It is widely accepted that human disturbances have altered the form and function of the ecological landscape in the southwestern United States. A tremendous amount of energy has been expended in a cycle of blame and denial, an exercise with little ecological significance. Many people believe that if the cause of the change can be identified and removed then these landscapes will return to their pre-disturbance conditions. Unfortunately, this does not hold true for ecological systems. We have learned that ecological systems have thresholds, and that once a system has moved through a threshold, "recovery" to a previous condition is not a linear event. Thus the removal of a disturbance such as livestock grazing from a landscape dominated by brush will probably not lead to a change back to its original condition as a grassland. Although the concept of restoration is not a reliable goal, we can still improve or remediate our landscapes. The goal of remediation is to change the function and form of ecological systems and bring them closer to a desired condition. The desired condition is often expressed in terms of biodiversity or ecological process such as watershed function or recovery mechanisms. Although many people are not comfortable with this anthropocentric definition, it is practical and useful. In the practice of remediation the past only offers a hazy picture of potential future conditions, what is truly important is the current conditions.   By definition, remediation requires the expenditure of human time, money and labor. Because of the inherent constraint on these resources, remediation efforts need to be focused on opportunities that will yield the greatest results for the resources expended. This leads us to the concept of a trigger site. A trigger site is a landscape location or a remediation opportunity where a human disturbance will spread and trigger a chain reaction of positive ecological change. These are often physical areas with the potential of being moved through a threshold because they have a higher than average concentration of water and nutrients, such as riparian areas. Trigger sites may also be opportunities involving keystone species, or species whose reintroduction or removal will cause a substantial part of the ecological community to change. Keystone species in our ranches include mesquite, juniper, salt cedar, beaver, prairie dogs and wolves.   These pages describe potential remediation projects categorized as involving Riparian Areas, Species Reintroduction, Species Control, and the Alteration of the Distribution of Water and Nutrients over the Landscape.   In the southwest, riparian areas (places with exceptional concentrations of water) are extremely important. Healthy riparian areas provide habitat, shade, food, water, and protection to the largest assemblage of species on the ranches. The vegetation layers, dead trees, and multiple edges (zones where habitat types come together) of riparian areas create a mosaic of subhabitats, and support many different species because they can avoid competition by using different zones in the vegetation profile. The swampy water and leafy surfaces attract swarms of insects, which support birds and bats. Decaying trees contain wood boring insects that are food for woodpeckers, and provide cavities that are habitat for squirrels, owls, and other animals. Riparian areas also function as corridors for ungulates and their predators, and are staging areas for migrating bird. The streams provide habitat for fish and amphibians, as well as water-dependent species such as beaver, ducks, and geese. For an enlarged view, Click on the picture. Streams & Arroyos The main drainages with existing riparian areas or potential are the Tierra Blanca, Jaralosa, Berrenda and Macho Creeks located on the Lake Valley, Berrenda and Double Lightening Ranches. Cougar Mountain Ranch and Deer Canyon Preserve do not have any drainage with significant riparian potential. The drainages mentioned run the gamut from perennial flow areas to ephemeral flow areas to dry arroyos. It is believed that ephemeral flow areas may be improved to attain perennial flow and that certain parts of arroyos may show ephemeral flows. Remediation efforts in riparian areas will consist of a livestock grazing regime, pole plantings and improving some stream structures. The grazing regime is designed to promote growth of riparian vegetation by: 1) providing yearlong rest to critical areas, 2) restricting areas to dormant season use, and 3) limiting growing season use to brief periods of time. Pole plantings will be limited to areas that may not be subject to natural colonization of riparian vegetation because of rapid erosion. Steam structures, including beaver dams, are intended to pool water and allow for the deposition of silt. Many areas have been eroded down to bedrock and will require the deposition of soil before riparian vegetation may be established. For an enlarged view, Click on the picture. Wetland Areas Lake Valley Ranch receives its name from a two shallow lakes that were drained and put into farmland about a century ago. Heritage Ranch Institute has initiated a long term project, with the help of a variety of agencies, which has taken the lands out of farmland and returned them to ephemeral wetlands. Historically, the flood flow from Berrenda Creek filled the wetlands during the monsoon season. This water remained in the wetland system for months if not years and slowly soaked into the soil. The water then resurfaced below the wetlands to initiate the perennial flow portion of Berrenda Creek. When the land was put into farming, levees were built which pushed the flow of water down the drainage eliminating any water storage capacity. The goal for these wetlands is to reverse the function of the levees and return the water capture and storage function of the area. Towards this end, HRI has participated with the US Fish & Wildlife Service in the Partners for Wildlife program and the Natural Resources Conservation Service in the Wetland Reserve Program. Under the Partners program we were able to use heavy equipment to change the function of the levees to dams so that flood waters now flow into the wetlands which have a storage capacity of about 400 acre feet. Under the Wetland Reserve Program we have permanently removed this area from any future, non-prescriptive, agricultural use. Future remediation work on these wetlands includes: * Rehabilitation work under the Wetland Reserve Program with the Natural Resource Conservation Service (NCRS), which has allocated $75,000 for work to improve dams and make potholes. * Heritage Ranch has applied to the US Fish and Wildlife Service for a grant to do further wetland restoration work that compliments the work that has been in planning with NRCS for the past 3 years. This project includes creating islands and channels in an old lake bed, and planting trees (cottonwood, willow) and other vegetation into the islands, to help create a mature plant community in a shorter period of time. * We plan to apply for a larger grant from USFWS to improve other stretches of Berrenda Creek. For an enlarged view, Click on the picture. Seeps All the ranches contain small areas with riparian potential which may not have any surface flow. These seep areas can support islands of riparian habitat in places with no other habitat of this type. The first step in managing seeps is simply to identify their location. This may only be possible during wet periods or during a string of wet years. Seeps can be recognized during dry times by the presence of historic and prehistoric artifacts and remnant riparian vegetation. The remnant vegetation may include deer muhly and sacaton grasses, baccharis bushes, or willow, cottonwood or hackberry trees. Once these areas are located, the goal is to increase riparian vegetation which will shade the area and reduce evaporation losses. This may be accomplished with changes to the livestock grazing regime, which may include growing season rest. Construction of enclosures may be justified if a seep is located in an area where the overall riparian potential is not great enough to justify major changes to the grazing program. In some cases pole plantings may be accomplished when soil moisture is adequate.   Beaver Reintroduction As part of the plan to remediate our riparian areas, we are planning an experimental beaver reintroduction project. Beavers are a keystone species because they maintain wetlands that prevent erosion and flooding, raise the water table, purify water, and are habitat for many aquatic and aquatic-dependent species. To create their own habitats, beavers construct lodges, dams, and canals, which spread a shallow stream into a pond. When a stream is broken by a series of beaver dams, the stream becomes a necklace of ponds and marshes. By slowing the water, streamside plant growth is increased, attracting insects, aquatic animals, and predators. Beavers also remove shoreline trees to obtain forage (they eat the bark and cambium of trees such as willow and poplar). This allows sunlight to penetrate and encourages growth of willow and cottonwood seedlings that have been waiting in the understory. The result is an acceleration of the aging process of the forest around the beaver ponds. Beavers are native to pond and lake environments, and at one time were common throughout the United States. Because of hunting and trapping they were nearly eliminated from most of their original habitats. They are currently listed by BLM as a rare species in Sierra, Hidalgo, Dona Ana, and Grant Counties. We plan to introduce one or two adults into either Berrenda or Jarlosa Creek, and monitor the outcomes. Beavers are extremely industrious, and we may have to install flow devices to release water from excessive damming, and some trees may be wrapped with wire to modify treecutting behavior. For an enlarged view, Click on the picture. Leopard Frog Reintroduction The Chiricahua leopard frog is a threatened species, and is native to Luna, Sierra, Catron, Grant, and Hidalgo Counties. The frog is very threatened rangewide from water diversions that cause habitat destruction and fragmentation, from degraded water quality, and from competition and depredation from bullfrogs. At this time no Chiricahua leopard frogs have been observed at the ranches. However, it is believed that the current conditions of the riparian areas are sufficient to support populations of the frog. The chief constraint to a healthy population is believed to be an abundant population of bullfrogs. Once the bullfrogs have been controlled, reintroduction of the leopard frog may be feasible. For an enlarged view, Click on the picture. Rio Grande Chub Augmentation This fish occurs in the coolwater reaches of the Rio Grande and Pecos Rivers, and is found in impoundments and pools of small streams. Pools connected by rapids are important habitat, as it spawns in riffles. The greatest threat to the Rio Grande chub is habitat destruction and channelization, where riffles needed for breeding are absent. The perennial portion of Berrenda Creek located on the Lake Valley Ranch is home to a large population of Rio Grande suckers. It was thought that this habitat also offered an opportunity to establish another foothold for the Rio Grande chub. A biologist working with the Ladder Ranch visited the site and confirmed this opportunity. Staff members at the New Mexico Department of Game and Fish and Ladder Ranch were contracted to arrange a reintroduction. In February 1999, specimens of the Rio Grande chub were taken from the Ladder Ranch and released into Berrenda Creek. In the fall of 1999, several of these fish were observed to have survived. A structured follow up monitoring needs to be conducted to verify the success of this early reintroduction effort and to define the need for additional augmentation of the population with other reintroductions. Riparian restoration efforts along Berrenda and Jarlosa Creeks should be designed to expand habitat for the chub. For an enlarged view, Click on the picture. Yellow-billed Cuckoo Augmentation The yellow-billed cuckoo is a candidate species for the threatened and endangered list, and a subspecies, western yellow-billed cuckoo, is recognized and fully protected in New Mexico. In the west, the yellow-billed cuckoo inhabits unfragmented riparian areas, requiring patches of at least 25 acres of riparian forests, nesting in mature willows. The primary threat to the yellow-billed cuckoo is loss, degradation, and fragmentation of riparian habitat. The yellow-billed cuckoo has a good chance of increasing its numbers if riparian habitats are restored, especially in sites having an area of at least 100 to 200 acres. Although riparian habitat has declined an estimated 90 percent in New Mexico, a suitable riparian forest of willows and cottonwoods exists along the Berrenda Creek, and the yellow-billed cuckoo is a known inhabitant of this area. Hawks Aloft, Inc., conducts bird surveys twice each year at the Lake Valley Ranch, and the yellow-billed cuckoo is listed as uncommon and nesting. There is an opportunity to increase the cuckoo population by restoring additional riparian habitat at Berrenda and Jarlosa Creeks. For an enlarged view, Click on the picture. Black-tailed Prairie Dog Augmentation The black-tailed prairie dog is a keystone species that is critical to the survival of many other species. Prairie dogs provide burrow habitat for a variety of species including burrowing owls, mountain plovers, and the black-footed ferret. The black-tailed prairie dog was extirpated from southern New Mexico almost 100 years ago (it is a candidate species for the threatened and endangered list), although specimens still can be obtained in northern parts of the state. Historical records describe large populations of prairie dogs at the Lake Valley area, and inspection of lowland draw sites reveals large numbers of remnant burrows. These remnant burrows are seen as a major source of erosion in these sites. Two populations of prairie dogs have been reintroduced to a lowland draw site at Lake Valley Ranch. The first event, occurring in 2001, was unsuccessful due to excessive losses to predators. A secondary reintroduction occurring in 2002 has been more successful. An opportunity exists to augment the existing population with another reintroduction, and to place additional populations in similar sites on the ranch. For an enlarged view, Click on the picture. Gunnison's Prairie Dog Similar to the black-tailed prairie dog, the Gunnison's