Early monsoon season causes more desert tortoises on roadways

The early monsoon season has led to an increase of Desert Gopher Tortoises on roadways, prompting officials at Joshua Tree National Park to produce a video on when, and how to safely remove a tortoise from the road.

Park rangers said tortoises are extremely vulnerable to being hit by cars when they search for drinking water in puddles on the road. Officials want to educate the public because they said tortoises should only be handled in emergency situations.

Desert tortoises are federally protected under the Endangered Species Act and are listed as threatened. They are protected from being removed from the wild, or touched or harassed in any way, according to the advisory issued by Joshua Tree National Park.

The following video was produced to help educate the community about the issue. It also marks the official launch of Joshua Tree National Park’s YouTube Channel, where more informational videos will be posted in the future.

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