José Andrés Alvarado-Castro

• Doctor
• Professor at Universidad Estatal de Sonora

Buffelgrass (Cenchrus ciliaris, syn. Pennisetum ciliare) is exotic to the Sonoran Desert and has caused drastic changes in this ecosystem. Yet, little research has documented the impact of buffelgrass on wildlife in the region, including small mammals. The objective of this study was to estimate abundance of native nocturnal rodents and characteriz...

The persistence of a species throughout its geographic range requires dispersal among its populations. The study of dispersal is particularly relevant for species whose geographic range has contracted, such as the endangered Northern Aplomado Falcon (Falco femoralis septentrionalis). We used Argos 5-g PTT-100 satellite transmitters to determine the...

We determined the effect of the seasonal distribution of summer rainfall and associated seasonal changes in vegetation on the timing of reproduction and reproductive success of the Rufous-winged Sparrow (Peucaea carpalis) in the plains of central Sonora, Mexico, and influence of exotic buffelgrass (Pennisetum ciliare). We monitored 302 nests twice...

Homalonychus selenopoides Marx, 1891 is endemic to the Sonoran Desert in Mexico and the southwestern United States. Despite its wide distribution in the desert, nothing is known about its phenology. For this study, we collected 464 immature and adult spiders and 67 egg sacs during late 2007 and throughout 2008. In the field, the life cycle is annua...

In arid regions, spring-fed habitats are frequently the only year-round source of surface water and are essential habitats for aquatic organisms and primary water sources for terrestrial animals and human settlements. While these habitats have been relatively well-studied in some regions, those of the southern Sonoran Desert have received little at...

While distributions of aquatic insects are fairly well known in the southwestern United States, relatively few surveys have been conducted in northwestern Mexico. We report new collections of species of aquatic Heteroptera in the region, which extend the known range of several species by hundreds of kilometers, including the first record of Graptoc...

Aquatic environments in the Madrean Sky Islands (MSI) consist of a matrix of perennial and intermittent stream segments, seasonal ponds, and human-built cattle trough habitats that support a diverse suite of aquatic macroinvertebrates. Although environmental conditions and aquatic communities are generally distinct in lotic and lentic habitats, MSI...

Homalonychus selenopoides Marx 1891 is endemic to the coastal plains of the Sonoran Desert in the state of Sonora, Mexico and the southwestern United States. Although the species was described more than a century ago, nothing is known about its behavior. We collected spiders in the southern Sonoran Desert to study their reproductive behavior, which...

Dengue is a serious public health problem worldwide. Biological control of its vector, Aedes aegypti, remains a feasible option in light of increasing urbanization and insecticide resistance. We studied the dispersal and oviposition activity of Toxorhynchites moctezuma in a dengue-endemic urban area in SSonora, Mexico, to provide information about...