Wildlife cameras provide close-ups of bighorn sheep
Afton Canyon is known locally as the “Grand Canyon of the Mojave”. It not only has impressive geological formations, but it is one of the few places where the Mojave River flows above ground all year. Bighorn sheep (Ovis canadensis nelsoni) are one of the wildlife species that use this area. MDLT’s Women in Science Discovering Our Mojave (WISDOM) program is helping the Bureau of Land Management provide a range of recreational access in Mojave Trails National Monument, while also ensuring the well-being and protection of wildlife and other sensitive resources.
The bighorn sheep is famously elusive. Interns hope to understand its movement
Every few weeks, Alejandra Lopez leaves her home in Long Beach, CA to drive 3.5 hours to join an all-female research team collecting scientific data on the bighorn sheep in the Mojave Desert.
Desert plants — and the desert floor itself — are key fighters of climate change
The so-called ‘barren’ lands of the Mojave actually play an important role in keeping carbon out of the atmosphere. Scientists have been surprised to find that deserts, like other ecosystems, function as a carbon sink. This means the Mojave Desert and all the world’s arid lands play a key role in the carbon cycle and carbon uptake — and that preserving them is of high importance as the climate crisis continues. But wait: How does a landscape that seems so empty keep carbon?