Mammal Monitoring at the Tucson Mountain District of Saguaro National Park in 2025
Callie G , McIntyre CL , Zylstra E , McGeverly J . 2026. Mammal Monitoring at the Tucson Mountain District of Saguaro National Park in 2025. Science Report. NPS/SR—2026/505. National Park Service. Fort Collins, Colorado. https://doi.org/10.36967/2319336
The National Park Service Sonoran Desert Network uses passively triggered remote wildlife cameras to conduct long-term monitoring of large and medium-sized mammals at Saguaro National Park. In January–February 2025, network field crews deployed 60 wildlife cameras, which captured a total of 2,806 photos of mammals. We limited our analyses to the six weeks when most cameras were active. During those six weeks, we obtained 2,673 photos of mammals, including 12 large and medium-sized mammal species plus mammals that we could only identify to genus or family. Our cameras also captured small mammals, birds, reptiles, and amphibians, but this report does not address those species. We use data from wildlife cameras to estimate how likely a mammal species is to use certain areas of the park, how that use varies over space, and what factors may be driving those patterns. Using single-season occupancy models, we estimated the probability of occurrence and the probability of detection given occurrence for six species: desert cottontails, mule deer, collared peccaries, coyotes, gray foxes, and bobcats. Desert cottontails, coyotes, and bobcats were more likely to use areas of the park that were relatively flat (i.e., low-slope areas). Mule deer and javelina were more likely to use areas that were far from points of interest. Understanding how landscape features may influence the probability of use by various mammal species can help managers decide how to best manage and protect these species.
- Type
- Published Report
- Authors
- Callie, Graham; McIntyre, Cheryl; Zylstra, Erin; McGeverly, Jessica
- Date of Issue
- 2026-09
- Publisher
- National Park Service
- DOI
- 10.36967/2319336
- Units
- SAGU , SODN
- Keywords
- mammal monitoring, mammals, monitoring, monitoring report, occupancy, terrestrial wildlife, wildlife, wildlife cameras, wildlife monitoring
- Subjects
- Ecological Framework: Biological Integrity | Focal Species or Communities | Mammals