego, but the vast majority of the species are found in the tropics aro ...

s that use the San Pedro River as a migratory corridor or breeding area.City of Sierra Vista, AZ YouTube channel
Hummingbird Banding
/ref>Davis, Tony
"Tiny bird banded in AZ recaptured after humdinger of a flight"
''

Arizona Daily Star The ''Arizona Daily Star'' is the major morning daily newspaper that serves Tucson and surrounding districts of southern Arizona in the United States. History L. C. Hughes was the Arizona Territory governor and founder of the ''Arizona Star'', ...

'', 2008-08-20. Banding sessions are open to the public, which has allowed thousands of visitors to observe research in progress and learn more about hummingbirds, other migratory birds, the ecological significance of the San Pedro River, and other conservation issues. Past projects include migration monitoring and breeding bird monitoring under the MAPS ( Monitoring Avian Productivity and Survivorship) ProgramInstitute for Bird Populations
Monitoring Avian Productivity and Survivorship (MAPS) Program
for the

National Park Service The National Park Service (NPS) is an agency of the United States federal government within the U.S. Department of the Interior that manages all national parks, most national monuments, and other natural, historical, and recreational propertie ...

and Fish & Wildlife Service. SABO is a past participant in the Landbird Monitoring Network of the Americas.U.S. Forest Service Pacific Southwest Research Station
Landbird Monitoring Network of the Americas: Member Organizations and Stations
Retrieved on 2009-10-28.

Ecotourism and outreach

Southeastern Arizona consistently ranks as one of the top five

birding Birdwatching, or birding, is the observing of birds, either as a recreational activity or as a form of citizen science. A birdwatcher may observe by using their naked eye, by using a visual enhancement device like binoculars or a telescope, by ...

locations in the United States. Tens of thousands of birders visit the area each year, making nature-based tourism an important asset to the regional economy. The area's natural attractions also lure active retirees and others interested in relocating to areas with diverse opportunities for outdoor recreation. To cultivate environmental awareness and advocacy among both residents and tourists, the Southeastern Arizona Bird Observatory offers bird walks, workshops, other educational activities in both Arizona and northwestern Mexico,Wilcove, David S
"Border Traffic: The challenge of saving Mexico’s vanishing Thick-billed Parrots"
''Living Bird'',

Cornell Laboratory of Ornithology The Cornell Lab of Ornithology is a member-supported unit of Cornell University in Ithaca, New York, which studies birds and other wildlife. It is housed in the Imogene Powers Johnson Center for Birds and Biodiversity in Sapsucker Woods Sanctuar ...

, Winter 2008. and volunteer opportunities. In November 2020, SABO assumed ownership and management of Ash Canyon Bird Sanctuary, on the southeastern slope of the

Huachuca Mountains The Huachuca Mountains are part of the Sierra Vista Ranger District of the Coronado National Forest in Cochise County in southeastern Arizona, approximately south-southeast of Tucson and southwest of the city of Sierra Vista. Included in this ar ...

in Sierra Vista Southeast in southwestern

Cochise County, Arizona Cochise County () is a county in the southeastern corner of the U.S. state of Arizona. It is named after the Native American chief Cochise. The population was 125,447 at the 2020 census. The county seat is Bisbee and the most populous city is ...

. Purchase of the property, former home of the late Mary Jo Ballator, was accomplished through a single donation. The site is managed by SABO staff and volunteers; operations are funded through memberships and site-specific donations. The sanctuary is best known for its pollinator gardens and bird feeding stations, which are open to the public. The property lies in the transition zone (

ecotone An ecotone is a transition area between two biological communities, where two communities meet and integrate. It may be narrow or wide, and it may be local (the zone between a field and forest) or regional (the transition between forest and gras ...

) between desert

grassland A grassland is an area where the vegetation is dominated by grasses (Poaceae). However, sedge (Cyperaceae) and rush (Juncaceae) can also be found along with variable proportions of legumes, like clover, and other herbs. Grasslands occur natur ...

and

Madrean pine–oak woodlands The Madrean pine–oak woodlands are subtropical woodlands found in the mountains of Mexico and the southwestern United States. They are a biogeographic region of the tropical and subtropical coniferous forests and temperate broadleaf and mixed for ...

and includes portions of a

ciénega A ciénega (also spelled ciénaga) is a wetland system unique to the American Southwest. Ciénagas are alkaline, freshwater, spongy, wet meadows with shallow-gradient, permanently saturated soils in otherwise arid landscapes that often occupy ...

, a rare

wetland A wetland is a distinct ecosystem that is flooded or saturated by water, either permanently (for years or decades) or seasonally (for weeks or months). Flooding results in oxygen-free (anoxic) processes prevailing, especially in the soils. The ...

type unique to the arid regions of the southwestern

and northern

. Over 200 species of birds have been recorded at the site, including

lucifer sheartail The lucifer sheartail or lucifer hummingbird (''Calothorax lucifer'') is a medium-sized, 10 cm long, green hummingbird with a slightly curved bill and distinctive outward flare of its gorget feathers. Its habitat is in high-altitude areas of ...

, plain-capped starthroat,

elegant trogon The elegant trogon (''Trogon elegans''), also known as the coppery-tailed trogon, is a near passerine bird in the trogon family. Taxonomy ''T. elegans'' has five recognized subspecies, including the nominate subspecies: *''T. e. elegans'' Gould ...

Montezuma quail The Montezuma quail (''Cyrtonyx montezumae'') is a stubby, secretive New World quail of Mexico and some nearby parts of the United States. It is also known as Mearns's quail, the harlequin quail (for the male's striking pattern), and the fool q ...

, and rufous-winged sparrow. Sightings contributed to

iNaturalist iNaturalist is a social network of naturalists, citizen scientists, and biologists built on the concept of mapping and sharing observations of biodiversity across the globe. iNaturalist may be accessed via its website or from its mobile applic ...

have recorded over 240 non-bird species, including over 180 species of arthropods. The Southeastern Arizona Bird Observatory also supports community-based outreach and economic development programs such as the Southwest Wings

Birding Birdwatching, or birding, is the observing of birds, either as a recreational activity or as a form of citizen science. A birdwatcher may observe by using their naked eye, by using a visual enhancement device like binoculars or a telescope, by ...

and Nature Festival, the Wings Over Willcox

Sandhill Crane The sandhill crane (''Antigone canadensis'') is a species of large crane of North America and extreme northeastern Siberia. The common name of this bird refers to habitat like that at the Platte River, on the edge of Nebraska's Sandhills on t ...

Celebration, and the Southeastern Arizona Birding Trail.

References

External links

Southeastern Arizona Bird Observatory

Southeastern Arizona Bird Observatory YouTube channel

* ttp://www.allaboutbirds.org/NetCommunity/Page.aspx?pid=1022 Cornell Laboratory of Ornithology, "Flying Afield: Ten Times and Counting" (The continuing appeal of southeastern Arizona)
Bird Watcher's Digest, "Arizona Dreaming"

National Geographic: Masters of Migration
(Sandhill Cranes in the

Sulphur Springs Valley The Sulphur Springs Valley is a valley in the eastern half of Cochise County, Arizona. The valley covers an approximated vertical rectangle west of the Chiricahua Mountains–Dos Cabezas Mountains complex. The Sulphur Springs Valley is the larg ...

)
Wonders of the West: Hummingbird Banding

Ash Canyon Bird Sanctuary

eBird eBird is an online database of bird observations providing scientists, researchers and amateur naturalists with real-time data about bird distribution and abundance. Originally restricted to sightings from the Western Hemisphere, the project e ...

hotspot page
Biodiversity of Ash Canyon Bird Sanctuary Project
on

{{authority control Sonoran Desert Bird observatories in the United States Natural history of Arizona Bisbee, Arizona Zoological research institutes Research institutes in Arizona San Pedro Valley (Arizona) Environmental organizations based in Arizona