322 



IiiWrinr Wi-.sl — Our Li\'li!i^ Resources 



For further information: 



Peler Warshall 



University of Arizona 



Office of Arid Lands Studies 



4500 W. Speedway 



Tucson. AZ 85745 



nowhere else in the weirld. The perennial 

 streams support seven rare native fish species. 

 or the special habitats, the cienagas (swampy. 

 marshy cover) and perennial streams require the 

 most monitoring, protection, and restoration. 



Special Interest Game 



The densest populations of most game 

 species are found on the sky islands. For 

 instance, the densest populations of black bear 

 (Ursiis americaniis) and mountain lion {Fclis 

 concolor) south of the Mogollon Rim are on the 

 Pinalenos. In general, over a 2()-year period, 

 both species increased with population troughs 

 occurring from rancher depredation and 

 drought. White-tailed deer (Odocoileiis virginl- 

 (iniis) populations have increased, while mule 

 deer are less stable. Javelina (Tayassii hijacii) 

 are stable or declining, having suffered from 

 canine distemper after the drought of 1989. 

 Band-tailed pigeon (Columba fasciata). a 

 species dependent on sky island forests, has had 

 a long-term decline as have two subspecies of 

 turkey. 



Corridors 



For many land animals, corridors of animal 

 movement between sky islands have been 

 through riparian zones. Increasing habitat frag- 

 mentation from increased subdivisions around 

 the base of the sky islands is further isolating 

 some populations, especially in the Tucson area, 

 which separates the Santa Catalina and Rincon 

 mountains from the Tucsons and the Santa 

 Ritas. This structural change in migration pat- 

 terns has not been studied but is believed to be 

 the most significant threat to "safe passage" 

 corridors between sky islands. 



In summary, the single best indicator of 

 ecosystem management has been the increasing 

 number of threatened and endangered popula- 

 tions (USFS 1993). This trend requires increas- 

 ing acreage of critical or otherwise protected 

 habitat: increased monitoring and control over 

 the introduction and spread of exotic grasses, 

 fish, and gamebirds, and the reintroduction of 

 locally extirpated mammals and tree species in 

 restoration projects. 



Other Issues 



Fire management is planned to reduce cata- 

 strophic tires from fuel build ups. to allow nat- 

 ural bums required by certain species, and to 

 increase fire suppression to maintain remnant 



old-growth forest biodiversity. Experimentation 

 and debate about tire management are wide- 

 spread, however. Another trend is toward the 

 restriction of cattle to prevent overgrazing and 

 trampling, to protect sensitive plant species, and 

 to protect and promote recovery of wetland and 

 riparian habitats. A third trend is toward 

 upstream rehabilitation in specific watersheds 

 where flooding endangers sensitive plants. 



In addition, there is increasing urban pressure 

 on the Forest Service to clear more habitat for 

 recreation such as camping and skiing (on the 

 Catalinas) and to expand roads into the sky 

 islands for greater access and uses that can con- 

 flict with habitat protection (USFS 1993). 

 Managing land use on private inholdings, on 

 properties adjacent to public land, and on proper- 

 ties bordering intermountain corridors will be 

 increasingly important. 



The final trend is the unknown impact of 

 global warming on the biseasonal (winter and 

 summer) rainfall pattern of the southwestern 

 sky islands. This trend is of special importance 

 because of the large number of relict and insu- 

 lar species and subspecies in the region. 



Because of the geological, topographic, and 

 biological uniqueness of each sky island, the 

 policies for each mountain range will need to be 

 custom-designed on a watershed by watershed 

 basis. 



References 



Bequaert, J.C. and W.B. Miller. 1973. The mollusks of the 

 arid Southwest. University of Arizona Press. Tucson. 271 



PP 



Marshall. J.T 19.S7. Birds of the pine-oak woodland in south- 

 ern Arizona and adjacent Mexico. Pacific Coast Avifauna 

 i2. 125 pp. 



McPherson. G.R. 1992. Ecology of oak woodlands in 

 Arizona. //; Ecology and management of oak and associat- 

 ed woodlands. Rocky Mountain Forest and Range Station. 

 Gen. Tech. Rep, RM-2 1 8. Fort Collins. CO. 



Nishida, FH., W.J. Sundherg. J.A. Menge. J.S. States, R.E. 

 Tulloss. and J. Cifuentes Blanco. 1992. Studies in the 

 niycoflora of the Chincahua Mountains. 1. Preliminary 

 report on species distribution, ecology, and biogeographi- 

 cal affinities. Pages 35-.W in A.M. Barton and S. Sloane. 

 eds. 1992 Chiricahua Mountains Research Symposium. 

 Proceedings. Southwest Parks and Monument Association, 

 Tucson. AZ. 



States. J.S. 1990. Mushrooms and truffles of the Southwest. 

 University of Arizona Press. Tucson. 232 pp. 



USFS. 1993. Executive summary. Coronado National Forest 

 plan five year review report. October 1987 through 

 September 1991. U.S. Forest Service, Tucson, AZ. 33 pp. 



Warshall. P. 1986. Biogeography of the high peaks of the 

 Pinalenos. Reprinted from the Environmental Data Book, 

 U.S. Forest Service. Coronado National Forest, by 

 Maricopa Audubon Society. Phoenix. AZ. 18 pp. 



