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Bird Surveys and Habitat Assessments Along the Aros-Yaqui River Corridor on and Around the Northern Jaguar Reserve

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Bird Surveys and Habitat Assessments Along the Aros-Yaqui River Corridor on and Around the Northern Jaguar Reserve Bird surveys and habitat assessments along the Aros-Yaqui river corridor on and around the Northern Jaguar Reserve Summarizing results of field work in December 2011 & July 2012 Prepared by: Aaron D. Flesch and Sky Jacobs School of Natural Resources and the Environment University of Arizona 325 Biological Sciences East Tucson Arizona 85721 [email protected] [email protected] Prepared for: Diana Hadley and Megan Southern Northern Jaguar Project 2114 W Grant Rd Tucson, Arizona 85745 www.northernjaguarproject.org Common Black Hawk © A. Flesch Río Aros © A. Flesch August 2013 Introduction Ten years ago, two conservation organizations, Naturalia and Northern Jaguar Project, began purchasing private ranches in a remote region of northwest Mexico in an effort to protect the largest remaining population of breeding jaguars (Panthera onca) in northwest Mexico. Since that time, the reserve has grown to 20,140 ha and its mission has broadened to focus more generally on biodiversity conservation in this wild region. Today, the Northern Jaguar Reserve (NJR) is the only reserve in Mexico that protects large areas of Foothills (Sinaloan) Thornscrub. Foothills Thornscrub is the dominant vegetation community in the foothills and valleys west of the northern Sierra Madre Occidental and forms a broad transition zone between tropical and temperate environments. The NJR is situated near the northern extent of Foothills Thornscrub, directly west of the northern end of the Sierra Madre Occidental. It is surrounded on three sides by deep, lowland canyons of the lower Río Aros and upper Río Yaqui, which includes the largest remaining section of free-flowing river in northwest Mexico. Due in part to its ruggedness and inaccessibility, this region is among the largest and least fragmented wildlands in northwest Mexico. There have been few efforts to describe the fauna and flora of this remote region but birds are one of the better studied groups. Thomas Clark (1984) reported notable observations of birds near Sahuaripa in April and May 1978 and Steve Russell (Russell and Monson 1998) worked in the high mountains east of Sahuaripa in March 1984. Bryan Brown studied nesting Bald Eagles (Haliaeetus leucocephalus) along the Río Aros, Bavispe, and Yaqui (Brown and Warren 1985, Brown 1988), but it was not until 1998 when important observations of species other than raptors (Rodríguez-Estrella and Brown 1990) were reported (Russell and Monson 1998). More recently, in July and August 2005, biologists from the University of Arizona recorded 80 species of birds along a 185 km stretch of the Río Aros below Natora and Río Yaqui above Sahuaripa (O’Brien et al. 2006). In April 2007, Peter Warshall and others visited several portions of the Northern Jaguar Reserve and recorded 99 species including a variety of Neotropical migratory species (Warshall 2007). Most recently, between summer 2007 and spring 2010 (Flesch 2008, 2009, 2010), Flesch and others described the distribution and abundance of birds across the NJR; in April 2011, Flesch and Jacobs surveyed birds along the Aros-Yaqui corridor and summarized baseline data on migratory birds. As part of a broader effort to document the region’s biodiversity and help guide conservation efforts in the region, we studied avifauna on and around the Northern Jaguar Reserve in 2011 and 2012. Extensive previous efforts between 2007 and 2011 were successful in documenting the distribution, abundance, and seasonal and breeding status of birds across much of the reserve (see Flesch 2008, 2009, 2010), thus we focused our efforts on describing the distribution and abundance of birds and presence and condition of habitat for breeding and migratory birds in inaccessible areas on the reserve and in the region immediately surrounding the reserve. Because birds are excellent indicators of environmental conditions, our efforts are important for guiding Naturalia and Northern Jaguar Project in developing conservation proposals and priorities related to reserve expansion and management. Because much of the region is roadless, extremely rugged, and accessible only from Aros-Yaqui river corridor, we organized two river-based expeditions and surveyed areas along the river and in major tributaries and side canyons. Here, we describe summer and wintering bird communities along the Aros-Yaqui river corridor and habitat conditions in the region. During the summer expedition, we invited a mammalogist (David Parsons) and herpetologist (Robert Villa) to participate, and they provided information on these taxa that we report here. Methods Study Area: The Northern Jaguar Reserve is located in east-central Sonora, Mexico 55 km north of Sahuaripa and 200 km south of the U.S.-Mexico border (centered near 29°25' N, 109°10' W). The climate is arid with hot summers and cool winters, with most annual precipitation falling during the summer 2 monsoon season in July-September. Vegetation in uplands is dominated predominantly by Foothills Thornscrub, which is drought deciduous and in leaf during and after the summer monsoon season between June and September (Brown 1982). Foothills Thornscrub is dominated by short trees, shrubs, and cacti and is floristically similar but shorter and less structurally diverse than Tropical Deciduous Forest into which it transitions in southern Sonora. Dominant plant species in Foothills Thornscrub in this region include the trees Lysiloma divaricatum, L. watsonii, Bursera fagaroides, Fouquieria macdougalii, Acacia cochliacantha, Ipomoea arborescens, Ceiba acuminata, and Parkinsonia praecox and the columnar cactus Stenocereus thurberi. At the upper-elevation ecotone of Foothills Thornscrub, oak woodlands are dominated by Quercus chihuahuensis, Q. toumeyi, and Q. alboncinta and are often mixed with patches of thornscrub dominated by L. watsonii, I. arborescens, and Dodonaea viscosa. We focused surveys in riparian and xero-riparian areas along the river and in major side canyons. Riparian areas were dominated by a range of different woodland associations and occasionally by linear stands of gallery forest. Dense riparian woodlands were common on deep soils and flats and dominated by microphyllous species such as mesquite (Prosopis velutina), acacia (A. occidentalis), and Mexican ebony (Havardia mexicana). In rocky canyons, riparian areas were dominated by L. watsonii, palms (Sabal uresana, Brahea brandegeei), and oak (Q. tuberculata). More xeric canyons with large rocky substrates were often dominated by common thornscrub species in larger form. In more mesic areas common riparian trees included Ceiba acuminata, Sapindus saponaria, Guazuma ulmifolia, Sideroxylon persimile, and Vitex mollis. The most mesic riparian areas were dominated by willows (Salix bonplandiana, S. gooddingii), and buttonbush (Cephalanthus salicifolius), with sycamore (Platanus racemosa) restricted to very few canyons. Also important, but rare are Ficus dominated stretches of canyon bottom with F. pertusa and F. insipid often sharing dominance. Important for many species of birds, the palms Brahea brandegee and Sabal uresana are common in riparian situations throughout the region. Field Surveys: Because our efforts were focused along the river corridor, we used two methods to survey birds. First, we recorded the number individuals of each species we observed while navigating the river from inflatable rafts and kayaks. Because navigating the river is challenging and requires a great deal of attention to avoid rocks and other hazards (Fig. 1), we focused on recording the number of individuals of species that were rare, uncommon, and of special interest, and recorded only the presence or absence of many common species. Second, we established transects that we surveyed on foot along major tributaries and side canyons, and in large woodlands along the riverfront. Detailed descriptions of sampling methods are provided in a previous report (Flesch 2008) and are briefly described here. To survey birds along transects, we used distance-sampling methods (Buckland et al. 2001) along arroyo bottoms or on established roads or trails. During distance sampling, we also used a more flexible method that involved estimating the number of individuals, pairs, or flocks of each species that we detected along each transect. This method allowed us to extend the length of transects and survey birds across a wider range of times of day, and to quantify the abundance of rare species and those not typically detected during a line transect survey. We surveyed most transects from 30 min before local sunrise to approximately four hours after sunrise, and some transects at other times of day but distance sampling was only conducted during mornings. When surveying, we walked transects slowly and stopped occasionally to record data and investigate unfamiliar vocalizations. For each bird or flock of birds that we detected, we measured the perpendicular distance from the transect line to the bird or center of the flock with a laser rangefinder. We supplemented data that we obtained during transect surveys with incidental observations that we obtained in camp and while traveling and with behavioral observations to assess breeding status (see below). We subdivided each section of river that we floated each day and recorded observations for each of these sections once in camp. Because we endeavored to obtain an accurate count of the number of breeding Common Black Hawks along the river, we used a hand counter to tally the number of individuals, pairs, and occupied nests that we observed
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