When visiting the Museum’s pollinator garden between September and November, you’ll likely notice a fluttering cloud of orange around the violet blooms of Conoclinium dissectum, commonly known as palm-leaf mistflower. Look a little closer, and you’ll see that among those orange wings are not only queen butterflies (Danaus gilippus), but occasionally well-traveled monarch butterflies (Danaus Plexpus) on their migratory journey….
Tag: Conservation
Happy Birthday Desert Museum: Celebrating 73 Years of Conservation!
The Sonoran Desert is a place of staggering beauty and biodiversity—home to towering saguaros, tiny elf owls, hovering hummingbirds, colorful gila monsters, and many other uniquely adapted species. But it’s also under pressure from increasing temperatures, invasive species, habitat loss, and drought.. For over 70 years, the Arizona-Sonora Desert Museum has been much more than…
Battling Buffelgrass: How Sheep Could Help Restore the Sonoran Desert
Chances are if you are a Tucson local, you understand the threat of buffelgrass (Pennisetum ciliare) to our biologically-diverse Sonoran desert, iconic saguaros, and wildlife habitats. This pesty, invasive plant was first brought from Africa and introduced to the Tucson area in the 1930s. Initially used for cattle feed and later erosion, it has spread rapidly…
An Ecological Checkup for the Gulf of California
How does one do a checkup on a whole ecosystem? It takes a lot of doctors! Thirty-two, in the case of the latest Assessment of the Ecological Health of the Gulf of California, which finds that parts of the system are doing well, while others are hurting.
The Many Colors of Desert Museum Conservation
As our visitors quickly realize after spending a day at the Desert Museum, we are much more than a museum, or a zoo, or any one thing! Our diverse approach to education and conservation allows for a variety of ways for our community to engage in the work we do and deepen their understanding and…
Creating passage for wildlife across the U.S.-Mexico border
by Emily Burns, Ph.D | Sky Island Alliance Thanks to our community partners, Sky Island Alliance, for providing this guest blog for Desert Diaries. Support their border conservation work by following them on social media, volunteering, and donating! Standing at the foot of the border wall in southeast Arizona is intimidating. The wall rises 30…
Not a Pet
Thinking of having a wild animal as a pet? Think twice. As we mark the International Day for Biodiversity on May 22, one place we may not want too much biodiversity is among our pets! Demand for wild (or exotic) pets (which we’ll define as animals not usually kept and bred as pets) has been…
Community, Collaboration, and Conservation at the Desert Museum
As we wrap up another year and orient toward a new season, we are happy to share major highlights and exciting developments from our diverse range of conservation projects here at the Arizona-Sonora Desert Museum. It’s been a year packed with community partnerships, collaborative conservation initiatives, and innovative research. Invasive Species and Save Our Saguaros Month ‘Tis the season … to Save…
Are saguaros dying in Arizona?
By Jack Dash There has been a lot of talk in the news lately about a mass saguaro collapse caused by heat and drought. This claim, and the media storm around it, requires a bit of unpacking. The story begins with the fantastic research team at the Desert Botanical Garden in Phoenix who have been…
Wildfire Smoke and Our Health
Featured image by Wendy Witzig You may already know that invasive grasses and other invasive species are bad news for the Sonoran Desert’s unique ecology, threatening native species like saguaros and desert tortoises. Invasive grasses like buffelgrass, red brome, and fountain grass not only provide ample fuel for fires but also thrive in their aftermath,…
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