To protect native Chiricahua Leopard Frogs, FOCCC in collaboration with the Arizona Game and Fish Department and the Southwestern Research Station (SWRS) drained Willow Tank in May 2018 in a San Simon valley-wide attempt to eliminate invasive and non-native bullfrogs. Initiated by Geoff Bender at SWRS in 2010, the Chiricahua Leopard Frog reintroduction will fail (at least in the San Simon Valley portion of the frog's range) unless Willow Tank, the largest breeder of bullfrogs in the valley, was drained and left dry for at least four months. Once the bullfrogs are eliminated, native leopard frogs are likely to colonize the tank.

At the same time FOCCC planned on reconfiguring the island in the middle of the tank to make it less accessible to predators while eliminating some of the cattails. While cattails provide bird habitat, too many will ultimately crowd out other plants and grasses and make bird observation more difficult.

Larry Rivers, the owner of the property, kindly agreed to do the bulldozer work for us; however, Mother Nature's schedule did not match ours or Larry's and it's impossible to get a large piece of equipment into the tank until the substrate dries and will support it. We are now waiting for this to happen. After this reconfiguration occurs, Willow Tank will be refilled, and we will notify you when this has taken place.

We are as disappointed as you are that this has not occurred yet; however, water is now in the northwest corner and outside the tank on the north and east sides. Shorebirds and waterfowl have frequented all three of these areas, particularly early in the morning and recently Chestnut-collared Longspurs have been coming into these areas to drink at unpredictable times.