TA Tidbits #76 Wildlife Linkages
- Tortolita Alliance
- 8 hours ago
- 2 min read
Tortolita Alliance (TA) attended the 10-year anniversary celebration of the Ann Day Memorial Wildlife Bridge [N. Oracle Road (Rt. 77) near Santa Catalina Catholic Church] on 4/17/26. Ann Day is the late Pima County Supervisor who was an ardent wildlife preservationist. This wildlife bridge was the first to be constructed in Pima County and the first in the nation to be funded by voter-approved sales-tax revenue, i.e., Regional Transportation Authority’s (RTA's) 20-year, $2 billion construction plan. A companion tunnel about one-mile south was also built. 27,000 individual wildlife crossings (more than 20 species) have been recorded at these two sites in the last 9 years. The Ann Day Memorial Wildlife Bridge provides a unique wildlife linkage between the Catalina Mountains, Tortolita Mountains, Tortolita Preserve and the Tucson Mountains.
TA President (Mark Johnson) was invited to speak at the event and Mark underscored the importance wildlife linkages in Pima County and how the Tortolita Preserve is a major connectivity asset for wildlife habitat and movement. He also thanked the Coalition For Sonoran Desert Protection (CSDP) and staff, especially Carolyn Campbell, for all their hard work in making wildlife crossings and linkages in Pima County a reality.
CSDP has published, Tucson-Tortolita Mountains Wildlife Linkage Study Avra Valley Wildlife Corridor Monitoring Project Annual Report January 31, 2024 (click on link below to download), that presents wildlife camera data at critical locations in the Tortolita Mountains-Tortolita Preserve-Tucson Mountain wildlife corridor. The table below is redacted from the study and summarizes the results. Note the results from the Tortolita Preserve.
The new RTA 20-year Plan (click on link below), recently approved by the voters, includes $50 million for critical wildlife linkages (see item 44). The next big bridge project will be a crossing over the I-10.
Also, note the final Phase 2B (Marana Tech Park to Dove Mountain Blvd) of the Tangerine Road Improvements is now funded in the new RTA plan and that project includes tunnel wildlife crossings.
Here are a few of the latest TA Wildlife Camera photos: (left to right and down) mule deer w/antlers, coyote, puma or bobcat?
