« All Events

  • This event has passed.

Biocultural Explorations: Wild Islands, Rich Desert

April 9 - April 15

Biocultural Explorations: Wild Islands, Rich Desert

a multi-day adventure in Kino Bay, Mexico, with Tom Fleischner and Lisa Floyd-Hanna

Thursday, April 9th – Wednesday, April 15th, 2026
 

Set out on an unforgettable week of exploration in the heart of the Sonoran Desert and the Gulf of California with naturalists Lisa Floyd-Hanna and Tom Fleischner, in partnership with the Natural History Institute and the Prescott College Kino Bay Center!

Biocultural Explorations: Wild Islands, Rich Desert is a hands-on adventure that connects participants with landscapes, wildlife, and communities that make Bahía de Kino, Sonora, Mexico, a truly unique place. Through boat expeditions, desert ecology, sea turtle monitoring, Indigenous-led experiences, and time on the water with dolphins and seabirds, this program blends science, culture, and outdoor adventure. Together, we’ll explore how people and place shape one another, and return home with new connections, insights, and stories that will last a lifetime.

Registration: $2,500 per person
Includes double hotel occupancy, van transportation,
programming, breakfast, and lunch. Single occupancy supplement available.

Register Here
Please contact Elise Maynard at elise.maynard@prescott.edu with any questions.

This multi-day adventure explores the rich ecology and natural history of the Gulf of California, Mexico. Our group experience begins on Thursday, April 9th. We will have a van traveling from Arizona to Bahia Kino, Sonora, México. Each day will include structured and unstructured activities focused on ecology and natural history, including hikes, boat trips, snorkeling, and tide-pooling. On Wednesday, April 15th, we’ll return to the United States.

This trip is inclusive with lodging and travel to and from Arizona, except for lunch on the drive down and dinners (relatively inexpensive) at local restaurants.
 

Itinerary

Day One: Thursday, April 9th
Introduction 

  • Travel to Bahia Kino, Sonora, México – participant pickup in Prescott, Phoenix, and Tucson, Arizona or Hermosillo (HMO).
  • Lunch en route
  • Settle into the hotel; dinner along beachfront

Day Two: Friday, April 10th 
Isla Alcatraz & Estero La Cruz by boat 

  • Breakfast at Casablanca Inn
  • Boat excursion in Kino Bay (Alcatraz Island and Estero Laguna la Cruz) Late lunch at the Center
  • Orientation of the Center’s work

Day Three: Saturday, April 11th
Estuarine explorations and turtle monitoring 

  • Early morning birding option
  • Breakfast at the Casablanca Inn
  • Laguna La Cruz: Magic of mud, mangroves, turtle monitoring, and shore birds
  • Lunch at the estuary restaurant
  • Presentation from our Indigenous community partnership program

Day Four: Sunday, April 12th
Traditional ecological knowledge 

  • Breakfast at the Casablanca Inn
  • Biocultural explorations by boat of the Infiernillo Canal with Comcaac partners Zostera marina studies
  • Activities with the Comcaac community groups in Punta Chueca

Day Five: Monday, April 13th
Offshore boat day 

  • Breakfast at Casablanca Inn
  • Offshore boat trip: birds, dolphins, islands, fisheries, and snorkeling
  • Picnic on Isla Tiburon

Day Six: Tuesday, April 14th
Sonoran Desert plants explorations

  • Breakfast at Casablanca Inn
  • Plant explorations of the desert region
  • Lunch at the Center
  • Giant Cacti and Ancient Shrubs: Desert Plant Ecology and Identification

Day Seven: Wednesday, April 15th
Depart 

  • Departure for home; lunch en route
  • Drop off participants in Hermosillo, Tucson, Phoenix, and Prescott

(This itinerary is subject to change according to weather’s effects on boating conditions.)
 
Tom Fleischner is the Founding Director of the Natural History Institute, a fellow of The Linnean Society, Faculty Emeritus at Prescott College, and Past Chair of the Natural History Section of the Ecological Society of America. Tom has led field studies in the Gulf of California for more than 30 years, and has conducted research on coastal birds. He has written or edited five books, including the forthcoming Astonished By Beauty: A Field Guide to the Practice of Paying Attention.
 
Lisa Floyd-Hanna has been an avid enthusiast of fire patterns and biodiversity since earning her M.S. in Botany at University of Hawai’i and her Ph.D. in Ecology from the University of Colorado. Her research has focused on developing the historic fire histories in piñon juniper woodlands and other forested systems of Southwest Colorado and, recently, of the Mogollon Highlands. Lisa is Emeritus Faculty at Prescott College.
 

Details

Organizer

Venue