Last year was marked by some larger-than-life visitors to Borderlands Wildlife Preserve, including many white-tails and mulies, but we were lucky enough to capture our first videos of a mountain lion and American black bear passing through the preserve this year.
As a new year begins, I wanted to reflect on the history of Borderlands Wildlife Preserve, and highlight how its founding principles are alive and well today. I’ve also been thinking a lot about the quote: “The best time to plant a tree was 20 years ago” and all I can think about, is how I should have been planting trees when I was 4 years old instead of playing with my stuffed animals. But fortunately BWP was "planted" over 10 years ago, and we are enjoying the fruits of that labor now.
A brief history of BWP
Borderlands Wildlife Preserve (BWP) was founded by like-minded conservationists and community members who saw an opportunity to protect a critical puzzle piece within the Sonoita Creek Wildlife Corridor, which was designated by the Arizona Game and Fish Department in 2006 after a study through Northern Arizona University determined this migratory corridor is essential for large mammals. BWP was originally going to be developed into a large neighborhood with 189 homes. After the housing market crashed in 2008, Wildlife Corridors, LLC was created to purchase the property and preserve it indefinitely. Since then, Borderlands Restoration Network has worked to restore the degraded areas of BWP in addition to our other work in the borderlands region.
White-tailed deer (Odocoileous virginianus) does with fawns
The habitat that is found at BWP is incredibly unique and vital for wildlife because it is an important transition zone from desert grasslands to oak woodlands to pine forests. Deserts are often characterized by small critters that can hide underground during the harsh winters and summers, and that don’t need much water to survive. But the Sky Islands of Southern Arizona and Northern Mexico allow larger mammals to thrive within the "seas" of desert - like deer, mountain lions, black bears, and the endangered jaguar.
Animals like this black bear are driven to move by the changing seasons, the need for food, and the urge to mate. This bear was seen near Highway 82, which cuts through the Sonoita Creek Wildlife Corridor —an important migratory corridor between the Santa Rita mountains and the Canelo Hills. The majority of the corridor falls within Coronado National Forest, but Highway 82 is peppered with private properties on either side, and the last wild section between Patagonia and Sonoita would have been lost if the land was developed as a neighborhood.
Black bears often travel between mountain ranges once they have awakened from their winter torpor. Mountain lions are active all year long and have extensive ranges, but remain elusive. Both of these predators require large home ranges. These large, solitary creatures require that much more food to survive, and the space to find it. This is why protecting continuous, undeveloped land is so important for apex predators, as they help keep prey populations and plant populations balanced.
A volunteer who was visiting Arizona for the first time asked me a few months ago if they should be worried about running into a jaguar, and I responded, “If I ran into a jaguar out here, that would be the most amazing moment of my life. Terrifying, but amazing.” I feel so lucky to live in a place that is full of incredible and unique life, the center of a biological venn diagram. Nature is truly healing, but we live in a time when so many people don’t understand or value her, and it can be hard to stay optimistic about the future. But then I look at photos and videos of wildlife in their element, living so close to us but just out of sight, and I feel inspired and fulfilled to be working towards a better future for us all. Here is to another year of hard work, inspiring photos, and moments in nature with the people we love.
Helpful link: Wildlife Linkages
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