Joshua trees are treasured for their distinctive silhouette and unique role as a cornerstone of the Mojave Desert ecosystem. But this iconic succulent is rapidly losing suitable habitat due to climate change, worsening wildfires and development, scientists and conservationists say.
A new California Department of Fish and Wildlife plan to ensure the survival of the Joshua tree will allow the tree to grow in what is expected to be warmer and drier weather, even as the rest of the tree grows. Restrictions on development in certain areas, such as potential areas, are required. The area becomes uninhabitable.
The draft plan also calls on government agencies to develop strategies for mitigating and extinguishing wildfires that threaten Joshua Tree.
“This is clearly the most comprehensive effort by the state of California, or any organization in the United States that I know of, on how to manage species that are clearly under threat from climate change. And this is groundbreaking,” said Conservation Director Brendan Cummings. of the Center for Biological Diversity.
The nonprofit petitioned in 2019 to list the Western Joshua tree as an endangered species under the state’s Endangered Species Act.
The plan does not specify exactly how much land should be prioritized for protection or where it would be located. However, criteria for ranking its conservation value include having a high density of healthy Joshua trees and being in a cooler, wetter region than other parts of the range. . The goal is to identify priority conservation areas by December 2025 and to protect 70% of these areas by 2033.
The plan also recommends introducing into these areas populations of Joshua trees with genetic variations that make them more resilient to climate change, said Drew Kaiser, a senior environmental scientist with the Fish and Wildlife Service. Ta. This strategy, called assisted gene flow, can be accomplished by planting seeds or seedlings or relocating mature trees, he said.
Kaiser said much of the western Joshua tree habitat is federally owned, so the state must work across jurisdictions to effectively protect it. He said multiple federal agencies have expressed interest in entering into conservation agreements to implement the plan’s proposed management measures, including those that reduce wildfires, grazing, off-roading and pesticide use. This includes minimizing damage.
Mr Cummings said the plan’s effectiveness would depend on how it was implemented.
To this end, $1.4 million in seed money from the California Wildlife Conservation Commission facilitates collaboration among many researchers, land managers, and tribes working to protect Joshua trees. A new coalition of nonprofit organizations and government agencies has been formed to do so. Kaiser said the coalition will help implement the plan’s goals.
More than a third of the western species’ range in California is on private land, including some of the region’s fastest-growing communities, Kaiser said. Large-scale renewable energy projects have bulldozed thousands of Joshua trees at a time.
“Joshua trees are now widespread, but they are under pressure from development, wildfires and, on top of that, climate change,” Kaiser said. “It’s really a death-by-a-thousand situation.”
The conservation plan was required by a law enacted last year after the California Fish and Game Commission deadlocked on whether to declare the species endangered. The Western Joshua Tree Protection Act also requires developers to obtain permits and pay fees to cut, damage, or remove Joshua trees. The money goes into a conservation fund to purchase and protect suitable habitat.
The law drew criticism from some high desert politicians who feared it would raise the cost of living in some of Southern California’s last affordable areas.
Both potential listings under the Conservation Act and the state Endangered Species Act were opposed by the San Bernardino County Board of Supervisors, whose representatives said both moves would discourage economic investment in Mojave Desert communities.
In a letter to the state Senate and Assembly budget committees last year, Superintendent Dawn Rowe noted that there are tens of millions of Western Joshua trees in an area of approximately 5,300 square miles, and the species “It is abundant, widely distributed, and not in danger of extinction.” State biologists also recommended against listing the Western Joshua tree as an endangered species, citing premature concerns about the effects of climate change. Ta.
Rep. Tom Lackey (R-Palmdale) said he grew up in the desert town of Boron and appreciates Joshua trees as “part of the culture of desert existence.”
But he believes the Conservation Act goes too far in charging developers.
“If our community is to survive, we have to find a way to balance environmental stewardship and economic development,” he said, adding that Lancaster High School was looking to build a new athletic facility, but the cost was $20. He said, recalling a recent project that turned out to be an increase of $1,000. The Joshua tree on the property was removed.
“Joshua Tree seems to have become something of an ATM for government officials,” he says.
Although Joshua trees now grow everywhere, climate models clearly show there will be little suitable habitat left by the end of this century, Kaiser said. According to the conservation plan, only 23.4% of the western Joshua tree’s range in California is in projected climate refuge areas, or areas where the species can continue to survive as conditions become hotter and drier. category, and that carbon emissions remain lower than many expected.
Many of these cooler, higher-altitude regions, which are expected to have the most pleasant climates, tend to have dense vegetation and are therefore more susceptible to wildfires, he added. Since 2020, two major wildfires have destroyed an estimated 1.8 million Joshua trees in and around the Mojave National Preserve.
Kelly Harbinson, executive director of the Mojave Desert Land Trust, said the idea for the Joshua Tree Coalition was inspired by the Giant Sequoia Land Coalition. The Giant Sequoia Land Coalition similarly grew out of concern for the national park’s namesake trees, which are under threat from climate change and habitat loss.
“We can’t protect them if their numbers are low. We have to think about it from a proactive approach,” she said.
The conservation nonprofit convened a coalition that included representatives from the Native American Land Conservancy, the California Department of Fish and Wildlife, the National Park Service and other federal agencies.
The California Wildlife Conservation Commission provided $1.4 million in seed funding to build a coalition and launch a large-scale statewide monitoring effort led by U.S. Geological Survey scientists. Dozens of biologists will fan out across the western Joshua tree range, taking measurements from each population to assess the plant’s health, with revisits every seven years to measure changes over time. The goal is to Harbinson said the study is expected to begin early next year, with results expected by the end of 2026.
Coalition partners plan to address strategic land protection by identifying climate refuge areas and protecting them from development.
The Native American Land Conservancy will ensure that the many Native American groups whose ancestral lands have Joshua trees have a seat at the table, said the nonprofit’s education and stewardship program manager, Desert Cahuilla Indians. said Elizabeth Page, a member of the Tres Martinez Band. .
“We hold hypotheses that have been tested over thousands of years and knowledge that has been passed down from generation to generation. That’s how we learn history,” she said . “This is a whole other level of total environmental consideration.”
Joshua trees are two distinct species, eastern and western, that grow in California, Arizona, Nevada, Utah, and Mexico. Throughout most of their range, they are one of the few tall plants that provide shade and shelter.
Dozens of animals depend on them for survival. An estimated 25 species of birds nest in the tree’s trunks and branches, including woodpeckers, loggerheads, and scops owls. Desert night lizards sleep and forage under fallen branches. Yucca moth caterpillars, kangaroo rats, and ground squirrels eat the seeds.
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