protecting plants against poaching
By Natalie Gonzalez, Assistant Conservation Scientist, and Dr. James Danoff-Burg, Director of Conservation
As everyone knows, we cannot conserve animals
without making certain that the plant communities on which they depend are also thriving. Since our inception fifty years ago, The Living Desert has committed equally to plant conservation as much as animal conservation. As a botanical garden, we welcome guests to experience desert plants through our 60 gardens. We also share their stories, spread awareness of the threats that desert plants face, and show how you can contribute to plant conservation. More than anywhere else on our grounds, the Desert Plant Conservation Center (DPCC) is where we do our plant conservation work. The Desert Plant Conservation Center is nestled across from the pronghorn habitat and adjacent to the carousel in Wild Americas. It is here, where you may explore and experience many of the plants you know and love from The Living Desert’s gardens and desert ecosystem in a new setting that also details our specific plant conservation efforts.
Blind prickly pear, Opuntia rufida
foxpaws |
FA L L 2021
A walk through the DPCC will highlight our active propagation efforts, including thousands of live plants that have just started their big journeys towards the desert. Staff and volunteers germinate and grow plants for habitat restoration projects including enriching desert pupfish habitats at the Salton Sea and desert tortoise habitats across Southern California. These projects ensure that 8
