Joshua Tree National Park encompasses lands where the Mojave and Colorado deserts meet. Much of its nearly 800,00 acres are designated as wilderness. The diverse landscape supports varied ecologies, including plant communities and landforms from low basins to mountain ranges.
The Joshua tree forest in the northwestern portion of the park covers the 4,000-foot-high valleys of the Little San Bernardino Mountains. Some valleys have plants found nowhere else on earth.
Desert basins in the eastern portion of the park can sink below 2,000 feet and summer temperatures may reach 120°F. Creosote, ocotillo, and cholla cacti dominate, and Joshua trees are not present.
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Joshua tree (Yucca berevifolia)Joshua Tree National Park, JOTR 30762
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Yucca MothWhite Sands National Park
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Joshua TreeNational Park Service photograph
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Joshua Tree flowerNational Park Service photograph
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Joshua Tree RefugiaJoshua Tree National Park
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Joshua Tree PoppyJoshua Tree National Park, JOTR 35124
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Joshua Tree PoppyNational Park Service photograph
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Hybrid Oak (Quercus x munzii)Joshua Tree National Park, JOTR 16705
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Live Oak TreeNational Park Service photograph
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Live Oak AcornsNational Park Service photograph
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Hybrid oak report & journal articleNational Park Service photograph
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Teddy Bear Cholla flowersJoshua Tree National Park, JOTR 1120
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Teddy Bear Cholla jointsJoshua Tree National Park, JOTR 31921
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Cholla GardenNational Park Service photograph
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Cholla BudsNational Park Service photograph
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Cactus WrenNational Park Service photograph
Last updated: August 3, 2023