The California Desert makes up about 28% of the state’s land area and contains about 38% of the native plant species within the state.

Researchers say wildfires and climate change can have an enormous impact on desert species. That’s why the Mojave Desert Land Trust has been busy collecting seeds from native desert species to bank them for restoration and research efforts in the future.

Flowers that haven't been seen in years bloomed across Southern California this spring after massive winter downpours, creating not only colorful landscapes but a boon for conservationists eager to gather desert seeds as an insurance policy against a hotter and drier future.

In the Mojave Desert, seeds from parish goldeneye and brittlebush are scooped up by staff and volunteers working to build out seed banks in the hope these can be used in restoration projects as climate change pressures desert landscapes. Already this summer, the York Fire burned across the Mojave National Preserve, charring thousands of acres in the fragile ecosystem including famed Joshua trees.

Firefighters aided by rain fought to contain a massive blaze that swept through the California desert into Nevada and are threatening the region's famous spiky Joshua trees.

The York Fire that erupted last Friday is California's largest wildfire this year. As of early Wednesday it had burned through more than 128 square miles (333 square kilometers) of land and was 30% contained, fire officials said.

In der südkalifornischen Mojave-Wüste kämpfen weiter mehr als 400 Helfer gegen ein Feuer an. Der am Freitag ausgebrochene Brand in dem Schutzgebiet Mojave National Preserve mit seinen berühmten Joshua-Bäumen sei jetzt zu 30 Prozent eingedämmt, teilt die Parkverwaltung mit.

Regenschauer hätten Abhilfe gebracht, doch der Einsatz in dem zerklüfteten und abgeschiedenen Gebiet sei weiterhin schwierig, hieß es. Die Flammen haben sich auf einer Fläche von über 330 Quadratkilometern ausgebreitet.

Umweltschützer und Behörden befürchten schwere Schäden für die Vegetation, vor allem für die Joshua-Bäume in der betroffenen Wüstenregion im Südosten Kaliforniens. Cody Hanford, Vorsitzender der Schutzorganisation «Mojave Desert Land Trust», rechnet mit hohen Verlusten und einem «sehr langsamen Erholungsprozess».

The York fire, California’s largest of 2023, ignited on Friday in the Mojave National Preserve and had burned through 82,000 acres by Wednesday morning, officials said.

The blaze is creating dramatic “fire whirls” that are burning through groves of Joshua trees, the spiky plants that only grow in the US southwest and northern Mexico.

The York fire has already destroyed an unknown number of Joshua trees in the Mojave National Preserve, and was on the verge of causing catastrophic damage.

“We’re looking at sad outcomes for potentially millions of Joshua trees,” Mojave Desert Land Trust Cody Hanford told CNN.

Lands were acquired in the preserve by the trust due to their significant habitat value, and with the intention of conveyance to the National Park Service at a future date, the nonprofit said.

One of Mojave Desert Land Trust's properties within the burn zone is in the Gotto Hills, at the heart of the preserve’s Lanfair Valley. The group said the parcel sweeps across 160 acres, reaching an elevation of 4,427 feet.

Another 17-acre parcel rises above a wash, its hillsides dotted with Joshua, juniper, and pinyon trees. The natural ore deposits once made it attractive for mining.