DTC News
Symposium Registration Now Open!
Registration is now open for our 49th Annual Symposium, scheduled February 21-23, 2024 in Las Vegas (virtual attendance option available).
New Job Announcement
Click the link above or go to News > Job Announcements to find out more and view all job announcements.
DTC Newsletter – Volume 47, Issue 1
Grassroots Efforts Tentatively Halt Luxury Hotel Development in Tortoise Territory; Recap of the 48th Annual Desert Tortoise Council Symposium; Desert Tortoise Council Hires David Hedrick as Operations Manager; Just a Tortoise from Last Night; and more…
New Board Meeting Minutes for 2023
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.
Illegal Cannabis Invasion: What We Need to Know and Do About It
There is a new source of destruction and degradation in the California Desert, illegal cannabis growing. Here we provide a synopsis of the issue and recordings of the special session from the 2023 DTC symposium.
Drink Beer Save Tortoises Fundraiser
Join us May 20, in Redlands, Ca, for this super-fun fundraiser!
Annual Symposium
Our 2023 hybrid event (in-person/virtual) symposium in Saint George, Utah, was another great success! Our 49th Annual Symposium is scheduled for February 21-23, 2024
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.
Help Collect Important Data Regarding Tortoise and Raven Observations Using the ROaDS App
Help collect data needed to monitor road mortality for desert tortoises and other Mojave Desert species, raven activity, and any observations of tortoises or their carcasses you may observe in the wild while you’re out exploring and hiking.
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.
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.
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!