A Future with Saguaros with Jonathan Horst

This event is free to attend. No registration required.

Major invasive-plant fueled fires around Tucson and Phoenix have saguaros on everyone’s minds. Long on the periphery, Tucson Audubon has joined the good fight, held by so many amazing partners, and is now pushing hard on the invasive plant control front doing mapping and treatment throughout southern Arizona and beyond to protect existing populations. We’re not stopping there, though. Climate-based shifts to Sonoran Desert uplands will shift the distribution of saguaros, and where seedlings can establish is different from where adults can survive. We’re working with many partners to re-establish saguaros both post-burn and to help them colonize areas projected to become viable saguaro habitat into the future. As a keystone species, mature saguaros support numerous birds that nest almost exclusively in saguaro cavities. We’re actively researching these species and seek to create a novel saguaro cavity-replicating nestbox that can provide breeding opportunities for these species in areas where mature saguaros have been destroyed by fire or where they do not yet exist.

Header Image: Crested Caracara by Martin Molina