The Continental Valley
Nestled among the sunflowers are hundreds of prairie dog burrows comprising one the largest urban prairie dog towns in Flagstaff. Hawks and eagles fly overhead, their sharp eyes seeking prairie dogs or any of the many other wildlife species that live in prairie dog burrows. (Do you see the hawks in the picture?). An occasional coyote strolls the valley, also in pursuit of prey. Elaborate mixtures of rodents, rabbits, birds, snakes, lizards and insects can be found here. The prairie dog burrows provide dens, protection front predators and hibernating space for other small animals. This is my place of the heart. It is the Continental Valley.
The Continental Valley is the name I have given to the land that stretches from Interstate 40 south to Walnut Canyon Road. The valley is bordered on the west by development and on the east by state land. Elk used to travel across the valley daily on their way to browse the grass of the golf course. With their way cut off now by ball fields, apartments, townhouses and the Christmas Tree Farm, they only occasionally join the coyote at dawn. Just north of Walnut Canyon Road are the Continental ball fields. Two summers ago I joined other volunteers, Arizona Game & Fish, and Parks and Recreation staff in an effort to persuade the prairie dogs who lived adjacent to the ball fields to stop burrowing into the ball fields to eat the grass. The prairie dogs, like the elk, find an easy meal. In the fall I participated in trapping the prairie dogs who were still coming into the fields for meals. They were sent to the black-footed ferret reintroduction project in the Aubrey Valley near Seligman. There, they were euphemized and fed to the black-footed ferrets or released live into the holding pens where the black-footed ferrets were leaning to hunt in the wild. At least those 350 or so prairie dogs contributed to taking the black-footed ferret off the endangered species list. Parks and Recreation staff gased any prairie dogs in the immediate area of the ball fields who continued to burrow into the fields for meals.
So, you see, I know what happens when prairie dogs and ball fields occupy the same territory. The existing ball fields are in the south part of the Continental Valley while the north part of the valley is still a safe harbor for wildlife. The City of Flagstaff has recently purchased or traded for most of the north part of the Continental Valley that occupies a special place in my heart. I suspect that the valley has a special place in many people’s hearts. While working with the prairie dogs around the ball fields, I saw many people walking the valley everyday. My husband reminded me of the years that we spent as grandparents of baseball players in the Continental Little League. My husband was a coach for many years and I was a scorekeeper. The walkers and the baseball community have seen many beautiful sunsets, heard the prairie dogs bark, and seen the hawks overhead.
The Continental Valley has the possibility for a watchable wildlife site. The characteristics of a good watchable wildlife site will he developed soon. We already know two of those characteristics: the site must he large enough that people will not chase away the wildlife and the site must be contiguous with undeveloped land. The north part of the Continental Valley is a large enough site and the east side of the Continental Valley is a forested hill, which is part of a section of land owned by the state of Arizona. The trees on the hill and the land to the east provide habitat for the raptors and mammals that find prey and forage in the valley. If a watchable wildlife site becomes a reality in the valley, the keystone species of prairie dogs who live there in the hundreds can survive along with the many species they support. The British Broadcasting System recognized their value when they filmed the prairie dogs there last fall as part of a series on animal communication.
I recognize and appreciate, along with many other citizens of Flagstaff, the beauty and value of the Continental Valley. It is my place of the heart.