 |
 |
| DPS CALENDAR | |
| *NOTE: Monthly meetings are at 7:30 PM at the Dept of W&P Auditorium, 111 N Hope St, Los Angeles, Next meeting is Wednesday. October 6. |
| Jun Jun Jun |
12-13 12-13 19-20 |
Charleston Pk, Mummy
Mtn Scodie Mts/Rainbow Ridge Exploratory Mt Dubois |
Hoffmann/Jamison Wheelock/Kilberg Roach/Roach |
| Jul | 17-19 | Dubois, Jefferson, Arc Dome | Russell/Richter |
| Sep | 18 | Boundary, Montgomery | Campy/Smith/Hoover |
| Oct Oct Oct Oct |
2 2-3 3 6 |
Patterson,
Glass Telescope, Death Valley Boundary, Montgomery 1st DPS Meeting - 53rd Season Climbing in Nepal by Larry Tidball |
Jainison/Oliver Schoedler/Pihos Oliver/Jamison |
A Mini Review -- ANSWERING QUESTIONS ABOUT DESERT TORTOISES - The BLM and California Department of Parks & Recreation and prepared by Doctor Kristin H. Berry January 1993. A valuable book designed to help those people interested in the desert tortoise and who have the opportunity to tell the public of the concerns. It has been distributed to government employees and other persons perceived by the general public to be knowledgeable about laws and protocols. Inquiries about this 42 page book can be directed to: BLM, Attn: Desert Tortoise Program, 6221 Box Springs Blvd, Riverside 92507-0714, or call 909-697-5360.
Tortoise populations have been declining for decades because of collecting, vandalism, loss of habitat and disease. In June 1989 the California Fish and Game Commission listed the desert tortoise as an endangered species. Desert Tortoises no longer can be taken from the California desert. Captive tortoises and their progeny can continue to be kept as pets but individuals with legal captives (collected before 1973) must have them registered with the California Fish and Game Department. Over 60,000 captive tortoises now live in residential areas in California. With permission from this agency, the possession of captive tortoises can be transferred but they must not be released to the wild under any conditions because they often carry an upper respiratory tract disease which is quite contagious.
Doctor Berry tells the reader about the habitat of the tortoise, when they can be seen (late winter through May), their choice of food, home range and their predators (ravens, road runners, golden eagles, some snakes, gila monsters, kit foxes, bobcats, badgers, coyotes and probably the spotted skunk). She tells us what to do when we find a tortoise and how to protect them in the wild or if they are found in a non-desert city or town.
Many nonprofit conservation and education organizations are listed including the 11 branches and chapters of the California Turtle and Tortoise Club and 101 veterinarians recommended by the CTTC. The situation of desert tortoises outside California is not addressed in this book. -RJ