Field Sites & Stations
SNRE’s work is tied to the places we study. Our field sites and experimental stations give students and researchers access to working landscapes across Arizona and the Southwest. These sites support everything from field courses to long-term research, with an emphasis on understanding how arid and semi-arid systems function and change over time.
Arizona Experiment Station
The Arizona Experiment Station is a living proving ground for Arizona’s landscapes, where ecosystems, livestock, and land management are tested in the real world. At sites like the Santa Rita Experimental Range and V‑V Ranch, SNRE students and faculty gain hands-on experience with long-term ecological data and working landscapes, training the next generation of natural resource leaders.
Santa Rita Experimental Range
The Santa Rita Experimental Range provides SNRE students and faculty with hands-on learning across desert and grassland ecosystems. The roughly 52,000-acres of Sonoran upland, mesquite savannah and oak woodland in the shadow of the Santa Rita Mountains have the distinction of being one of the longest continuously operating research areas in the world. By combining over a century of ecological data with active land management, the Santa Rita Experimental Range offers SNRE students and faculty a one-of-a-kind platform for applied research, teaching, and experiential learning.
V-V Ranch
The V‑V Ranch is a University of Arizona working cattle and research ranch spanning a broad elevation gradient, from desert scrub to grasslands and oak–juniper woodlands. This ecological diversity allows SNRE students and faculty to study livestock production, range management, and ecosystem dynamics across multiple habitats. By combining operational ranching with long-term data and hands-on learning, V‑V Ranch provides a unique platform for applied research and experiential education in sustainable rangeland management.
Snyder Wildlife Refuge & Field School
Snyder Wildlife Refuge & Field School is a 16.5-acre conservation area in Tucson that protects native Sonoran Desert habitat while serving as an outdoor classroom for University of Arizona students. The site supports hands-on research and education in ecology, wildlife conservation, and environmental science, with diverse desert wildlife, ponds, trails, and nearly 200 saguaro cacti.
Explore Snyder
The property gives students and researchers opportunities to explore wildlife habitat, vegetation communities, restoration practices, and natural resource management techniques in a real-world conservation environment.