About the Tubac Nature Center

The mission of the Tubac Nature Center is to provide education, appreciation and conservation of the natural environment with a focus on the Upper Santa Cruz River Valley.

The Tubac Nature Center concept grew out of a group of people who got together to bird watch once a week along the Anza trail in Tubac, then afterward go to the Tubac Deli to recap and have coffee. These folks, especially Jim Karp, Michael Dunn and Sherry Sass (Friends of the Santa Cruz River), in 2019 decided to form the Tubac Nature Center as a 501(c)(3) non-profit organization, and had dreams of a future nature preserve. Fast forward to today, and we

· are working on projects to restore rare wetland habitat and riparian forest in the Santa Cruz River floodplain in Tubac; 

· are removing invasive trees and grasses along the river;

· have received substantial grants for the above projects;

· have purchased 17 acres of land along the Anza Trail north of the Tubac Bridge as a wildlife sanctuary;

· are engaged in a coalition to form a wildlife refuge along the Santa Cruz River;

· have created an annual spring Hawk Watch and festival that attracts thousands of visitors each year and is unique in the country for the special hawk species that migrate through Tubac;

· sponsor numerous bird walks, nature walks and hikes each month;

· have engaged hundreds of local children to learn and appreciate our wonderful river and local environment; 

· have opened our Nature Center in the Tubac Community Center, next to the Anza Trail and Santa Cruz River. 

For further information, please take a look at the other pages in our website. We depend on people like you to fulfill our mission. We are extremely grateful for your interest and support.