Mohave Ground Squirrel
This squirrel inhabits the western Mojave Desert, occupying Joshua tree woodlands, creosote scrub, saltbush scrub and mojave mixed woody scrub. It is listed as endangered by the state of California, and local populations may be threatened by utility-scale solar developments.
Rare and Endangered Species
Many of the species in the California desert are endemic, found nowhere else in the world, and are adapted specifically for this type of bioregion.1 The extreme temperatures and varied landscape have been important drivers of species evolution. There are over 2,400 native plant and animal species in the California desert, and no less than 72 species are endemic to the California desert, 40 of them specifically to the California expanse of the Mojave.2 Many of the species in this region are considered rare or at risk (Map 1).
