DTC News
New Board Meeting Minutes for 2022
The Board of Directors meets a minimum of three times per year to review, conduct, and implement Council business. Our Board meetings are open to the general Council membership.
2022 47th Annual Symposium
The 47th Annual Desert Tortoise Council Symposium (Virtual) was held mornings in February of 2022 and, with the help of our friends at the Turtle Survival Alliance, was a great success!
12-Month Finding for the Sonoran Desert Tortoise
The US Fish and Wildlife Service has determined that federal listing under the Endangered Species Act is not warranted for the Sonoran Desert Tortoise (Gopherus morafki) at this time.
RFP: Innovations for Improvement/Restoration of Desert Tortoise Habitat
The Desert Tortoise Council announces a request for proposals (RFP) for research projects targeted at developing innovations or methods designed to improve desert tortoise habitat restoration techniques. An award of $9,000 is available for the research project.
DTC Newsletter – Volume 46, Issue 1
The Desert Balloon Project; 20 Years of Commitment to Tortoise and Turtle Conservation; The New Normal: DTC Introductory Training Programs; Recent Publications, 2019-2021; Mojave Desert Tortoise Critically Endangered; and more…
First Known Cases of RHDV-2 Found in California
Since March 2020, Rabbit Hemorrhagic Disease Virus Serotype 2 (RHDV-2) has been spreading through wild and domestic lagomorphs in the western U.S. and Mexico, causing large mortality events. RHDV2 is highly contagious and is extremely persistent in the environment.
Covid-19 Updates
Due to Covid-19, the Desert Tortoise Council will not hold public gatherings until public health authorities can confidently approve them. We will plan to substitute our onsite events with virtual meetings. Please see information on the November Introductory Course and the Annual Symposium for specifics.
2020 Symposium Abstracts
The 2020 Annual Symposium in Las Vegas was a success! Click the title above to view abstracts from the presentations.
2020 Grants Applications Now Available!
The Desert Tortoise Council’s Grants Committee is now accepting applications for the 2020 David J. Morafka Memorial Research Award, and Glenn R. Stewart Student Travel Fund.
New Publication – Mojave Desert Tortoise, Agassiz’s Desert Tortoise
A new, comprehensive account of Agassiz’s desert tortoise by Kristin H. Berry and Robert W. Murphy has been published by the Chelonian Research Foundation and Turtle Conservancy in association with the IUCN/SSC Tortoise and Freshwater Turtle Specialist Group, Global Wildlife Conservation, Turtle Conservation Fund, and International Union for Conservation of Nature / Species Survival Commission.
Desert Tortoise Annotated Bibliography
In 2015, the Desert Tortoise Council funded a grant to the USGS to complete this very important document. The “Desert Tortoise Annotated Bibliography, 1991 – 2015” is now available!