Overview
Unlike plants, soils, and water bodies, animals move around—a lot. This makes them difficult (and expensive) to monitor, especially because many Southwestern mammals don't tend to follow predictable migration patterns. For this reason and others, mammals were not one of the resources originally selected for monitoring by the Sonoran Desert Network.
Improvements in technology and monitoring methodologies, along with a new program that has made volunteers available through the Desert Research Learning Center, is helping to change that. We are monitoring medium-sized and large mammals (ranging in size from foxes to bears) using remote wildlife "camera traps" at Chiricahua National Monument, Organ Pipe Cactus National Monument, and Saguaro National Park (Tucson Mountain District).
Methods and Goals
The cameras are heat- and motion-activated, and are positioned at a height designed to capture animals. They are placed during times of the year when mammal activity is expected to be highest, depending on season and location. Because they can simultaneously sample nearly all species of medium-sized and large mammals in an area, camera traps are useful for identifying trends in species across multiple trophic levels (herbivores, omnivores, carnivores).
The overall goal of this monitoring is to track biologically significant changes at the community and population levels over time. A technique known as occupancy analysis allows us to answer questions about the composition of mammal communities, such as, are we seeing as many medium-sized carnivores as we did 10 years ago? Are they the same species, or are some becoming more or less dominant than in the past? Is there as much variety? Such questions are important because changes at one trophic level (medium-sized mammals) may have cascading effects at other levels.
Knowing about these kinds of changes helps park managers and researchers study the underlying causes of these trends, which in turn leads to more effective management and conservation strategies. The results are used in combination with results from the network's climate and uplands monitoring, but also as a standalone monitoring component that can provide early warning of changes in mammal occupancy. The photographs taken by camera traps can also be used for interpreting wildlife and wildlife monitoring to park visitors.
For more information, contact Andy Hubbard.
Photo Gallery
Terrestrial Wildlife Monitorin...
86 Images
Selected photos from remote camera monitoring of medium-and large-sized mammals at Sonoran Desert Network parks.
Monitoring Reports
Showing results 1-3 of 3
- Locations: Saguaro National Park
- Offices: Sonoran Desert Inventory & Monitoring Network
The Sonoran Desert Network uses remote wildlife cameras to monitor mammals in the Tucson Mountain District of Saguaro National Park. In 2023, we deployed 59 wildlife cameras and collected 3,967 photos of mammals. We analyze the photos using single-season occupancy models to find out how mammals use the park and to understand the pressures that affect mammal distribution across the landscape.
- Locations: Chiricahua National Monument
- Offices: Inventory and Monitoring Division, Sonoran Desert Inventory & Monitoring Network
At National Park Service units across the Sonoran Desert and Apache Highlands, the Sonoran Desert Network is monitoring small and mid-sized mammals using remote wildlife camera traps. Find out what we're learning about wildlife occupancy at Chiricahua National Monument.
- Locations: Organ Pipe Cactus National Monument
- Offices: Inventory and Monitoring Division, Sonoran Desert Inventory & Monitoring Network
At National Park Service units across the Sonoran Desert and Apache Highlands, the Sonoran Desert Network is monitoring small and mid-sized mammals using remote wildlife camera traps. Find out what we're learning about wildlife occupancy at Organ Pipe Cactus National Monument.
Tags:
wildlife monitoring
Last updated: March 1, 2025