50 likes | 128 Views
San Pedro Riparian Area. Supports a cottonwood-willow forest Excellent protection Roosting sites Microhabitats for terrestrial animals ‘Snags’; protection for water dwelling species. Produces protective corridors Used by foraging animals Used by migrating species.
E N D
San Pedro Riparian Area • Supports a cottonwood-willow forest • Excellent protection • Roosting sites • Microhabitats for terrestrial animals • ‘Snags’; protection for water dwelling species • Produces protective corridors • Used by foraging animals • Used by migrating species • Home to more species of mammals (78), than any other place in the United States
Beavers (Castor canadensis) • Largest rodents in the United States • 25-36 inches long • Average weight is in the 30’s, some weigh up to 60lbs. • Have a large, flat, scaly tail • Live in small colonies • Parents, yearlings, recent offspring • Build dams and lodges together • Some live under the banks or rivers • “The Beaver River” • Malaria Scare in the early 1900’s • Reintroduction in 1940’s and 1999 • Healthier willow-cottonwood forest
Coatimundi (Nasua nasua) • San Pedro river marks its Northern Border • Belong to the family Procyonidae (same as raccoons) • Coati are constantly foraging for food! • Body features suit its lifestyle • Elongated snoot with “rooting pad” • Dexterous hands • Longer rear legs • Long claws and impressive canines
Mountain Lion(Felis concolor) • Very efficient predators • Main source of food is deer • One to two deer per week • Involved in some controversy • Cattle ranchers • Humans ex: Sabino Canyon • Very susceptible to habitat loss • Elusive creatures • Highly territorial
Mule Deer(Odocoileus hemionus crooki) • Their name comes from the elongated ears • Large species of desert deer • Average buck weighs 150lbs. • Have very large antlers • Browsers not grazers • Prefer to eat leaves of trees and shrubs • Browse only on small amounts from each plant • Southwest pop. decline since 1960’s • Loss of habitat • Degradation of habitat from cattle