Mammal Monitoring at the Tucson Mountain District of Saguaro National Park in 2024
Callie G , McIntyre CL , Zylstra E , McGeverly J . 2026. Mammal Monitoring at the Tucson Mountain District of Saguaro National Park in 2024. Science Report. NPS/SR—2026/507. National Park Service. Fort Collins, Colorado. https://doi.org/10.36967/2319337
The National Park Service Sonoran Desert Network uses passively triggered remote wildlife cameras to conduct long-term monitoring of large and medium-sized mammals in the Tucson Mountain District of Saguaro National Park. In January–February 2024, network field crews deployed 59 wildlife cameras, which captured a total of 4,288 photos of mammals. We limited our analyses to the six weeks when most cameras were active. During those six weeks, we obtained 3,468 photos of mammals, including 14 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 mammal taxa: jackrabbits, collared peccaries, mule deer, coyotes, gray foxes, and bobcats. Jackrabbits and gray foxes were more likely to use areas far from washes, whereas javelinas were more likely to use areas close to washes. Gray foxes were more likely to use areas far from roads and were the only species with a human-caused factor explaining their occurrence. 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
- 10.36967/2319337
- 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