Herbert Brown came to Arizona in 1873 from the eastern U.S. at age 25 to seek his fortune. He would remain here until his death in 1913. During this period, southern Arizona was widely known for its newly discovered, exceptional bird life, many species occurring nowhere else in the U. S. This attracted leading ornithologists, such as Charles Bendire and Elliott Coues, who came to Tucson, the lower Colorado River Valley, and elsewhere in southern Arizona to conduct their studies. By the 1880s Brown was corresponding with these visiting ornithologists and collecting birds, nests, and eggs, advancing the science of ornithology in this new territory. These out-of-state ornithologists conducted their studies, taking their records and specimens back to their own institutions. By contrast, Brown's unequaled collections were deposited at the University of Arizona where he was the first Curator of Ornithology. His following field notes document, in Brown's own words, the previously untold story of a life-long passion for ornithology by Arizona's first resident ornithologist.

A fundamental problem with flash-flood forecasting and the implementation of comprehensive safety measures has been the lack of detailed information regarding diurnal and seasonal variations, particularly over the western portion of the United States. This research initiates the analysis of the diurnal and seasonal patterns of flash-flood events over the western United States using the National Climatic Data Center (NCDC) Storm Data reports collected from 1 January 1981 to 31 December 2010. Our preliminary finding show the number of recorded flash-flood events has increased over time; an increase likely due to population growth. In addition, flash-flood events over the western United States predominantly occur in the summer months, likely as a result of convective heating. The major exception to this strong summer peak is California. Also, the largest number of reported flash-flood events occurred in the mid-afternoon to early evening with a peak occurring earlier than expected at approximately 1530 LST. The strong link to convective heating and the centralized peak time period of a flash-flood occurrence can provide useful insight into new forecasting techniques and emergency management deployment.