Physical Description: The Dos Palmas Preserve is located near the north-east margin of the Salton Sea and includes a rich mosaic of desert habitats, important wetlands, and archaeologically significant sites. Several native desert fan palm oases and an extensive freshwater marsh are the focus of protection here; with that protection comes habitat for the endangered desert pupfish (Cyprinodon macularis), the endangered Yuma clapper rail (Rallus longirostris yumanensis) rare California black rails (Lateralus jamaicensis coturniculus), increasingly threatened flat-tailed horned lizards (Phrynosoma mcallii), and important fueling stopovers for neotropical migrants. Dos Palmas is a verdant oasis surrounded by a parched desert landscape.

Habitat Types: Although it is called Dos Palmas (Two Palms), there are literally thousands of native palm trees growing here today. That, however, wasn't always the case. Four hundred years ago, when Spanish explorers were first discovering the West Indies, a vast inland sea, called Lake Cauhilla, inundated the Dos Palmas basin. This basin is far below sea level, and when a flooding Colorado River had meandered out of its normal confines, it filled the basin and created a rich wetland resource. Surrounding this lake, native American peoples thrived on abundant waterfowl and fish. As Lake Cauhilla began to evaporate, these people followed its shrinking shoreline until it finally disappeared, and the people dispersed to surrounding springs and oases. Fast forwarding to the mid 1800s, settlers from the Los Angeles sought a way to cross the hottest and driest of North American deserts to reach gold fields in Arizona. Befriended local indians told one of these hopeful settlers of a series of springs that would allow travel between the Pacific Ocean and the Colorado River. At the mid point along this route was the most luxuriant of all the springs, a pool of water framed by two large palm trees. So the name Dos Palmas was born, but travelers along this route reported an increasing number of palm trees through the years. By 1900 over 40 palm trees were described and by 1940 there were hundreds of palm trees in at least three distinct oases. This dramatic change is thought to be a result of increased tectonic activity along the San Andreas earthquake fault, that bisects the Dos Palmas basin, during that period. Shifting plates apparently forced more water to the surface, creating that improbable, jungle-like habitat surrounded by lifeless alkali flats that we see today.

Conservation Purpose: The Dos Palmas Preserve is cooperatively managed by the Bureau of Land Management, the California Department of Parks, the California Department of Fish and Game, and the Center for Natural Lands Management. The Center became a partner here late in 1999 in a transition from The Nature Conservancy, who had previously played an active role in both management and acquisition of Dos Palmas lands beginning in 1989. The BLM is the lead partner agency here and they have designated the Preserve an Area of Critical Environmental Concern (ACEC) in recognition of the need to protect the valuable natural resources here. There are roughly 15,000 acres protected within the Preserve. Public visitation is encouraged, with several hiking opportunities available.

Many threats still exist for the Dos Palmas Preserve. An exotic tree, salt cedar (Tamarix ramossisima) has invaded the wetlands here and threatens them by reducing water availability as well as crowding out the native species. Without the active salt cedar control program, the preserve's wetlands would someday become a mono-culture of pure salt cedar with little wildlife value. The key here is water availability. With the exception of the horned lizards, all the focal species for protection of this site depend on an abundance of water. It is such a precious resource here, that the preserve cannot afford losing any to exotic plants or to surrounding fish farms. To reduce that threat, additional land acquisition is required. By bringing the resources of all the partner agencies to bear, the threats to Dos Palmas can be managed, and the site will thrive in perpetuity.

For information and inquiries please contact:

Ginny Short
Preserve Manager
P.O. Box 188
Thousand Palms, CA 92276
(760) 343-1234 Phone
e-mail: gshort@cnlm.org