Unit 25M, Arizona

The unit spans from roughly 990 feet in the flat urban desert lowlands to approximately 3,900 feet in the northeastern McDowell Mountains. The majority of the unit is low-lying desert basin with numerous braided washes; terrain rises to rugged rocky foothills and ridgelines in the McDowell Mountains on the east and the White Tank Mountains on the western edge. Elevation data per GoHunt (990–3,900 ft); HuntScore notes hunting habitat is predominantly below 2,000 ft. The Tonto National Forest boundary at the upper elevations of the McDowells marks the transition to higher-elevation cover types in adjacent units.

The vast majority of GMU 25M is privately owned urban and suburban land closed to hunting. Approximately 16–18% of the unit is public land (GoHunt: 16.5%; HuntScore: 18%). Hunting is legal only in specifically opened areas and is archery-only throughout the unit per AZGFD regulations. Confirmed open areas include: McDowell Sonoran Preserve (City of Scottsdale — accessed via Pima Dynamite Trailhead, Gateway Trailhead, Fraesfield Trailhead, and 104th and Bell walk-in access; sunrise-to-sunset; no motorized vehicles off parking areas; hunter registration encouraged at ScottsdaleAZ.gov; note: Tom's Thumb area has a closed zone for hunters per Scottsdale); McDowell Mountain Regional Park (Maricopa County); and per GoHunt, four Maricopa County regional parks total are open. The original draft listed White Tank Mountain Regional Park, Estrella Mountain Regional Park, Buckeye Hills Regional Park, and Skyline Regional Park as also open — these could not be independently re-verified from live web sources and should be confirmed against the current AZGFD regulations booklet. All hunting is prohibited within one-quarter mile of any occupied structure, developed picnic area, developed campground, shooting range, occupied building, boat ramp, or golf course. Firearms and trapping are entirely prohibited throughout the unit. No Tonto National Forest land falls within 25M. Fort McDowell Yavapai Nation and Gila River Indian Community lands are excluded and closed to public hunting.

Lower Sonoran Desert dominates the unit: creosote-bursage flats, saguaro-palo verde associations on rocky bajadas and hillslopes, dense mesquite bosques along braided washes and riparian corridors, and scattered cholla and prickly-pear cactus. The McDowell Mountains add rocky foothill habitat with dense saguaro and brittlebush. There is no pinyon-juniper, ponderosa, or montane component within the unit itself. Riparian corridors along the Salt and Verde rivers provide transient habitat for waterfowl and migratory species.

Desert mule deer are present throughout the unit's rocky foothill and wash habitat. Per a 2023 AZGFD/City of Scottsdale collaborative aerial survey (PDF source — unreadable via automated fetch; figures from original draft): the McDowell Sonoran Preserve supports an estimated 128–178 deer, three-year average approximately 166, density approximately 2.37 deer per square mile, buck-to-doe ratio approximately 32 per 100 does. These figures should be verified against the survey PDF directly. Collared peccary (javelina) are described by GoHunt as 'numerous' throughout Sonoran Desert habitat; the 2023 Preserve survey estimated 83–169 animals with stable herd structure averaging 7–8 per herd (from original draft, unverified via live fetch). Mountain lion are resident in the foothill and rocky terrain of the McDowell Mountains. No elk, pronghorn, bighorn sheep, black bear, or wild turkey are present or managed within this unit. Quail and dove are also present and huntable with separate regulations.