Arizona Wildlife Resource

05/31/2026

If you live in rural Eloy this is the plant blooming in the water retention area right now.

It's a beneficial pollinator that needs little to no maintnance.

On top of it being green and flowering when we haven't had rain in months.... it's also a pollinator and has lots of moths and butterflies that make walks more enjoyable.

Please help preserve this species in town. It also helps nesting quail, bunnies, provides insect food for songbirds and nighthawks, and the more we rip it out the more problem plant and insect species move in.

Burrowweed (Isocoma tenuisecta) is beneficial for people and wildlife. These are shrubs, usually about 2-3’ tall, with very nectar rich, golden flowers occurring in fall. Flowers are followed by floofy material with seeds. Though the plants can look unruly when not flowering, they are fantastic when in bloom and an important wildlife plant.

Plant in full to part sun, low water when established. Most species hardy to at least 10°F.

This is an important fall blooming nectar source for numerous butterflies, bees, and other pollinators. Larval host for the Gumweed Plume Moth (Dejongia californicus), the snout moth Diastictis sperryorum, the American Sunflower Moth (Homoeosoma electella), and the Snakeweed Borer Moth (Pelochrista ridingsana). Birds use the floofy seed stuff to build nests.

Important medicinal plant (used internally and externally) where the genus occurs.

Isocoma tenuisecta is the most common species found around Tucson and Phoenix. Naturally found on dry slopes, mesas, and alluvial plains from 2,000-5,500’.

05/30/2026

Maybe one day I'll get her to bloom until climb up this Mesquite to the biggest night blooming cerris in the world... and I probably butchered the spelling and might even have the plant species wrong but either way I'm happy that this is still alive. Thanks!

05/27/2026

I can either let these spots roll around in my head and stew about them.... that doesn't help anybody so I'm going to share them instead. I hope this post inspires more people to push back on for vegetation removal that hurt native Wildlife. Yes we need to get rid of the invasive problematic weeds, but blanket clearing is only gonna create more problems.

05/26/2026

This is a Velvet Mesquite tall pot tree grown by Russel Freeman with Arbor Green Landscape out of Florence, Arizona. This tree was planted in February 2023, and the water has been off for over a year.

If you’re looking for restoration trees, this is definitely someone worth supporting. One of the biggest problems with many nursery trees is the roots become confined and dependent on constant irrigation. These trees were grown with long-term survival in mind so they can eventually transition off supplemental water and establish deeper root systems more naturally.

Native plants provide critical habitat for our native ecology, and every tree I’ve purchased from Russ has been a success on my projects.

I hope this inspires more people to help restore habitat by planting native trees from local nurseries that truly care about conservation and long-term sustainability.

05/24/2026

Every single year, I see massive vegetation removals happening during nesting season.

Sometimes it’s construction projects. Sometimes it’s city-enforced property cleanups. Sometimes it’s large HOA maintenance projects.

The one thing many of them have in common is little to no regard for nesting season unless members of the public step in, stop the work, and show them the legal protections.

Many birds return to the same trees and nesting areas year after year after year.

Once nesting habitat is destroyed, the damage is already done.

We need more people documenting and marking active nesting before it’s destroyed. And when illegal nesting destruction happens, these companies and organizations need to be reported. That only happens when the public is paying attention.

Please check out the self-reporting tools and wildlife resources on our website so you can help share information within your community.

The more habitat we protect, the more biodiversity we preserve — and the healthier our communities become.

05/23/2026

I'm not a pruner. I mean, I like prunes they're definitely good for digestion, but they need to stay away from the trees.

The trees need leaves and when they drop them, it's their fertilizer, and they grow exactly how they're supposed to grow.

Every bit of bracing or chopping that you do thinking you're helping is really just stunting the plant and collapsing the biodiversity around it.

Let plants grow the way they want to grow. It's better for the plant. It's better for the habitat. It's better for the ecology in the end.

It'll save a lot of money in time.

I want to think my friend Russel Freeman out of Florence Arizona with Arbor Green landscapes for providing the native tall pot trees. Having the extended tap root definitely is what helped get these trees established quickly.

05/22/2026

Wild At Heart is the only Organization that I know in Arizona actually building supplemental habitat for active trans Location projects. Not only are they removing burrowing owls and their eggs from dangerous sites, but they are also tagging them for research. Building them habitats in areas where farms have agreed to not use poison and acclimating them to those areas with temporary tenting and supplemental food as they adjust. Greg Clark has over 7000 habitats made. If anybody's interested, I suggest you learn from them while the opportunities is still available.

05/20/2026

It's so tough being in Wildlife conservation right now. Massive development is always been an issue and we're in hyper mode now. Please help advocate for the Wildlife. Put up nesting. Plant a native tree. Put out some native flowers and register nesting sites on our webpage before they get run over and simply help advocate for the animals. Whatever, happens to them eventually happens to us.