About Las Cienegas
Numerous invaluable streams and perennial springs include portions of Cienega Creek, where water flows year round. Significant portions of the Creek's watershed also provides important regional groundwater recharge and flood prevention measures for the community of Tucson. The Las Cienegas NCA includes a variety of unique and rare vegetative communities including five of the rarest habitat types in the American Southwest: cienegas (marshlands), cottonwood-willow riparian forests, sacaton grasslands, mesquite bosques, and semi-desert grasslands.
These vegetative communities on the NCA support a diverse assemblage of plants and animals; species include 60 mammals, 230 birds, 43 reptiles and amphibians, and three native fish. Included in this list are 33 species which are federally listed as threatened or endangered, identified as species of special concern by the State of Arizona, or designated as sensitive species by the BLM. Among the special status species are the endangered Gila topminnow, lesser long-nosed bat, and southwestern willow flycatcher; the Chiricahua leopard frog, proposed for endangered species listing; and the Gila chub, a candidate for federal listing. Large game animals include mule and white-tailed deer, pronghorn antelope, javelina, and mountain lion.
Las Cienegas Facts
- Location: Arizona
- Size: 42,000 acres
- Date: President Clinton signed a bill creating the Las Cienegas National Conservation Area (NCA) and Acquisition Planning District in southeastern Arizona on December 6, 2000
- Managing Agency: The Bureau of Land Management
