Cheap Thrills

SAVE OUR DESERT. Make up an acronym and you get SOD--an appropriate one considering why we need to protect the ecosystem of the Southwest. The Sierra Club at 738 N. Fifth Ave. hosts Carolyn Campbell, Executive Director of the Coalition for Sonoran Desert Protection, in a slide presentation and update on the Sonoran Desert Conservation Plan. Find out what it is, why we need it and what you can do to help. Discussion follows the 7 p.m. lecture on Thursday. It's free and open to the public. Make your reservations by calling 747-5078.

ART AND MORE ART. Find that special treasure at The Tucson Museum of Art's Bazaar Domingo.

It's a show and sale of antique and contemporary art--from Native American weavings, baskets, ceramics and jewelry to vintage Mexican and Spanish Colonial arts to Americana, paintings, furniture and cowboy material. From 11 a.m. to 5 p.m. on Sunday, stop by the museum at 140 N. Main Ave. (and park for free at the corner of Paseo Redondo and Granada avenues). Admission costs $5. Call 743-2940 for details.

CALLING ALL BIRD WATCHERS. The Aplomado Falcon is a beautiful bird with dramatic colors and striping. Early last century it was a common sight in the desert grasslands. Severe draught and loss of grassland by overgrazing has caused its decline and endangered its existence.

Alberto Macias-Duarte, of Universidad Autonoma Chihuahua, has spent the last two years researching the breeding behavior and habitat use of these falcons in Mexico. He offers connections between vegetation structure, grassland bird populations and reproductive success. Hosted by the Tucson Audubon Society, his talk begins at 7 p.m. at Duval Auditorium at UMC, 1501 N. Campbell Ave. Scott Wilbor of the Audubon Society reports on Arizona's Important Bird Areas Program. It's free. Call 622-5622 with questions.