Tortolita Preserve First Ever Plant & Animal List

Submitted by Dave DeGroot, Cohort 2

Click on this link to view list: Tortolita Preserve Plant and Animal List

The Tortolita Preserve was established in 2009, to preserve Sonoran Desert monumental-sized Saguaros, Ironwood trees, and habitat that exemplifies desert valley ecosystems. It is located on the Tortolita Fan, part of the Tortolita Mountain Range, in the area of Marana known as Dove Mountain. The Tortolita Preserve land is owned by the State of Arizona Land Dept. and is leased and managed by the Town of Marana – Marana Parks and Recreation. In 2021 the Tortolita Alliance was formed to protect the Preserve after a proposal for re-zoning the land would have allowed strips of commercial development to be established within the present borders.

The 2,400-acre Tortolita Preserve’s entrance is located at 6250 W. Moore Road in Marana. A new public entrance and parking lot at that location was opened on Oct. 28, 2023. This area is thick with native Sonoran Desert vegetation and abundant Saguaro cactus. It is popular for walking, hiking, easy/beginner mountain biking, horse back riding, bird watching, and nature photography. 

The first-ever Tortolita Preserve Plant and Animal List (which is still a “work in progress”) was the result of about three years of work by the following people/groups:
1) Dave DeGroot and Ethan Fraijo, 2021-2023,
2) Observations in the eBird “Hotspot,” mostly in 2021 and 2022
3) Master Naturalists working with Marana Parks and Recreation and three other major agencies in BioBlitz #1, 11/19/20/22
4) Master Naturalists in BioBlitz #2, 4/15/2023

This list has been distributed, so far, by two advocacy organizations, to about 1,000 individuals, and a softcover book is being planned for release in 2024.

Arizona Master Naturalists discovered and confirmed the important Mountain Lion observation on this list.
The Ferruginous Pygmy Owl was observed and confirmed approximately 30 years ago.