The San Pedro River serves as an important migration route for birds as well as a habitat corridor for many other animals. Hundreds of bird species utilize the San Pedro River during their migration. Besides the many species of winged animals, around 60 species of mammals are found in or rely on riparian areas. Many of the bird and mammal species are not found anywhere else in the United States. We are attempting to find out how animals are using important corridors (Babocomari River and other desert washes) to move between the San Pedro River and the Huachuca Mountains. This data will give us information on the types of wildlife utilizing the San Pedro River throughout the year and how they use the corridors to facilitate movements between habitats. We are particularly interested in mountain lions, bobcats, and other predators.
In November 2022, our research using this data regarding mountain lion reproduction near the river was published in the Journal of Arizona-Nevada Academy of Science. The former undergraduate research club president and now Cochise College alumni was a co-author on this publication (read abstract here). Undergraduate students have presented research related to mammals at local college events, the undergraduate biology research symposium at Arizona State University in April 2022, and annual meeting of the Arizona-Nevada Academy of Science in April 2024.