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The Daily Bucket - Eastern Mojave Desert: An Introduction; plus there will be Lizards [1]

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Date: 2022-08-17  

Joshua Tree- Creosote Bush habitat in the eastern Mojave Desert (Mojave Yucca is in the foreground).

Today lets take a trip into the eastern Mojave Desert. Three deserts can be found in the Southwestern United States, with the Sonoran Desert to the south and the Great Basin Desert to the north of the Mojave Desert. The Mojave is the smallest of these three deserts, occupying less than 50,000 square miles (MacKay 2003). This desert occurs in much of southern California, east of the Sierra Nevada Mountains; most of Clark County, NV and further north into parts of Nye and Lincoln Counties, NV. While the eastern boundaries are in a small part of southeastern Utah and northwestern Arizona.

Location of the Mojave Desert (MacKay 2003) zoom

Tectonic movements have created numerous mountain ranges and valleys across the Mojave Desert. Rainfall averages between 2 to 8 inches annually, depending on location. Normally there are two periods of rain in the Mojave. Monsoon rain typically starts in mid summer when humid air travels northward from Mexico or southeastern US, and also in the winter as low pressure areas move through the desert. The wide range of elevations and rainfall have created a diversity of habitats, resulting in diverse fauna and flora of the Mojave Desert. This bucket and future buckets by MojaveMonkey will likely only pertain to the eastern Mojave Desert in Mohave County, AZ and southern Clark County, NV.

zoom Location of yard and 3 patches in Mohave County, AZ (Google Landsat / Copernicus INEGI)





The Google map shows the orientation of my Yard, surrounding my house, and three Patches. The Joshua Drive Patch is my main patch used in the Backyard Bird Race, however, it leads to two other patches. One patch goes into the Mt Tipton Wilderness Area, while the third patch travels into part of a 640 acre undeveloped BLM property. The Joshua Drive Patch habitat is dominated by Creosote Bush and Buckhorn Cholla, with several sage species, Mormon tea, Bur-sage, Joshua Trees and Mojave Yucca present in lower numbers. The Mt Tipton Wilderness Patch follows a wash, or arroyo, with many Cat-claw Acacia, but also has many of the plants species found in the Joshua Drive Patch. The BLM Section-12 Patch has almost no Creosote Bush or Buckhorn Cholla, creating a more open terrain. The dominant plants include several species of sage, White Bur-sage, Turpentine Broom and Big Galleta Grass and Mojave Yucca as the tallest species.

Future buckets may include the plants and wildlife of the eastern Mojave Desert, with separate buckets for birds, mammals, reptiles, invertebrates and plants. For todays bucket we have a special section on lizards that have been seen in the yard and patches in the map.

References

Google Landsat / Copernicus INEGI

MacKay, Pam. 2003. Mojave Desert Wildflowers. Falcon Guide. The Globe Pequot Press.

The Daily Bucket is a nature refuge. We amicably discuss animals, weather, climate, soil, plants, waters and note life’s patterns spinning around us. We invite you to note what you are seeing around you in your own part of the world, and to share your observations in the comments below.

Some lizards of the eastern Mojave Desert that could be seen at this time of the year.

Gila Monster zoom

Longnose Leopard Lizard zoom

Chuckwalla zoom

Desert Horned Lizard zoom

Zebratailed Lizard zoom

Now It's Your Turn.

What have you noted happening in your area or travels? As usual post your observations as well as their general location in the comments.

Thank you.

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