JULY 14-15 AES WILDLIFE HABITAT WORK PROJECT

[rthrbhntng]

Get out of the heat and enjoy the Mogollon Rim area near Clint’s Wells, AZ., while restoring and improving wildlife habitat. www.arizonaelksociety.org

 

July 14-15th. This is the weekend for the Arizona Elk Society Buck Springs volunteer work project. Buck Springs, which is in the Coconino National Forest north of Payson, is a unique place with very high value for wildlife. The area is home to a great elk population as well as turkeys, bears, songbirds, native fish and a host of other important wildlife species. One of the keys to making a good place into a great place for wildlife and wildlife enthusiasts is helping to restore the function of the wet meadows that are so important to wildlife. At one time, these meadows acted like giant sponges and stored moisture, slowly leaking the water into the creeks, maintaining the riparian community. Many of these meadows and the associated riparian areas are overrun with young pine trees that are invading these meadows. Unless removed, in time, the meadows will be entirely overrun with pines and the water storage role for the meadows will be lost. In a cooperative venture, volunteers from the Arizona Elk Society, the Forest Service, and Game and Fish will cut these trees down, lop the limbs off, and stack them into piles so they can be burned when dried. There are thousands of trees to remove and the more help we get, the more that can be done. As a result of removing these trees, the meadows will be more open again and the ecological function of the meadows improved. If you enjoy time in the forest, here is a chance to give something back and make the forest a healthier place for wildlife and for your next visit. The Arizona Elk Society will provide meals on Friday evening, all day Sat, and Sunday breakfast and lunch. If fishing and wildlife viewing is your thing this is the area to do it. If you would like to carpool please let us know. We need 60-80 volunteers in camp for this weekend work project event. Go to www.arizonaelksociety.org for full project details. Please sign up online, www.arizonaelksociety.org We need an accurate count for food for the weekend.

Steve