The California Department of Fish and Wildlife on Monday recommended that western Joshua trees be listed as “threatened” and protected under the state’s Endangered Species Act. The action came in response to a petition from the Center for Biological Diversity. Managing editor Tami Roleff has more information…
The Center for Biological Diversity petitioned the state in October to protect western Joshua trees under the California Endangered Species Act. The Center says the trees face huge threats from climate change, habitat destruction, urban sprawl, increased threats from wildfire, and are “likely to become endangered in the foreseeable future” if they are not protected. Recent studies show Joshua trees are dying off because of hotter, drier conditions, with very few younger trees becoming established. The state’s Fish and Game commissioners will review the recommendation from the Department of Fish and Wildlife in June. If the trees are listed as threatened, state wildlife managers would have to come up with a plan to protect them, which means development in the desert could be limited. Yucca Valley currently has an ordinance regulating moving or cutting down the trees.
