Data Collection Report - Flood Control District of Maricopa County

introduced populations exist in Maricopa County (FWS1998).Residence: Permanent.Assessment: Desert pupfish is extremely unlikely to occur in theproject area, from which this species is consideredextirpated.Arizona Agave (Agave arizonica)Status: Listed endangered without designated critical habitat.Habitat: Occurs at the oak-juniper woodland and mountainmahogany-scrub oak transition zone at 3,000 to 6,000feet elevation, usually on steep rocky slopes butoccasionally on gentle slopes and drainage bottoms(FWS 1998).Range: New River Mountains in Maricopa and Yavapai counties,and in the Sierra Ancha in Gila County. Potential habitatexists in the Mazatal Mountains in Gila and Maricopacounties (FWS 1992), and where the ranges of Agavetoumeyana var. bella and Agave chrystantha overlap(See Appendix), in eastern Maricopa County and PinalCounty (Kearney and Peebles 1960).Assessment: Arizona agave is extremely unlikely to occur in theproject area, which is outside the altitudinal range of thisspecies and does not support the vegetation communitieswith which this plant is associated.Arizona Cliffrose (Purshia [Cowania] subintegra)Status: Listed endangered without designated critical habitat.Habitat: Grows only on white limestone deposits at approximately2,500 to 3,500 feet elevation (FWS 1998, Kearney andPeebles 1960).Substrate: Limestone deposits and associated white soils (FWS1998).Range: Mohave, Yavapai, and Graham counties, and theHorseshoe Lake area in northern Maricopa County(FWS 1998, 1992).Assessment: Arizona cliffrose is extremely unlikely to occur in theproject area, which is outside the altitudinal range of thisspecies and does not support the vegetation communitieswith which this plant is associated.Arizona Hedgehog Cactus (Echinocereus triglochidiatus var.arizonicus)Status: Listed endangered without designated critical habitat.Habitat: Madrean Evergreen Woodland and Interior Chaparralecotone, and grassland at 3,400 to 5,300 feet elevation(FWS 1998, AGFD 1997c). Usually rugged terrain insteep canyons, growing from cracks in boulders andunder shrubs on rocky substrates (AGFD 1997c).Substrate: Granite rich in Orthoclase, volcanic tuft, dacite, andpossibly rhyolite (AGFD 1997c).Range: Maricopa, Gila, and Pinal counties (FWS 1998, 1992).Assessment: Arizona hedgehog cactus is extremely unlikely to occurin the project area, which is outside the altitudinal rangeof this species and does not support the vegetationcommunities with which this plant is associated.Wildlife of Special Concern in ArizonaWestern Least Bittern (Ixobrachus exilis hesperis)Status: Wildlife species of special concern.Habitat: Breed in dense, tall cattail marshes (AGFD 1996,DeGraaf and Rappole 1995).Diet: Food habits unavailable for this subspecies. However, inNew Mexico, Ixobrachus exilis exilis feeds on a varietyof invertebrates (worms, molluscs, crustaceans, andinsects) , and vertebrates (small birds and eggs, fishes,amphibians, and small rodents) (BISON-M 1998).Range: Along the lower Colorado River, a few locations alongthe Gila River below the Salt River confluence, PicachoReservoir, and Dankworth Ponds south of Safford(BISON-M 1998, AGFD 1996).Residence: Permanent.Assessment: Western least bittern has been observed in the projectarea. Flood control activities such as clearing, dredging,and channelization are thought to adversely affectwestern least bittern (BISON-M 1998, AGFD 1988).Project planners should compare the potential impacts ofconstruction activities in habitat for this species to thebenefits gained from project goals and objectives.Yellow-billed Cuckoo (Coccyzus americanus occidentalis)Status: Wildlife species of special concern.Habitat: Mature cottonwood and willow stands, and mesquitebosques (AGFD 1998b, 1996), where moisture issufficient to sustain emergent aquatic vegetation ordeciduous interior strands (BISON-M 1998).Diet: Chiefly insects, and also bird eggs and fruit (AGFD1998b, 1996).DIBBLE & ASSOCIATES 42 DURANGO ADMPDATA COLLECTION REPORT