Palm Canyon Wash Preserve

Area: 13 acres

Location: Located in the southern part of the City of Palm Springs in the heart of Palm Canyon Wash.

Date Acquired: 2021

Acquisition Type: The Center for Natural Lands Management manages the Preserve and holds the Conservation Easement.  The property is owned by the Riverside County Flood Control and Water Conservation District.  It is managed in perpetuity for the protection of habitat and species found on the Preserve.

Key Habitats: Desert wash and cheesebush scrub.

Species of Special Interest to CNLM: Casey’s June beetle (Dinacoma caseyii) is a Federally Endangered species and is only found in this very small corner of Palm Springs, and nowhere else in the world.  It is found in very specific soils (Coachella fine sand and Myoma fine sands) and only in the floodplain of the Palm Canyon Wash.  The beetle spends most of its life deep underground emerging in the spring to mate and start the cycle over again.

Introduction

The Palm Canyon Wash Preserve is a 13-acre parcel contiguous with several other conserved parcels for the protection of desert wash, cheesebush scrub and the endemic Casey’s June beetle (CJB).  It was funded as mitigation for work by the flood control district on the wash.

Conservation Significance

The estimated suitable habitat for CJB is very small (approximately 604 acres reported in the 2009 USFWS Designation of Critical Habitat).  This parcel represents a portion of the larger conservation effort.  It is contiguous to three other parcels held in conservation for the protection of the beetle (Smoke Tree Ranch, Bogart Wash Preserve and a Flood District parcel) creating a contiguous conservation area of around 200 acres.  This beetle is at significant risk of extinction due to development, and these holdings are important in the conservation and protection of the species.

Our Work

The management goals for the Palm Canyon Wash Preserve are to maintain the habitat for the beetle, including the fluvial processes of the wash and upland areas of the Preserve.  Vegetation monitoring will help provide information about the health of the habitat as well as continue to inform the biological knowledge of this species.  Monitoring of human activity will be important, to determine if appropriate uses are being maintained.  It is believed that pedestrian and equestrian use is appropriate, but vehicular use can damage the habitat and compact the soils that are used by the beetle for much of their life.