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In this issue, we focus on the hope inspired by you, the park’s supporters; on wildlife sightings by park advocates and Friends of Rio Vista partners; and on a new project to tackle the looming threat of invasive plant species.
Thank You, Rio Vista Supporters: Hope in the New Year
A new year of turmoil and radical change … Those of us who love wild places need all the hope that we can find. Thanks to you, all of us at Friends of Rio Vista are brimming with it.
We’re sustained by new donations — and new forms of financial support from our long-term donors. New volunteers and new advisors have stepped up, building our capacity for conservation on the ground and in government. New partnerships are leading to new projects (for example, read about Rio Vista Weed Watchers, below).
This is how we say no to the forces that try to divide us. This is how we say yes to life in all its forms. Thank you for being with us.
Coyotes in Action: A Video Clip from Wild Rio Vista
Late last month, park supporters Sara and Tom Grimm were walking the trails at Rio Vista when they heard and then spotted a group of coyotes greeting each other. Sara kindly shared her video of the encounter. Now you can see it, too. Thank you, Sara and Tom!
Do you have photographs or video of Rio Vista wildlife that you’d like to share? Please e-mail us at FriendsofRioVistaNRP@gmail.com.
Deer in the Park? Mysterious Scat
On New Year’s Day, park supporter Josh Freeman photographed some unusual-looking wildlife scat in the grass near Shannon Wash, on the east side of the park’s natural area. Josh thought that the pellets were too large for desert cottontails (Sylvilagus audubonii) and that they might be from a mule deer (Odocoileus hemionus). Mule deer have been seen in the Rillito near the Country Club bridge, but we aren’t aware of reports from Rio Vista. Thank you, Josh, for alerting us to this find!
Have you seen deer in the park? And can anyone confirm the identification of this scat? Please e-mail us at FriendsofRioVistaNRP@gmail.com if you have answers.
Rio Vista Weed Watchers: A New Partnership Project
Friends of Rio Vista is launching a new project in our Ecosystem Restoration program. The Rio Vista Weed Watchers Project is a collaboration among Friends of Rio Vista, Tucson Bird Alliance (formerly Tucson Audubon Society), the Arizona-Sonora Desert Museum, and the University of Arizona Cooperative Extension. The project will locate and map invasive plants in Rio Vista Natural Resource Park and will be powered by trained volunteers. Gary Bachman, Friends of Rio Vista conservation advisor, leads the project.
Through ad hoc and systematic surveys, Rio Vista Weed Watchers volunteers will record data on locations and extent of several species of invasive plants (including stinknet) that threaten the Rio Vista ecosystem. Friends of Rio Vista will compile and analyze the data and will report them periodically to the Tucson Parks and Recreation Department and to Tucson Bird Alliance. Plans can then be made for removing individual plants or stands of invasives. Data collection will cover the entire area of the park. Thank you, Gary and Weed Watchers volunteers!
Birding Field Trips at the Park: A Contribution from Tucson Bird Alliance
Our partners at Tucson Bird Alliance (formerly Tucson Audubon Society) are leading birding field trips at Rio Vista again in 2025. Registration is through the Tucson Bird Alliance website, and their members are given priority in signing up for each bird walk. Trips are led by Scott Olmstead and Gary Bachman. If you’d like to know what birds were seen at the park on these bird walks in 2024, check out the list on the Friends of Rio Vista website. And you can find out the seasonal distribution of Rio Vista birds with this bar chart on eBird. Thank you, Gary and Scott, for sharing your data and making these trips possible!