#desert ecosystem

[queerbrownvegan]

Desert Ecology: Mojave Desert

A desert is so much more than barren land—it's teeming with life, energy, and beauty. Did you know that the desert ecosystem makes up one-quarter of California? We’re talking 26 million acres of pure magic, from the Mojave to the Colorado Desert. 🌵🌞

Within this expansive terrain, over 2,400 species of native plants thrive alongside hundreds of unique animals, all forming intricate webs of life. For this episode of Teaching Climate Together, I had the honor of speaking with Kelly Herbinson, Executive Director at @mojavedesertlandtrust, as my co-host to explore the incredible richness of desert ecology. Growing up in California, I've always been in awe of how spoiled we are here—mountains, forests, beaches, and deserts, all in one state.

Yet, despite its abundance, the desert often goes overlooked. We tend to associate biological richness with forests and coastal zones, but the desert is an unseen wonder of biodiversity. 🌾🦎 Have you ever explored a desert landscape? What were your thoughts or assumptions about these environments before? ✨

Want to watch the full video? Link below to watch!

[purplespacekitty]

View this post on Instagram

A post shared by Palestiniancomedy (@palestiniancomedy)

[janecide]

Just a series of desert animals I made a while back.

[nando161mando]

[wild-wow-facts]

Meet the Fennec Fox: Nature's Desert Genius

Discover the incredible fennec fox, a master of survival in the desert! Uncover its unique adaptations and mind-blowing abilities.

Check out my other videos here: Animal Kingdom Animal Facts Animal Education

[hope-for-the-planet]

From the article:

"This program supports jobs and local economies, improves recreation in rural and underserved areas, and aligns with our commitment to conserve at least 30% of U.S. lands and waters by 2030 under the America the Beautiful initiative,” said Acting Deputy Secretary Laura Daniel-Davis. [...] A portion of that $235 million will be used to acquire about 19 acres of private land on the east slope of the Sierra Nevada Carson Range within the Humboldt-Toiyabe National Forest in Area. The purchase is expected to help protect sensitive species, such as California spotted owl, flammulated owl, and northern goshawk, while expanding recreation access to public lands. 

[wickershells]

during the harkonnen siege, as paul wakes in the ornithopter with jessica, he cannot find the right pitch for the voice; that is, until the drop-door is opened, and the howls of the desert are heard -- that is paul's pitch: his voice, from the outer world

[totally-a-wizard]

Desert Ecosystems

So I've noticed a trend lately from my mutuals, that trend being discourse on desert ecosystems vs greening. A few things I want to point out to those who will listen:

There is no such thing as an "untouched" ecosystem on this planet. People live there, or have lived there, usually for millenia (the major exception being Antarctica). I saw this term pop up in discourse around the pyramids in Egypt no less. Do y'all really think EGYPT is an "untouched" ecosystem? Other deserts are not an exception here either. The American South West, the Australian Outback, these have had people living in them for a long time. People who then got killed and exiled recently which leads me to...

Wastelands while not a natural feature of deserts can be a real thing. Usually because the folks who tended the land are killed or displaced or both. Sometimes the desert really is a wasteland, almost always because of war and/or colonial violence.

Greenery is another point. Deserts can be green. Not all the time, not all deserts, but we should not use desert as an antonym of the color green. Ever seen a desert immediately after the one huge rain storm? Those places are very green because the plants are sucking up all the water they can while they can.

None of this is to say that there aren't valid criticisms of forest focused environmentalism that presents old growth forests as the absolute ideal of nature. But I'm seeing folks attack environmental advocates for restoring desert ecosystems because they think good nature is "untouched", "not green", or "what nature intended".

[sitting-on-me-bum]

The lesser long-nosed bat, a crucial pollinator for desert ecosystems, is one of only three bat species in North America that feed on nectar.

PHOTOGRAPH BY TOM VEZO, MINDEN PICTURES

[queerbrownvegan]

Desert Ecology: Joshua Trees Are Disappearing

I'm excited to announce my 4th episode of my independent web series, Teaching Climate Together!

Desert ecology looks at how different species have adaptations to the desert, where resources operate differently than in other ecosystems. So, what's happening to Joshua Tree?

Most species have unique adaptation abilities in an extreme climate like the desert. One fascinating aspect of desert ecology is that numerous species are endemic (they are only found here) to the desert. The desert ecosystem is a quarter of the state of California. It spans 26 million acres in California, the Mojave, and the Colorado desert region. It is one of the most biodiverse areas, with over 2,400 species of native plants and hundreds of species of plants and animals.

The biodiversity in the desert is higher than in a pine forest in Northern California. You can find more species in the desert than in other ecosystems in Northern California! The Western Joshua Trees are currently at the forefront of desert conservation recently. As climate change continues to accelerate, the Joshua tree that has one that has been identified to be vulnerable to a changing climate. Joshua Trees are not able to migrate or adapt to a changing environment. Joshua trees migrate very slowly in tiny increments and with climate change they cannot adapt rapidly.

In Joshua Tree National Park, scientists have noted that if we continue business as usual, only 2% of the range will remain suitable habitat in the next 100 years. We are looking at a crisis for this species. Mojave Desert Land Trust and other partners and agencies are working together to implement policies and solutions to protect these ecosystems. The Mojave Desert Land Trust has cultivated a multi-faceted conservation strategy that uses land acquisition, restoration, stewardship, plant cultivation, and education to ensure the long-term preservation of the California desert.

Their service area spans nearly 26 million acres - the Colorado Desert and the entire California portion of the Mojave Desert. Since its founding in 2006, MDLT has protected approximately 120,000 acres of ecologically significant land and grown over 120,000 native plants for restoration and community use. California deserts are one of the largest carbon sequesters compared to forests. Deserts have a lot of vegetation and a whole layer of soil called the crust of the soil that is essentially life and is covered in biological soil crust that is a web of cyanobacteria, lichen, moss, and fungi that is a mat across the desert that helps the plant grow but also holds carbons and puts carbon into the roots of deserts.

Follow the work of Mojave Desert Land Trust and consider supporting their work. https://www.mdlt.org/

Hosts: Isaias Hernandez & Kelly Herbinson, Executive Director , Mojave Desert Land Trust Producers: Maksim Batuyev & Isaias Hernandez & Stranded Astronaut Productions Director: Tehya Jennett & Maxfield Biggs Editors: Tehya Jennett & Maxfield Biggs

[m00nb04rd5]

Desert Rain Frog Moodboard Pls 🐸

Desert Rain Frog (Breviceps macrops)

[kinkshamethegang]

okay okay okay hear me out but as someone whos done the journey from la to vegas by car bus and plane at least a dozen if not more times this year can i just posit my entire crack ship idea of charmer stray cat coaxing parson into a poly relationship like that one post on here?? just imagine farmers been in the cali and nevada desert preserves doing ecological studies with her uni and chowder gets traded to the kings one year and the two end up spending a lot of time in vegas cause shorter travel times or splitting the difference in distance or whatever and farmer ends up making friends with some of the aces wags and that gets her and chowder invited to stuff where they get close to parson and charmer has been together long enough to know when each other has a crush shenanigans happen of course because after everything that went down with jack and bitty kent cant imagine charmer would want him as anything other than a friend if even that and thats fine thats cool he likes spending time with them whenever they get the chance and only one gossip site has said he and caitlyn were cheating on chowder when a pic of them out to dinner together one night was circulating they all laughed it off whenever anyone asked anyway theyre all friends good friends best friends even and kent isnt about to do anything to jeopardise these friendships he has now like hes done in the past it doesnt matter if he falls in love with them theyre just really nice physical cuddly people who dont mind sharing space with him or feeding him or listening to him and chowders planning on proposing soon anyway when caitlyn graduates and is dr farmer so really they dont need a weird fuck up like him messing anything up then kent sleeps with chowder for the first time while hes in la after a game in anaheim and before his brain is even functional enough again to freak out caitlyn is climbing into bed with them and kents in the middle since the wet spot was on the top of the duvet they just stripped off the bed and hes getting cuddled on both sides and he doesnt know how long this is gonna last but maybe maybe he can stay right here for now

just a thought

[smallidarityfan]

sigh....... smallidarity crumbs.....

(I MISS THEM SO MUCH)

[vonkarma2]

oc tober day 11: symbolism. if anyone remembers the siblings from a few days ago I have bad news 🙏 back in the day magic was an even more unknowable and uncontrollable force than it is now, so it was easy for experimental spells to go awry. the 2 siblings meant to increase their invulnerability so they wouldn't have to fear persecution, but it ended up not only sacrificing an entire nearby city, but also cursed them with immortality. obviously, that took a large emotional toll, but they could continue wandering the earth like before, until exposure to magic and the incredibly long stretches of time gradually ate away at their individuality until there was nothing left but pain and a desire to finally be killed and move on to the next life. i thought a desert cracked and dry from the relentless sun + dead trees were pretty good visual symbolism for what it's like, like how people say the saraha desert was once grasslands and forest. the way a completely empty blue sky can be weirdly menacing is really similar to the vibe i was trying to go with for these characters as well

[briwhosaysni]

I do not regret going to grad school, and I do not regret moving for my program, but I am absolutely sick and tired of living in the fucking desert

It should not be 97° F in fucking May

I wish we still had our chest freezer so I could curl up inside it and take a nap

[00venator]

Deserts are fucking neat