Habitat Photos - Northernmost Natural(?) Washingtonia Oasis

[stevethegator]

Hello all, it’s been a long time since I’ve posted here and too long away from the palm community. Life has taken me far away from palms to the snowy mountains of Salt Lake City, UT, but I recently got the chance to visit what I believe to be the northernmost naturally occurring Washingtonia filifera grove near Moapa, NV and thought I’d share! 

First, about the area: Moapa Nevada is around an hour or so north of Las Vegas and less than an hour south of the Utah border, which is the northernmost extent of the Mojave desert ecoregion. The Moapa valley is famous for it’s warm springs and the local Indigenous culture for which the area is named. 

As with other Washingtonia groves in the Mojave, the palms themselves can be found growing along warm, spring fed streams which, in this area feed a larger wetland complex that is the subject of local conservation efforts.

Sadly, the conservation managers consider the Washingtonia a nuisance, and, despite obvious ecological similarities to other Washingtonia oases in the Mojave as well as local indigenous uses of the palms which pre-date any white settlement in the area, do not officially consider the palms “native” and thus remove them in many places along the watershed. 

I obviously can’t attest to how the first palm was brought to the valley but there are at least a half dozen individual groves with hundreds of palms each, all displaying great age along a several mile stretch of the river. The only grove I got pictures from is in a highly disturbed state near the parking lot/picnic area near the entrance to the refuge (note the silly wagon and fence!),  but this grove contains many 60’+ plants (photo with myself in it for scale). Apparently the conservation managers removed many of the largest palms from the valley several years ago “to prevent wildfires” 

From this area I also got a picture of several palms naturalizing in drier conditions away from the main water sources (yes that is snow way up on the mountains in the background) as well as a zoomed in shot of some palms peeking out of the riverine forest further downstream, where there were even healthier stands of larger, mature palms that I wasn’t able to access or photograph. The palms were setting seed prolifically, as evidenced by the crazy amount of seed on the isolated individual in the picture.

 

 

These pictures don’t come close to documenting the size and scale of the oasis, there are literally thousands of palms scattered over several miles! 

While there are some large filiferas nearby that were clearly planted on old resort properties and/or along the roadside in straight lines (including the seeded specimen in the photo), the groves themselves appeared to me to be much older, with hundreds of even larger specimens all growing in a natural arrangement that suggests they were not deliberately arranged in their planting by humans. Given their size and the harsh environment I would not doubt that some of these palms are 100+ years old, are filiferas fast or slow growers? 

Anyone else know more about these palms, the history of the area, or any efforts to conserve or recognize this as as the northernmost extent of the species’ range?

 

[Tracy]

Interesting. I have never been there, but hiked in Valley of Fire on the south side of it, just across the I15.   I looked it up and see it has been part of a US Fish & Wildlife Refuge Complex established in 1979.  So the Refuge biologists have at least a 43 year record to work with.  It is a bit surprising that if the indigenous tribes of the area were using parts of the plant prior to colonization that they wouldn't be deemed native to the area.  Perhaps there is information available on the Refuge Complex website.  Look at their Comprehensive Conservation Plan if they have it posted.

[PalmatierMeg]

Gorgeous habitat photos. Those palms are magnificent. Thanks for posting

[Silas_Sancona]

  On 11/15/2022 at 7:08 AM, stevethegator said:

Hello all, it’s been a long time since I’ve posted here and too long away from the palm community. Life has taken me far away from palms to the snowy mountains of Salt Lake City, UT, but I recently got the chance to visit what I believe to be the northernmost naturally occurring Washingtonia filifera grove near Moapa, NV and thought I’d share! 

First, about the area: Moapa Nevada is around an hour or so north of Las Vegas and less than an hour south of the Utah border, which is the northernmost extent of the Mojave desert ecoregion. The Moapa valley is famous for it’s warm springs and the local Indigenous culture for which the area is named. 

As with other Washingtonia groves in the Mojave, the palms themselves can be found growing along warm, spring fed streams which, in this area feed a larger wetland complex that is the subject of local conservation efforts.

Sadly, the conservation managers consider the Washingtonia a nuisance, and, despite obvious ecological similarities to other Washingtonia oases in the Mojave as well as local indigenous uses of the palms which pre-date any white settlement in the area, do not officially consider the palms “native” and thus remove them in many places along the watershed. 

I obviously can’t attest to how the first palm was brought to the valley but there are at least a half dozen individual groves with hundreds of palms each, all displaying great age along a several mile stretch of the river. The only grove I got pictures from is in a highly disturbed state near the parking lot/picnic area near the entrance to the refuge (note the silly wagon and fence!),  but this grove contains many 60’+ plants (photo with myself in it for scale). Apparently the conservation managers removed many of the largest palms from the valley several years ago “to prevent wildfires” 

From this area I also got a picture of several palms naturalizing in drier conditions away from the main water sources (yes that is snow way up on the mountains in the background) as well as a zoomed in shot of some palms peeking out of the riverine forest further downstream, where there were even healthier stands of larger, mature palms that I wasn’t able to access or photograph. The palms were setting seed prolifically, as evidenced by the crazy amount of seed on the isolated individual in the picture.

 

 

These pictures don’t come close to documenting the size and scale of the oasis, there are literally thousands of palms scattered over several miles! 

While there are some large filiferas nearby that were clearly planted on old resort properties and/or along the roadside in straight lines (including the seeded specimen in the photo), the groves themselves appeared to me to be much older, with hundreds of even larger specimens all growing in a natural arrangement that suggests they were not deliberately arranged in their planting by humans. Given their size and the harsh environment I would not doubt that some of these palms are 100+ years old, are filiferas fast or slow growers? 

Anyone else know more about these palms, the history of the area, or any efforts to conserve or recognize this as as the northernmost extent of the species’ range?

 

Expand  

Great pictures

Being near by, @RyManUtah  would be the most experienced person w/ this area.. I'm sure he will chime in at some point w/ extra insight.. 

[Xerarch]

Awesome photos! I've read up on this population in the past, there was a website completely dedicated to making the case that these are native to Moapa and that the current management practices were devastating to these native groves.  I think the information made a good case their nativity, much like there is also strong evidence that the Castle Hot Springs population in Arizona is also native although still not accepted by all scholars.  

Here is a write up about it that I think is worth reading, this looks like it might be the same or similar to what I had read years ago

https://www.xeri.com/Moapa/wf-hr-part1.htm

[realarch]

Thanks for the informative post Steve. I didn’t know the extent of the northern most range of native W. filifera and from the photos, those

look quite old. I’ve been to the in situ stands outside of Palm Springs, Ca., which are unique and unforgettable environments.

Tim

[Josue Diaz]

Very cool! Thank you for posting these! There's a grove of these in the kern river canyon (which is technically at the border of the mojave along the sierra nevada) but these are definitely further north. 

[kinzyjr]

@stevethegatorAwesome post!  I have some seed-grown Washingtonia filifera from near that area here.  Hoping they make it to that size at some point!

[Foxpalms]

  On 11/16/2022 at 1:11 AM, kinzyjr said:

@stevethegatorAwesome post!  I have some seed-grown Washingtonia filifera from near that area here.  Hoping they make it to that size at some point!

Expand  

That would be impressive. It might be a better idea to try and source Washingtonia filifera seeds from the wetter more humid parts of the canary Islands for Florida, since when I was there I saw plenty of big filifera's and growing in warm humid conditions. It was 86f with over 70% humidity and the humidity was in the 80s and 90s% humidity at night and the Washingtonia filifera looked as good as they do in the Mediterranean and the ones I have seen in the Sahara desert. It's also funny how you can see cocos nucifera, phoenix dactylifera, Washingtonia filifera, Cyrtostachys renda, Rhopalostylis sapida and trachycarpus fortunei growing within a couple hundred feet of each other, palms that require completely different growing conditions!

Edited November 16, 2022 by Foxpalms

[jwitt]

Nice write up!  I always note the curvature of the native stands, not what one envisions when referencing this palm.  

The also like wet feet. Even in 6b climates! 

[ZPalms]

Is the location of these trees, Moapa Warm Springs Nevada?

Going to Vegas next week and I’m looking to try and see filifera oasis or something in person and collect a couple pure seeds if possible, does anyone who knows Vegas know anywhere close that’s accessible by bus or something or at least close by Uber or something?

[Silas_Sancona]

  On 5/3/2024 at 12:00 AM, ZPalms said:

Is the location of these trees, Moapa Warm Springs Nevada?

Going to Vegas next week and I’m looking to try and see filifera oasis or something in person and collect a couple pure seeds if possible, does anyone who knows Vegas know anywhere close that’s accessible by bus or something or at least close by Uber or something?

Expand  

That's going to be an expensive Uber....

Blue:  Vegas area

Yellow:  Where the Moapa / Moapa Valley specimens would be located, Per iNat observational data...





 ~Rough estimate distance between L.V. and the Moapa area  ..One way. Via Google earth data... *** Actual distance may vary.

[ZPalms]

  On 5/3/2024 at 12:29 AM, Silas_Sancona said:

That's going to be an expensive Uber....

Blue:  Vegas area

Yellow:  Where the Moapa / Moapa Valley specimens would be located, Per iNat observational data...





 ~Rough estimate distance between L.V. and the Moapa area  ..One way. Via Google earth data... *** Actual distance may vary.

Expand  

I did look at how much a Uber would be and it would be a bit much, I probably won’t have a opportunity to see them or collect seeds 😭

[ahosey01]

Moapa Valley has a fascinatingly harsh climate.

Hotter than Phoenix in the summer.  And not just by a half a degree or something.

Colder than Phoenix in the winter.   Record lows around 0F.

Dryer than even Las Vegas.

And yet, as Ian Malcolm says in Jurassic Park... "life will find a way."

[ahosey01]

Double post.  Please ignore.

[Silas_Sancona]

  On 5/3/2024 at 1:02 AM, ZPalms said:

I did look at how much a Uber would be and it would be a bit much, I probably won’t have a opportunity to see them or collect seeds 😭

Expand  

Can't get up to Moapa or out to areas  a bit closer by Lake Mead where they have been documented?  Look for specimens around where you'll be staying while in Vegas.. Never been there but imagine they'll be plenty to look over. 

Whether or not they'll still have seed on them? ..tougher question to answer.  Many might not but, if there are specimens around town that hold onto their seeds longer like some do here,  ya' might  luck out,  Pun intended.  

..Just be sure there aren't any Mex. Fans nearby to spoil the party . 

[ZPalms]

  On 5/3/2024 at 2:03 AM, Silas_Sancona said:

Can't get up to Moapa or out to areas  a bit closer by Lake Mead where they have been documented?  Look for specimens around where you'll be staying while in Vegas.. Never been there but imagine they'll be plenty to look over. 

Whether or not they'll still have seed on them? ..tougher question to answer.  Many might not but, if there are specimens around town that hold onto their seeds longer like some do here,  ya' might  luck out,  Pun intended.  

..Just be sure there aren't any Mex. Fans nearby to spoil the party . 

Expand  

That's what I worry about, I will see filiferas in the city but for the seeds, I feel robustas will be lurking 😂

[SM458]

I’ve always wanted to know if those are truly native to that region of Mojave desert.  

[jwitt]

@SM458When one realizes the species was discovered in the late 1800's and sprouted in Belgium from a seed from a grove near Prescott, Az,......

And factor in they have been around for many milennia, even fossilized up to Wyoming......

Consider the species is only discovered a little over a hundred years ago........yet the natives have stories about the Moapa palms dating further back....

I believe it. 

[ahosey01]

  On 5/4/2024 at 9:12 PM, jwitt said:

@SM458When one realizes the species was discovered in the late 1800's and sprouted in Belgium from a seed from a grove near Prescott, Az,......

And factor in they have been around for many milennia, even fossilized up to Wyoming......

I believe it. 

Expand  

Many local palm people in AZ don't believe that grove is native, but it is.  It just happens to be right next to a resort that has also planted a shit ton of other palms.

But they didn't plant the grove.