Tag: Arizona

Arizona, located in the southwestern region of the United States, is renowned for its diverse landscapes and cultural richness. Home to iconic natural wonders such as the Grand Canyon, Monument Valley, and the red rocks of Sedona, Arizona offers a dramatic and varied terrain that ranges from arid deserts to pine-covered mountains. The state’s climate is typically characterized by hot summers and mild winters, with the southern parts being desert-like while the northern regions experience a more temperate climate. Arizona is also rich in Native American history, with numerous tribes such as the Navajo, Hopi, and Apache having deep roots in the region. The state’s cities, including Phoenix and Tucson, blend modern urban life with a strong appreciation for the natural environment and cultural heritage. Arizona’s economy thrives on tourism, technology, and agriculture, making it a dynamic and multifaceted state.

Hoover Dam

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Hoover Damn Bypass seen from the top with Hoover Damn. Photo by James L Rathbun
Hoover Damn Bypass seen from the top with Hoover Damn. Photo by James L Rathbun

Hoover Dam (originally authorized as Boulder Dam or the Boulder Canyon Project) is a concrete arch-gravity dam in Black Canyon on the Colorado River, on the Arizona–Nevada border about 30 miles southeast of Las Vegas. Built between 1931 and 1936 during the Great Depression, it stands 726.4 feet high, stretches 1,244 feet along its crest, is 660 feet thick at the base and 45 feet at the crest, and contains about 3.25 million cubic yards of concrete (roughly 4.4 million cubic yards including appurtenant works). It creates Lake Mead, one of the largest reservoirs in the United States by capacity (historically around 28–32 million acre-feet depending on sedimentation surveys and measurement basis).

Why It Was Built

Hoover Dam takes shape from the concrete columns in which it was poured (shot from cableway control tower downstream on Nevada rim, so looking upstream)
Hoover Dam takes shape from the concrete columns in which it was poured (shot from cableway control tower downstream on Nevada rim, so looking upstream)

In the early 20th century, the Colorado River was both a vital resource and a destructive force for the arid Southwest. Seasonal floods devastated farmland (most dramatically in 1905–1907, when the river broke through irrigation canals and created the Salton Sea in California’s Imperial Valley), while dry periods left water supplies unreliable. Growing cities such as Los Angeles needed dependable municipal water, and the region sought hydroelectric power to support development.

The U.S. Bureau of Reclamation (then the Reclamation Service) saw a large multipurpose dam as the solution: flood control, irrigation water storage and delivery (including via the later All-American Canal to the Imperial and Coachella Valleys), municipal supply, river regulation, and hydropower. Power sales were intended to make the project self-supporting by repaying construction costs. Early advocates included Arthur Powell Davis of the Reclamation Service. Herbert Hoover, as Secretary of Commerce, strongly supported the project and helped resolve interstate water disputes.

A major political obstacle was allocating the river’s water among the seven basin states (Wyoming, Colorado, Utah, New Mexico, Arizona, Nevada, and California). Upper Basin states feared Lower Basin (especially California) development would claim most of the water under prior-appropriation rules. In 1922, Hoover chaired negotiations that produced the Colorado River Compact. It divided the basin at Lee Ferry, Arizona, allocating 7.5 million acre-feet annually to each basin (with the Lower Basin allowed an additional 1 million acre-feet under certain conditions) and requiring the Upper Basin not to deplete flows at Lee Ferry below 75 million acre-feet over any 10-year period. Arizona initially refused to ratify; the Compact became effective after six states approved it.

Photograph of the Hoover Dam (formerly Boulder Dam) from Across the Colorado River; From the series Ansel Adams Photographs of National Parks and Monuments, compiled 1941 - 1942, documenting the period ca. 1933 - 1942
Photograph of the Hoover Dam (formerly Boulder Dam) from Across the Colorado River; From the series Ansel Adams Photographs of National Parks and Monuments, compiled 1941 – 1942, documenting the period ca. 1933 – 1942

Congress authorized the project via the Boulder Canyon Project Act, signed by President Calvin Coolidge on December 21, 1928. The Act ratified the Compact (with California limited to 4.4 million acre-feet of the Lower Basin share), authorized the dam and related works (including the All-American Canal), and apportioned Lower Basin water roughly as California 4.4 million acre-feet, Arizona 2.8 million, and Nevada 0.3 million. President Hoover proclaimed the Compact effective in 1929. A later 1944 treaty allocated 1.5 million acre-feet annually to Mexico.

How the Site Was Chosen

Surveys of potential dam sites along the lower Colorado began in the early 1900s. The 1922 Fall-Davis Report recommended a high dam “at or near Boulder Canyon.” Boulder Canyon sites offered strong granite foundations but presented problems: one was crossed by a geologic fault; others were too narrow for construction camps or spillways; accessibility was poorer; and depth to bedrock was greater in places.

Further investigations (including the Weymouth Report) compared Boulder and nearby Black Canyon (about 20 miles downstream). Black Canyon was selected primarily for practical advantages: greater accessibility (a railroad spur could more easily connect from Las Vegas), shallower depth to solid bedrock in key locations, a narrower gorge with steeper walls, lower construction cost for a given height, and somewhat greater reservoir capacity for the same dam height. Geologic conditions were judged adequate (though Boulder’s granite was sometimes rated superior for load-bearing). The project retained the “Boulder Canyon” name even after the site shift. An independent Colorado River Board later confirmed the upper Black Canyon site.

The design chosen was a massive concrete arch-gravity dam (convex upstream face), developed under Bureau engineer John L. Savage and others. It transfers water pressure into the canyon walls while relying on its own weight for stability—an ultra-conservative approach after the 1928 St. Francis Dam failure raised safety concerns.

Construction

Six Companies, Inc. (a joint venture of major contractors including Utah Construction, Bechtel, Kaiser, Morrison-Knudsen, and others) won the contract in March 1931 with a bid of about $48.9 million—the largest U.S. government construction contract to that point. Work began in the spring of 1931 under Bureau construction engineer Walker Young and Six Companies superintendent Frank Crowe.

Key challenges included extreme desert heat, isolation, and the need to divert the entire river. Workers blasted four massive diversion tunnels (two on each side of the river, roughly 56 feet in diameter and totaling several miles in length) through the canyon walls. The river was diverted in November 1932. Cofferdams protected the site; the riverbed was excavated to solid rock; and canyon walls were scaled of loose rock. Concrete placement began June 6, 1933, and the last dam concrete was poured May 29, 1935. Cooling pipes embedded in the concrete controlled the heat of hydration so the massive structure would not crack. The dam began impounding water in February 1935, forming Lake Mead. Power generation started in late 1936. The project finished more than two years ahead of the seven-year contract schedule and was dedicated by President Franklin D. Roosevelt on September 30, 1935.

Roughly 21,000 people worked on the project at various times (peak employment over 5,000). Conditions were harsh; official figures record around 96–112 worker deaths from construction accidents (the exact total varies by counting method and whether indirect causes are included). Boulder City was built as a planned community for workers and their families. The dam was initially called Hoover Dam by the Hoover administration, renamed Boulder Dam under Roosevelt, and officially restored as Hoover Dam by Congress in 1947.

The Hoover Damn Bypass Bridge viewed from the Colorado River - Photo by James L Rathbun
The Hoover Damn Bypass Bridge viewed from the Colorado River – Photo by James L Rathbun

Hydropower revenues repaid the federal construction costs decades later. The powerplant (nameplate capacity roughly 2,080 MW after later uprates, with 17 main turbines) has historically supplied electricity to utilities in Arizona, Nevada, and California.

Current Struggles with Low Water

Lake Mead and the broader Colorado River system have been under severe stress from a multi-decade megadrought (intensified by climate change, higher temperatures, and increased evaporation), combined with chronic overuse relative to long-term average flows. The original Compact allocations assumed higher average river flows (around 16–17+ million acre-feet) than the observed long-term average (closer to 14–15 million acre-feet, and significantly lower in recent decades).

As of late August 2026, Lake Mead stood near record-low elevations for the modern period—approximately 1,038.87 feet, about 26% full (storage roughly 6.9 million acre-feet on a ~26 million acre-feet capacity basis used in some daily reporting). This is well below the full-pool elevation of about 1,220 feet and marks new lows relative to recent historical records (surpassing previous lows from 2022 in some metrics). Levels have continued a multi-year decline, with further drops expected until the next major snowmelt runoff.

Low water reduces hydropower generation because lower “head” (water pressure/height above the turbines) decreases output. Capacity falls sharply at lower elevations; generation has already been substantially reduced from historical averages, with further declines projected. Minimum power pool is around 950 feet (with some older turbines limited higher); dead pool (where water can no longer pass the dam by gravity) is about 895 feet. The reservoir remains above these critical thresholds but with a narrowing buffer.

Shortage declarations under existing guidelines have already triggered cuts in Lower Basin deliveries. Federal operating guidelines for 2027–2028 and the post-2026 framework emphasize protecting critical elevations at both Lake Mead and upstream Lake Powell (itself also near or at record lows). Measures include reduced releases from Powell to protect its infrastructure and power generation, mandatory and voluntary reductions in Lower Basin consumptive use (on the order of 1.25 million acre-feet annually plus additional conservation in early years of the new guidelines), and efforts to balance the system. Arizona faces particularly large percentage cuts under priority-based shortage sharing. Power production at Hoover is expected to remain constrained, raising costs for replacement energy and affecting ratepayers.

These challenges highlight the tension between the river’s engineered development (which enabled vast agricultural and urban growth in the Southwest) and the physical limits of a variable, arid basin under climate pressure. Ongoing negotiations among the basin states, tribes, Mexico, and the federal government focus on reducing overall use to match available supply while protecting critical infrastructure and ecosystems.

Hoover Dam remains an engineering landmark, a National Historic Landmark, and a major tourist destination, while continuing to serve its original purposes of flood control, water storage, and power generation—albeit under increasingly constrained hydrologic conditions.

Arthur Powell Davis

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Arthur Powell Davis (February 9, 1861 – August 7, 1933)
Arthur Powell Davis (February 9, 1861 – August 7, 1933)

Arthur Powell Davis (February 9, 1861 – August 7, 1933) was an American civil engineer, hydrographer, topographer, and geographer who played a pivotal role in the early 20th-century development of water resources in the American West. As Director of the U.S. Reclamation Service (predecessor to the Bureau of Reclamation) from 1914 to 1923, he was a leading architect of comprehensive federal plans to control and develop the Colorado River. He is widely regarded as a key conceptual founder of the Boulder Canyon Project (which produced Hoover Dam) and broader multipurpose river-basin development.

Early Life and Education

Davis was born on a farm near Decatur, Illinois, the nephew of the famed explorer and geologist John Wesley Powell (leader of the 1869 Colorado River expedition through the Grand Canyon). His family connections and early exposure to the West shaped his career. He attended local schools and Kansas State Normal School before earning a Bachelor of Science degree in civil engineering from Columbian University (now George Washington University) in Washington, D.C., in 1888.

He married Elizabeth (Preston/Brown) Davis in 1888; they had several daughters. He co-founded the National Geographic Society in 1888 and later held leadership roles in engineering societies. He was elected to the American Academy of Arts and Sciences (1921) and the American Philosophical Society (1927).

Early Career with the U.S. Geological Survey

Through his uncle’s influence, Davis joined the U.S. Geological Survey (USGS) as an assistant topographer around 1882–1884. He worked extensively in the Rocky Mountain region and the Southwest (New Mexico, Arizona, and California), gaining firsthand knowledge of arid lands and the Colorado River Basin. He advanced to topographer and, by 1895, to hydrographer in charge of government stream measurements.

His early international work included hydrographic examinations of potential Nicaragua and Panama Canal routes (late 1890s–early 1900s). He later consulted on irrigation and flood control in Puerto Rico, China, Turkestan (under both Tsarist and Soviet governments), and other regions, and contributed to Panama Canal studies.

Leadership in the Reclamation Service

Davis joined the newly created Reclamation Service (established under the 1902 Reclamation Act) early in its history. He rose to Chief Engineer around 1906–1908 and was appointed Director on December 10, 1914, succeeding Frederick Haynes Newell. He held the post until the agency’s name changed to the Bureau of Reclamation on June 18, 1923; he retired the next day.

Under his leadership the Service built major irrigation and storage works, including the Roosevelt Dam (Salt River), Shoshone and Arrowrock dams (each the world’s tallest at the time of completion), Elephant Butte Dam (Rio Grande), the Gunnison Tunnel, and the Strawberry Tunnel. He was among the first to strongly advocate multipurpose dams in which hydroelectric power generation would help amortize overall project costs—a principle that became central to later federal water development.

Role in Controlling and Developing the Colorado River

Davis’s most enduring contribution was his long-term vision for the Colorado River. Influenced by his uncle’s explorations and his own surveys, he recognized the river’s interstate and international character (flowing through seven U.S. states and into Mexico) and argued that only the federal government could coordinate its development at the necessary scale.

As early as 1902 he publicly called for the “gradual comprehensive development of the Colorado River by a series of large storage reservoirs,” with a high dam on the lower river as the keystone. He promoted basin-wide planning for flood control, irrigation storage, domestic water supply, and power generation rather than fragmented local projects.

In 1922, during his directorship, the Reclamation Service produced the influential report Problems of Imperial Valley and Vicinity (Senate Document 142, 67th Congress), commonly known as the Fall-Davis Report (after Interior Secretary Albert B. Fall and Davis). It examined reservoir sites, justified a high dam in the Boulder Canyon area, analyzed water supply and needs, and provided foundational data used by the Colorado River Compact Commission. The report and Davis’s advocacy helped frame the river’s problems as national in scope and laid groundwork for the Boulder Canyon Project Act and construction of Hoover (originally Boulder) Dam. Contemporaries, including engineers involved in the project, later called him the “father of the Boulder Canyon Project.”

Davis opposed purely local or piecemeal schemes (such as an early standalone All-American Canal proposal) when they conflicted with a coordinated multipurpose federal plan. His emphasis on power revenues to support large storage dams helped make ambitious Colorado River projects financially and politically viable. Shortly before his death he was appointed consulting engineer on the Boulder Dam project. Davis Dam (completed later on the lower Colorado, downstream from Hoover Dam) was named in his honor.

Later Years and Legacy

After leaving the Reclamation Service, Davis served as chief engineer and general manager of the East Bay Municipal Utility District in the Oakland, California, area (roughly 1923–1930). He also worked as a consulting engineer on irrigation projects in the Soviet Union (Turkestan and Transcaucasia) in the early 1930s.

He died in Oakland on August 7, 1933, at age 72 and was buried in Rock Creek Cemetery in Washington, D.C., alongside his wife.

Davis combined technical expertise, bureaucratic skill, and a progressive-era faith in expert-led federal action and efficiency. While he did not live to see Hoover Dam completed, his early vision, surveys, advocacy for multipurpose development, and the Fall-Davis Report were instrumental in transforming the Colorado River from an uncontrolled, flood-prone waterway into a managed system of storage, power, and irrigation infrastructure that shaped the modern American Southwest.

White-nosed Coati (Nasua narica)

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The white-nosed coati (Nasua narica), also known as the coatimundi, white-nosed coatimundi, pizote, antoon, gato solo, or tejón (depending on the region), is a medium-sized member of the raccoon family (Procyonidae). Native to wooded habitats ranging from the southwestern United States through Mexico and Central America to northwestern Colombia, it is distinguished by its long, flexible white-tipped snout, short rounded ears, and a long, slender, ringed tail that it often holds upright for balance. Adults typically weigh 4–6 kg (though males can reach up to 9 kg) and measure about 110 cm from nose to tail tip, with the tail making up roughly half that length. These agile, mostly diurnal omnivores forage on the ground and in trees for insects, fruits, small vertebrates, and other food, using their mobile snouts and strong claws.

A white-nosed Coati photographed on the Yucatan Peninsula. Photo by James L Rathbun
A white-nosed Coati photographed on the Yucatan Peninsula. Photo by James L Rathbun

Scientific Classification

KingdomAnimalia
PhylumChordata
ClassMammalia
OrderCarnivora
FamilyProcyonidae (raccoons and relatives)
GenusNasua
SpeciesNasua narica (Linnaeus, 1766)

Also known as coatimundi, pizote, antoon, or tejón in various Spanish-speaking regions. IUCN status: Least Concern.

Description (Physical Characteristics)

The white-nosed coati is a medium-sized, slender mammal related to raccoons. Head-body length typically ranges from 43–66 cm (17–26 in), with the long, slender, non-prehensile (or semi-prehensile) tail nearly as long (42–68 cm / 17–27 in), for a total length around 85–130 cm (about 3–4.3 ft). Weight is usually 3.5–6 kg (7.7–13 lb), though small females may weigh as little as ~3 kg and large males up to 7–9 kg (15–20 lb). Males are notably larger and about 30% heavier on average than females.

The coat is typically light buff to reddish, grayish, or dark brown, often with yellowish or silvery grizzling, especially on the sides of the arms; underparts are lighter. The distinctive facial markings include a white or pale band/patch around the tip of the long, flexible, slightly upturned snout (the “white nose”), white spots above and below each eye and on the cheeks, and a darker facial mask or band. The short, rounded ears have white interiors. The long tail is often ringed with darker bands (more distinct in juveniles) and is typically held upright while walking or foraging for balance and signaling. Feet have five toes with strong, curved claws suited for digging and climbing; front claws are longer.

The snout is highly mobile and sensitive, adapted for probing leaf litter and crevices. Sense of smell is particularly acute and primary for foraging.

Behavior

White-nosed coatis are primarily diurnal (active by day, especially mornings and late afternoons), unlike many other procyonids such as raccoons. They rest or sleep at night in trees, rocky ledges, or dens, though they may become more nocturnal in areas of high human disturbance or hunting pressure.

Social structure is distinctive: adult males are largely solitary (except during the brief mating season), while females and their offspring (including young males under ~2 years old) form cohesive social groups called bands. Bands typically number 4–20+ individuals (occasionally up to 30–40), often matrilineal with related females, though some unrelated individuals may join. Bands forage together, engage in mutual grooming (using teeth and claws), and use a variety of vocalizations, visual signals, and scent marking for communication. Young may be left with “babysitters” while others forage. Play-fighting occurs among juveniles and some females. Large bands may temporarily split into smaller foraging subgroups.

They are excellent climbers (using the tail for balance) but spend most of their active time on the ground. They are agile, strong, and opportunistic.

Reproduction: Mating occurs seasonally. Gestation lasts about 10–11 weeks (~70–77 days). Pregnant females leave the band to give birth in a tree nest (often palms or similar) to litters of 1–7 (commonly 2–6) altricial young. Mothers care for them in the nest for several weeks before rejoining the band with the mobile young. Young are weaned around 4 months and reach adult size by about 15 months. Sexual maturity is reached around 2 years for females (later effective breeding for males due to competition). Lifespan is typically up to ~7 years in the wild and averages ~14 years (occasionally longer, into the late teens or more) in captivity.

Habitat

White-nosed coatis are highly adaptable but prefer wooded habitats. They occupy tropical and subtropical dry and moist broadleaf forests, open woodlands, oak woodlands, pine-oak woodlands, riparian areas, canyons, and montane forests. They occur from sea level up to about 3,000 m (9,800 ft) elevation. They are less common in open grasslands, pure deserts, or heavily modified areas, though they may use agricultural edges or scrub. In the southwestern U.S., they favor oak woodlands and hardwood riparian canyons.

They forage both on the ground (leaf litter) and in the canopy (for fruit).

Range (Geographic Distribution)

The species ranges from the southwestern United States (southeastern Arizona, southern New Mexico; historically or marginally in parts of Texas, though status there is limited or uncertain) southward through most of Mexico (excluding the Baja Peninsula and parts of the central Sierra Madre), throughout Central America, and marginally into northwestern South America (far northwestern Colombia near the Panama border; some sources extend to western Colombia/Ecuador areas west of the Andes). Subspecies include N. n. molaris (northern populations including the U.S. and much of Mexico), N. n. narica (southern Mexico/Central America/Colombia), and others such as the smaller Cozumel Island form (N. n. nelsoni).

Food Sources (Diet)

White-nosed coatis are omnivorous and opportunistic foragers. The primary diet consists of invertebrates (insects and their larvae—beetles, grubs, ants, termites; spiders, scorpions, centipedes, and occasionally land crabs or worms), which they locate by sniffing through leaf litter with the snout held close to the ground and dig out with strong claws. Fruit is a major seasonal component (e.g., figs, hog plums, prickly pear and other cactus fruits, and many native tree fruits); bands may repeatedly visit productive trees and strip them. They also consume small vertebrates (lizards, snakes, frogs, rodents, occasionally birds or eggs), nuts, carrion, and occasionally anthropogenic food sources near human settlements. They may travel substantial distances daily (up to ~2 km) while foraging.

They play an ecological role as seed dispersers through fruit consumption and as mid-level consumers in food webs.

This report synthesizes information from reliable biological sources including IUCN assessments, museum/species accounts, and field studies. Populations are generally stable across much of the range but face localized pressures from habitat loss, hunting, and fragmentation in some areas.

Raccoon (Procyon lotor)

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Raccoon (Procyon lotor)
Raccoon (Procyon lotor)

The raccoon (also spelled racoon), scientifically known as Procyon lotor, is a medium-sized nocturnal mammal native to North America and commonly called the common raccoon, North American raccoon, or northern raccoon. It is easily recognized by its distinctive black facial “mask,” pointed muzzle, grayish-brown dense fur, and bushy tail marked with several dark rings. Highly adaptable and intelligent, raccoons have extremely dexterous front paws that allow them to manipulate objects and forage effectively; their species name lotor (Latin for “washer”) refers to their habit of dipping food in water. Other names include the colloquial “coon,” the popular nickname “trash panda” (for their urban scavenging), Spanish mapache, French raton laveur (“washing rat”), and German Waschbär (“wash-bear”). Raccoons are omnivores found in forests, wetlands, and cities across much of the continent, where their clever, opportunistic nature has made them both familiar and sometimes notorious neighbors to humans.

Description (Physical Characteristics)

The raccoon is a medium-sized, stocky mammal with a bear-like body, short legs, and a plantigrade (flat-footed) gait. Adults typically measure 40–70 cm (16–28 in) in head-body length, with a bushy tail of 20–40 cm (usually around 25 cm / 10 in). Shoulder height is 23–30 cm (9–12 in). Weight varies widely by region, sex, season, and food availability—generally 5–12 kg (11–26 lb), though extremes range from about 2 kg to over 26 kg (4–57 lb). Northern populations and males tend to be larger; some northern animals can store up to 50% body fat for winter.

Fur is dense and grayish to reddish-brown or buff, with a lighter underside; the dense underfur provides insulation. The most distinctive features are the black “bandit” facial mask (framed by white fur around the eyes and snout), rounded ears often edged in white, and a ringed tail with 4–10 black bands (tip usually dark). Front paws are highly dexterous, resembling slender human hands with five fingers and sensitive vibrissae (whiskers) on the digits; hind feet also have five toes. Raccoons are excellent climbers and capable swimmers.

Sexual dimorphism is moderate: males are typically 10–30% heavier than females.

Scientific Classification

KingdomAnimalia
Phylum Chordata
ClassMammalia
OrderCarnivora
FamilyProcyonidae
GenusProcyon
SpeciesProcyon lotor

Common names include northern raccoon, common raccoon, and coon. It is the largest and most widespread member of the procyonid family (which also includes coatis, kinkajous, and ringtails).

Behavior

Raccoons are primarily nocturnal, with peak activity often before midnight, though they may forage diurnally when food is abundant or conditions favor it (e.g., low tide). They are intelligent and have excellent problem-solving abilities and long-term memory (solving tasks and retaining solutions for at least three years in studies). Their sensitive forepaws allow precise manipulation of objects, unlocking containers, and foraging by touch.

They are largely solitary outside the breeding season and mother-young groups. Females raise litters alone; several individuals may share dens in cold weather or congregate at rich food sources. Home ranges vary widely (often 1–3 km in diameter, larger for males or in resource-poor areas). They den in tree cavities, hollow logs, burrows of other animals, rock crevices, brush piles, abandoned buildings, attics, culverts, or storm drains. In northern regions they enter periods of winter dormancy (not true hibernation), living off fat reserves and potentially losing significant body weight, while remaining metabolically active.

They are agile climbers that escape danger by ascending trees and are known for adaptability, including urban “nuisance” behaviors such as raiding trash. When threatened they can be aggressive.

Habitat

Preferred habitats are deciduous and mixed forests, especially near water (streams, rivers, lakes, wetlands, marshes, swamps, and bottomland hardwoods). They thrive in areas offering den sites (tree cavities preferred for rearing young), food diversity, and water for drinking and foraging.

Due to high adaptability they occupy a wide range of environments: coastal marshes, mangroves, farmlands, prairies (favoring woodlots and wetlands), mountainous areas (generally below ~2,000 m), and especially urban/suburban settings where they use human structures and garbage. They avoid extensive open fields or pure pine forests when better options exist but can persist in diverse landscapes as long as water and shelter are available.

Range (Geographic Distribution)

Native range spans much of North and Central America: from southern Canada (Nova Scotia to British Columbia) across nearly the entire contiguous United States (absent or sparse in parts of the northern Rocky Mountains and Great Basin), through Mexico, and south to Panama.

They have been introduced outside this range, notably to parts of Europe (Germany, France, and others), the Caucasus, Japan, and some Caribbean islands (some of which host populations sometimes treated historically as distinct taxa). Multiple subspecies exist (around 20–22 recognized), varying mainly in size and coat details; the eastern raccoon (P. l. lotor) and Upper Mississippi Valley raccoon (P. l. hirtus) are among the most widespread.

Food Sources (Diet)

Raccoons are opportunistic omnivores—among the most flexible mammalian diets. Rough averages: ~40% invertebrates, ~33% plant material, ~27% vertebrates, with strong seasonal and local variation.

  • Plant foods: Fruits (berries, grapes, cherries, apples, persimmons, etc.), nuts and acorns (especially important in fall/winter for fat storage), seeds, grains (notably corn), and other vegetation.
  • Animal foods: Crayfish and other aquatic invertebrates, insects, worms, mollusks, frogs, fish, bird eggs, small mammals, birds, carrion, and occasionally reptiles.
  • Human-associated: Garbage, pet food, crops, and garden produce are heavily exploited in urban and rural areas.

They forage by touch, often near water, and may dunk food (the species name lotor means “washer”), though this is more tactile exploration than true washing. Diet shifts with season: more animal matter in spring, soft mast (fruits) in summer, hard mast and high-calorie items in fall.

Additional Notes
Lifespan in the wild is typically short (often 2–3 years on average) due to predation, vehicles, hunting/trapping, and disease; captive individuals can live 20+ years. Primary predators include coyotes, bobcats, large owls, and alligators (in the south). Raccoons play ecological roles as seed dispersers and mesopredators and are highly successful due to intelligence and behavioral flexibility.

This report synthesizes established biological data on Procyon lotor. Populations are generally secure (IUCN Least Concern) across most of the native range owing to adaptability.

Benson Shootout – February 28, 1907

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The Benson Shootout (also known as the Shootout in Benson or the Rock Fight) occurred on February 27–28, 1907 (sources vary slightly on the exact calendar date due to overnight events), in Benson, Arizona Territory. It stands as one of the last notable Old West-style gunfights, remarkable for its origins in a love triangle, its intense close-quarters combat, and its unusual conclusion involving thrown rocks.

Background and Reason for the Shootout

The confrontation stemmed from a classic lovers’ triangle involving jealousy, pursuit, and threats of violence.

J.A. Tracy, a wealthy businessman and agent for the Helvetia Copper Company at Vail Station, had a prior romantic relationship with a young woman from a prominent Colorado family (her name was withheld from contemporary newspapers to protect her family’s reputation). She rejected further involvement with him and moved on. Between 1905 and 1906, she met and allegedly married D.W. Silverton, Jr. (son of a Kentucky Colonel) in Phoenix, possibly in a ceremony performed by a traveling evangelist. Some later accounts questioned whether the marriage was fully legitimate, but the couple presented themselves as married.

Tracy, unwilling to accept the rejection, pursued the couple with threatening letters. In February 1907, learning they were heading toward Bisbee, he followed them. The Silvertons spotted him at Vail Station and continued to Benson, a key railroad town, where they stayed overnight at the Virginia Hotel near the station. Fearing for their lives, they sought help from local law enforcement and bystanders.

Arizona Ranger Lieutenant Harry C. Wheeler (sometimes referred to in accounts as part of a group with Captain Thomas H. Rynning) was also staying at the Virginia Hotel. The Silvertons informed him of the threats, showed him a photograph of Tracy, and described the danger. Wheeler, known as a level-headed and exceptionally skilled gunman, agreed to intervene and arrest Tracy if he posed an immediate threat.

The Participants

Cochise County Sheriff Harry C. Wheeler — in the pre-statehood Arizona Territory.
Cochise County Sheriff Harry C. Wheeler — in the pre-statehood Arizona Territory.
  • Harry C. Wheeler (1875–1925): Born in Jacksonville, Florida, to a military family (his father was a West Point graduate). Wheeler enlisted in the U.S. Army in 1897, served in the Spanish-American War with the 1st Cavalry as an expert marksman, and received a medical discharge as a sergeant in 1902. He joined the Arizona Rangers in 1903, rising quickly to sergeant and then lieutenant. He had already been involved in at least one prior fatal shooting (killing a saloon robber in Tucson in 1904). Wheeler was respected for his marksmanship, professionalism, and restraint—he reportedly lived by a code that he would never fire first. He later became the third and final captain of the Arizona Rangers (1907–1909), served as Cochise County Sheriff (1912–1918), and as a U.S. Army captain in World War I. He died young in 1925.
  • J.A. Tracy: A prosperous mining company agent from Nevada who had relocated to Arizona. Contemporary accounts portray him as determined and volatile in matters of the heart. He was reportedly wanted for two murders in Nevada (with a $500 reward), one victim being the brother of a former Arizona Ranger, though Wheeler later declined the blood money and suggested it go to the victim’s widow.
  • D.W. Silverton, Jr., and his wife: The couple at the center of the dispute. Silverton confronted Tracy earlier at Vail Station. They were the ones who alerted Wheeler and sought protection while trying to board a train out of Benson.

Other minor figures included hotel staff, bystanders, and possibly Captain Thomas H. Rynning (Wheeler’s superior), who was in the area.

The Shootout

On the morning of the incident, Tracy was at the railroad station/platform, armed with a Colt .45 revolver and waiting as the Silvertons prepared to depart for Bisbee. When he spotted them, he drew his weapon and threatened them.

Wheeler approached and identified himself: “Hold on there. I arrest you. Give me that gun.” Tracy immediately opened fire. A furious pistol duel ensued at close range. Wheeler drew his own revolver and returned fire while advancing methodically, hitting Tracy four times (accounts vary on exact locations but generally include wounds to the neck/chest area, shoulder, hip/thigh, and arm). Tracy hit Wheeler at least once or twice—commonly described as a serious wound to the upper left thigh/groin area and later to the foot/heel.

Tracy feigned surrender (“I am all in. My gun is empty”), prompting Wheeler to lower his guard and approach. Tracy then fired again (hitting Wheeler in the foot). Out of ammunition, Wheeler resorted to throwing rocks at Tracy (or, in some versions, clubbing him with a rock while both were down). The fight ended with both men severely wounded on the street. Wheeler reportedly quipped to the dying Tracy something like, “Well, it was a great fight while it lasted, wasn’t it, old man?” Tracy allegedly expressed no ill will toward Wheeler before succumbing.

The Silvertons escaped unharmed and continued on.

Aftermath

Tracy died of his wounds shortly afterward, reportedly at or near Mescal Station en route to Tucson. Wheeler was seriously wounded but recovered fully after treatment (including time in Tombstone) and returned to duty. He was soon promoted to captain of the Arizona Rangers.

The incident received significant newspaper coverage as a dramatic example of frontier justice. Wheeler wrote a detailed letter to his friend, Pima County Sheriff Nabor Pacheco, expressing sorrow over the necessity of the killing despite believing it was justified.

The Benson Shootout highlighted the twilight of the Old West era and the Arizona Rangers’ role in maintaining order in a still-rough territory. It added to Wheeler’s legendary status as a fearless lawman. Benson, a railroad hub, preserved some of the sites (like the reconstructed station), and the event remains a colorful footnote in Arizona history.

This gunfight is often remembered not just for the bullets but for Wheeler’s resourcefulness with rocks when his revolver ran dry—earning it the nickname “Rock Fight” in some retellings. It exemplified the personal, high-stakes nature of law enforcement in the early 20th-century Southwest.