Arizona Bird Monitoring  

Since 2016, GBBO has worked closely with partner agency Arizona Game and Fish Department to assist with general bird monitoring across Arizona as part of the Arizona Coordinated Bird Monitoring program. This program was established under the Arizona Bird Conservation Initiative to address knowledge gaps in Arizona bird population trends, distribution, and effects of management actions on Arizona’s birds. Many of these surveys are habitat-based in order to target areas and birds that are not well-represented in other survey efforts such as the Breeding Bird Survey or Christmas Bird Count. Many of these targeted surveys are part of the Integrated Monitoring in Bird Conservation Regions (IMBCR) program and contribute to a large network of bird monitoring activities throughout the western and central U.S.

Deserts

Arizona’s best-known habitat types offer many challenges to monitoring, from variable breeding seasons to extreme conditions to difficult access. Many locations are remote, only accessible by ATV, boat, very long hike, or not safely accessible at all! As a result, many aspects of the life histories of desert birds are poorly known.

In prior years, GBBO assisted with a study examining the impacts of feral burros on desert environments. We conducted point counts in western and central Arizona deserts comparing bird populations in areas with burros to those without, and found very different responses depending on the bird species. Going forward, we will be conducting point counts once again, this time throughout Arizona’s Sonoran and Mojave deserts, to monitor all the breeding birds of this region.

Did You Know?

In 2001 the Arizona Breeding Bird Atlas documented 307 species breeding in the state!

Riparian

The phrase “riparian habitat” often invokes thoughts of verdant ribbons snaking through otherwise arid environments. Indeed, these are extremely important types of riparian habitats in Arizona, home to Yellow-billed Cuckoos, Southwestern Willow Flycatchers, Lucy’s Warblers, Abert’s Towhees, and many other riparian specialists. In addition to classic desert riparian, our riparian surveys in Arizona also included less obvious riparian areas: those forming mesic corridors through forests, such as willow-lined canyon streams and Gambel oak-choked drainages in Ponderosa pine flats. As we climb in elevation, we find new species such as Spotted Towhees, Black-headed Grosbeaks, House Wrens, and Hermit Thrushes.

Targeted sampling of riparian areas is especially important because this habitat type provides outsized productivity relative to its prevalence on the landscape. To help account for difficulties in detection in thick riparian forests and distinguishing migrants from breeders that may use the same areas, for these surveys we utilize the same double-sampling area search surveys that have been refined on the Lower Colorado River Riparian Birds project, with at least two visits to each plot during the breeding season.

Did You Know?

The highest point in Arizona is Humphrey’s Peak at 12,633 feet—complete with alpine tundra and breeding American Pipits!

Grasslands

One of Arizona’s best-kept secrets, its grasslands can be found in much of the eastern half of the state, from juniper-dotted savannah and high-elevation montane meadows in northern Arizona, to vast monsoon-dependent grasslands in southeastern Arizona. Some of the species supported by these grasslands include Mountain Bluebird, Chihuahuan and Western meadowlarks, Ferruginous and Swainson’s hawks, Bendire’s Thrasher, and many sparrows including Grasshopper, Savannah, Cassin’s, and Botteri’s. Peak breeding in this habitat can vary from early May to mid-August depending on geography, leading to the need for habitat-specific surveys that can be timed appropriately.

Grasslands have also experienced widespread degradation and are the focus of extensive restoration efforts, from juniper or mesquite removal to controlled burns to targeted rotational grazing operations. These grassland surveys provide both baseline density, occupancy, and population trend estimates throughout Arizona’s grasslands as well as targeted surveys examining before and after impacts of management actions.

Pinyon-Juniper

Pinyon-juniper woodlands cover much of northern Arizona’s middle elevations. Indeed, these forests have spread due to changing climatic conditions and land use practices, causing concern for grassland health as juniper encroaches on those ecosystems. At the same time, drought and insect outbreaks have caused high mortality in these trees, particularly pinyon pines, in recent decades, and pinyon-juniper woodlands have become a conservation focus as well. Six species specialize in these woodlands in Arizona, all of which are species of conservation concern (Gray Flycatcher, Gray Vireo, Pinyon Jay, Woodhouse’s Scrub-Jay, Juniper Titmouse, and Black-throated Gray Warbler). Recent trends have made it clear that management of grasslands and pinyon-juniper woodlands requires a balanced, science-based approach that can benefit the species that utilize both habitat types.

Beginning in 2022, GBBO conducted point counts on a set of plots throughout pinyon-juniper woodlands and associated land cover types in northern Arizona, from the Virgin Mountains in far northwestern Arizona to the sandy, juniper-dotted plains on the border with New Mexico. These surveys provided detailed distributional information on the birds inhabiting these areas, and set baseline population parameters against which future efforts can be measured. With this robust information, land managers can track movements and trends of birds breeding in these unique ecosystems.