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Tucson Audubon Society
Getting a Bird's Eye View
by Ann Phillips, Manager of Habitat
Restoration Projects
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The nonprofit organization LightHawk transformed our view of the world this winter, donating airplane flights over four areas important to Tucson Audubon’s restoration and conservation efforts.
LightHawk provides this incredible service to nonprofit environmental organizations (see www.lighthawk.org for more information). The process starts when an environmental group submits a proposal to LightHawk specifying the goals, location, dates, and passengers of proposed flights. LightHawk reviews the requests and matches the environmental group with an experienced pilot from their extensive network of volunteers. Will Worthington piloted all our flights with great skill, flying from his home base in Scottsdale to pick up designated passengers at Tucson and Nogales area airports.
LightHawk is in its 25th year of "Championing environmental protection through the unique perspective of flight." Sama Blackwell, LightHawk Program Manager for the Rocky Mountain region, worked closely with Tucson Audubon staff to arrange the winter flights:
- January 19, Lower Santa Cruz River at, and downstream of, the North Simpson Restoration Site west of Marana.
- January 28, Raptor nest survey on the upper Santa Cruz River for the Important Bird Area Program between the U.S./Mexico border and Amado.
- March 3, Upper Santa Cruz River including the Esperanza Ranch site, Nogales Wastewater Treatment Plant, and Sonoita Creek.
- March 22, The Mason Audubon Center, Cochie Spring restoration site in the Tortolita Mountains, and large areas of developed land in northwest Tucson.
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Nature photographer John Hoffman, generously volunteered to chronicle each flight, leaning out the open window of a 4-seater plane, snapping off roll after roll of film. His enthusiasm never waned even when Tucson Audubon staff asked to "Circle the site again, a little lower this time…, now circle it again…."
The photographs and perspectives gained from these flights are invaluable to restoration and conservation efforts, documenting work accomplished, habitat condition, and the context of sites in the larger landscape.
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This page was updated on 02/22/06