🌵 Welcome to Desert News! 🌵

May 08, 2024

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Greetings, fellow desert enthusiasts and eco-advocates!

I'm thrilled to announce the launch of Desert News. If you're passionate about the unique beauty, biodiversity, and conservation of these arid landscapes, you're in the right place!

What is Desert News, you ask? Well, picture this: a virtual oasis where we gather the latest news, insights, and discoveries about deserts from a multitude of sources, all in one convenient location. We're committed to bringing you a comprehensive roundup of everything happening in the world of desert ecosystems.

Here's what you can expect from Desert News:

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Yours in desert exploration,

Chris ClarkeExecutive DirectorDesert Advocacy Media Network

Desert News for May 8, 2024

Hiker pronounced dead after being found unresponsive at Zion National Park

SPRINGDALE, Utah (KUTV) — A hiker was pronounced dead at Zion National Park after being found unresponsive.

The hiker, a man of unknown age, was found Monday afternoon after a report of being unresponsive, officials with Zion said.

Study: Agricultural Crop Viral Diseases are Infecting Native Desert Plants

Two species of coyote melon (Cucurbita palmata and C. foetidissima) and sacred datura (Datura wrightii) collected from three study sites in the California desert were found to be vulnerable to infections by 12 different viral diseases of crop plants1 transmitted by insects. The study’s results raise concerns that human activity such as raising field crops can have harmful effects on ntive plants even if the wild plants aren’t directly affected.

Mojave Cross finally finds a permanent place in the San Bernardino County desert

The Mojave Cross, center of a constitutional law controversy that roiled the Mojave Desert for the last 25 years, has found a permanent home at the Mojave Desert Heritage and Cultural Association, a historical nonprofit group’s site in Goffs, CA. The cross, which originally stood atop Sunrise Rock in Mojave National Preserve, was the focus of a lawsuit in which the plaintiff, Park Service staffer Frank Buono, charged that the cross’s location on public land constituted an unconstitutional endorsement of a particular religious faith.

Cross supporters offered to trade five acres of private land inholding elsewhere in Mojave Preserve for the acre surrounding Sunrise Rock, which would technically allow the cross to remain. The Supreme Court okayed the land exchange in 2010, despite objections by the plaintiffs.

The cross currently atop Sunrise Rock was installed after the one now residing at Goffs was stolen.

Removal of Border Concertina Wire in Nogales is just temporary, says Border Patrol

Locals in Ambos Nogales woke some weeks back to see that rolls of concertina wire had been removed from the border wall that separates Nogales, AZ from Nogales, Sonora. The removal, which was not announced beforehand by the Border Patrol, made some residents hopeful that the concertina wire was gone for good. But the Border Patrol is now saying that the wire was removed to allow maintenance of the wall, and will be replaced once that work is done.

The wire was installed on Election Day in 2018, also without notification of local officials or the public. Nogales’ leaders wrote the Border Patrol at the time asking that the new wire barrier be removed lest it convey an unfavorable impression of the community.

Fire ban began May 1 in Phoenix desert parks, preserves

Phoenix mountain parks have had fire bans imposed to ensure public safety and landscape preservation over the summer. Fires become a significant threat each spring in the region due to high temperatures, extremely low humidity that dries out annual plants, and seasonal strong winds. The ban, which forbids open fires of wood or charcoal, and restricts propane stoves to established picnic areas, applies only to parks in the mountains surrounding Phoenix’s urban core, such as Camelback Mountain Park and South Mountain Park. Parks in the flatlands are not covered by the ban, allowing Phoenicians to have someplace to barbecue.