The Living Desert Zoo & Gardens, Palm Desert

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History

The Living Desert Zoo & Gardens, located in the Coachella Valley near Palm Desert, California, has a unique conservation-focused history rooted in preserving the delicate ecology of desert ecosystems. Established in 1970 by trustees of the Palm Springs Desert Museum, including visionary Philip L. Boyd, the zoo was founded as a 145-hectare interpretive garden and preserve. Boyd, who also founded the University of California Riverside campus and Deep Canyon Research Station, recognized the need to protect the Coachella Valley’s natural environment amid expanding resort developments. His foresight led to a dedicated nature trail and educational space in Palm Desert, marking the beginning of a mission to safeguard local biodiversity and educate the public on the desert’s delicate ecology. The gates were opened to the public for the first time on 9 March 1970.

Boyd’s first key step was appointing a resident naturalist, selecting the ambitious Karen Sausman. A former zookeeper and park ranger with a background in wildlife biology, Sausman became The Living Desert’s President and CEO, shaping its development for over 40 years. Under her leadership, The Living Desert not only preserved local flora and fauna but grew to include species and habitats from other deserts worldwide, including Africa and the Middle East. This transformation allowed visitors to experience a wider array of desert flora and fauna while still remaining committed to the unique conservation needs of desert species. In 1983, it became an independent non-profit organisation, which expanded its capacity to form international partnerships for wildlife conservation and species recovery.

Throughout the 1970s, significant developments included clearing 5 kilometres of nature trails with the Boy Scouts and publishing a trail guide. In 1972, the zoo received its first animal - a kit fox (Vulpes macrotis) - followed by the construction of a bighorn sheep enclosure, burrowing owl exhibits, and a desert oasis to enrich the native species' exhibits. By 1979, a walk-through aviary for native birds was completed, along with a Desert Pupfish pond, showcasing one of California’s endangered species. An animal care centre was also established to tend to the zoo’s growing animal collection and support injured or orphaned native wildlife.

The 1980s marked a period of expansion with new staff, animal exhibits, and botanical gardens. A small mammal and reptile building was added, and the zoo hosted its first international conservation initiative, welcoming slender-horned gazelles from the San Diego Wild Animal Park. Additionally, The Living Desert joined the American Zoo and Aquarium Association (now known as the Association of Zoos and Aquariums, AZA) in 1983 and achieved global recognition as a member of the World Association of Zoos and Aquariums in 1989. These partnerships helped facilitate species conservation programmes, including a reintroduction project for the peninsular bighorn sheep to the local mountains and Arabian oryx to Oman.

In 1986, a long-term Master Plan was created, guiding developments of key exhibits that include replicas of Northern Mexican and African desert habitats, home to species such as giraffes and cheetahs. 1992 saw the opening of the Eagle Canyon exhibit, featuring mountain lions, Mexican wolves, and collared peccarries (aka javelinas), among other desert wildlife. Programmes like the Desert Tortoise Conservation Centre and its breeding and rehabilitation efforts for endangered desert species highlight the zoo's dedication to research and conservation. The popular holiday light show called WildLights debuted in 1993, featuring a G-scale model trains display in 1998 (read more). That same year, 1998, the African-themed Village WaTuTu opened, introducing striped hyenas, camels, and Grevy's zebras.

Entering the 2000s, The Living Desert further expanded its exhibits and educational facilities. A veterinary hospital was completed in 2002, the children’s play area Gecko Gulch opened in 2003, and a butterfly pavilion launched in 2005. The Peninsular pronghorn, one of North America's most endangered animals, was added in 2010, along with interactive displays. Acknowledgement of the world class conservation efforts came when the Zoo was accepted into the International Union for the Conservation of Nature (IUCN), as one of only 9 AZA members.

As Australia features desert-like conditions similar to those in the Coachella Valley it was obvious to Karen Sausman that an Australian exhibit should be realized. In 2014 Australia’s first animals appeared in the Birds of the Australian Outback aviary, while more would come. The blueprint of Sausman’s dream was ready when she retired in 2010, but as the zoo was hit hard by the recession there were some financial difficulties, and the Zoo had to pace itself. Eventually, ten years after Sausman’s retirement, after more than a year of construction, The Living Desert scheduled its Australian Adventures pavilion to open in March 2020. Wallabies, tawny frogmouths, short-beaked echidna, and other critters from Down Under were set to meet the public in this immersive exhibit for the first time. However, a few days before the opening the Zoo was among many attractions ordered to close, as to curb the spread of COVID-19. Hence, the grand opening had to be postponed. A new 1,6 hectare rhino savannah exhibit for black rhino and other African species opened November 2021, and a Lion Ridge and Special Event Centre is scheduled for opening in Autumn 2026, all of which showcase The Living Desert’s ongoing evolution and dedication to engaging visitors in desert conservation.

The zoo and botanical gardens now cover more than 480 hectares, 400 of which remain preserved in their natural state. With over 450 animals and extensive desert plant collections representing the Sonoran Desert and other desert ecosystems worldwide, including kilometres of hiking trails, there’s a lot to explore and learn. Accredited by the AZA, it remains committed to sustainability through water conservation, waste reduction, and solar energy initiatives. Today, The Living Desert Zoo & Gardens continues to inspire and educate, building on the legacy of Sausman and Boyd. With support from community members, volunteers, and a strong governing body, it remains a cherished space for environmental education and advocacy, making strides in desert conservation worldwide.

(Source: website The Living Desert Zoo & Gardens, accessed September 2013 and October 2024; Where the Wild Things Are, in the ‘Palm Springs Life’ by Derrik J. Lang, 11 October 2020; The Living Desert Zoo and Gardens celebrates 50 years, a ‘Desert Sun’ staff report, 10 January 2020)

Visit(s)

26.05.2013

The city of Palm Desert is situated in the Coachella Valley south-east of Los Angeles close to the Joshua Tree national park. The high mountain ranges on three sides and a south-sloping valley floor all contribute to the unique and year-round warm climate of Palm Desert, with the warmest winters in the western United States. The arid climate of Palm Desert delivers an average annual high temperature of 32°C, so, the 35°C and above during my visit was not exceptional. Summer high temperatures of above 42°C are common and sometimes even exceed 49°C, while under 130 mm of annual precipitation is average [1].

So, Palm Desert is one of the warmest and driest places in the United States. And the Sonoran desert is a unique place where they established The Living Desert Zoo & Gardens, a 480 hectares facility that specializes in plants and animals found throughout the deserts of the world. You could say that the Zoo is one huge landscape immersion exhibit. The enclosures can be found in a 45 hectares small part of the grounds which houses mostly desert or semi-desert dwelling species. While most species in the Zoo are well-adapted to local circumstances or have a broad habitat tolerance, a few exceptions are perhaps less well-adapted to (semi)desert-like habitat, such as the giraffe, Grevy's zebra and Cuvier's gazelle. Nevertheless, these species are kept according their habitat needs as well.

Many native and exotic endangered species can be seen in natural surroundings at The Living Desert, roughly divided into North American and African species.

You must prepare yourself for a hot, dry and sunny day when you visit The Living Desert - don't forget to put on a good sunscreen and bring bottled water. And when you don't want to expose yourself too much to the hot circumstances and want to acclimatise to the situation, I would suggest you go left after the entrance. Start your visit in the North American section and first enter the part where the ten ecosystems of the North American deserts are represented. In these immersion gardens with the different ecosystem themes and corresponding (geographical) names the rich fauna and especially flora of the desert is on display. This area with rich vegetation covers at least 10 hectare, I think, with the enclosures and exhibits at a spacious distance from each other.

In addition you can visit the state-of-the-art wildlife hospital & conservation center, that was opened in January 2002, that allows visitors to interact with the staff while procedures are being performed on animals.

The aviaries in this section are not different from most other zoos, which means that they are too small at least in my opinion. Although the Palm Oasis walk-through aviary with turkey vultures provides ample space for free flight. The red-tailed hawk that is on display has been brought in injured and is not to be rehabilitated (more information here).

The first carnivore you encounter when walking from the entrance through the North American section is the coyote, a common native species, that lives in flexible social structures dependent on the available prey. So, the fact that the Zoo has just a single specimen living by itself is odd but not unusual for the species.

Following the footpath up to the part of the Zoo farthest away from the entrance you arrive at a section with a variety of predator enclosures. But there is an aviary to begin with, near the cougar enclosure, that houses Mexican military macaw and thick-billed parrot (Rhynchopsitta pachyrhyncha), of which the latter was the last known native parrot species in the contiguous U.S., Arizona and New Mexico. It disappeared in the early 1990s, and was successfully reintroduced since. Nevertheless it is listed as Endangered in the IUCN Red List of Threatened Species™.

The cougar (Puma concolor) exhibit itself in a rich enclosure with trees, a pond, waterfall and stream, and a rock-face rear wall with high level platforms. Furthermore it provides lots of shadow and hiding places. Next-door the serval, an outlier from Africa here in the American part, has got a more simple enclosure at its disposal that lacks high level platforms. The bobcats (Lynx rufus) (see video), kit fox and swift fox all have similar enclosure with a similar layout as the serval but they merely differ in size. The exhibits are all quite secluded open-top enclosures with viewing windows that contain vertical wire instead of glass, except for the bobcat's.

The Mexican wolf (Canis lupus baileyi) is the last predator you encounter in this corner. It occupies a nice elongated enclosure with undulating terrain that provides an area behind a hill which allows the animal to hide from the public.

When you have finished this circular walkway along the predators and push on along the cactus garden you will pass the North American ringtail or miner's cat (Bassariscus astutus), which is a member of the the raccoon family thus not a cat, and the state mammal of Arizona. They sometimes are called living fossils because the resemble very much their ancestors from the Neogene period (23 million and 2.6 million years ago). And just a little bit further you'll find the jaguar enclosure that has wire mesh all around, including the rooftop. The enclosure is rather low and lacks high level resting or observation platforms. There's a pond and lots of desert vegetation but not many shady places. Though commonly found in the rainforest the jaguar is one of those species that shows incredible versatility with regard to its habitat as long as there is enough prey around. So, it does not necessarily stand-out here in the Living Desert, but you could argue whether the enclosure is fit for purpose.

It was a generous 35°C during my visit to the Zoo, so when I left the lusciously vegetated area I was glad that not only the animals are provided with atomizers, but the visitors as well. At several places on the premises you'll find this water spray equipment, misted rest spots they call them, that helps people to cool down and prevent overheating.

Along the edge of the Zoo grounds across from the jaguar North America's fastest land animal is kept, the pronghorn (Antilocapra americana). Pronghorn can reach top speeds of around 90 km/h and can run at a steady pace of 50 km/h for over 30 kilometres! [2]

One of the loveliest exhibits is next in line on this side of the Zoo, Bighorn Mountain. The indigenous bighorn sheep species are hard to spot in their enclosure. Not only because they blend in superbly, but also because they can just go to the other side of their mountain (hill).

At this point you cross the geographical border and before you know it you've switched continents and are watching African species. The first mixed-species exhibit appears with Abyssinian ground hornbill and Cuvier's gazelle, followed by a row of cages for small predators on the other side of the footpath. These upgraded old-fashioned cages are not much to my liking, and lack enrichment. As there is no vegetation to provide shade there are sunshades on the rooftop and atomizers provide the essential refreshment. The Arabian wildcat, the sand cat and the fennec fox are kept here.

Three specimens of a medium-sized antelope not native to Africa, the Arabian oryx, occupy a large desert-like enclosure adjacent to the previously mentioned mixed-species exhibit. It contains just a few trees to provide shade, but it does resemble the native desert and steppe of the Arabian peninsula. The Arabian oryx is one of the best examples what zoos can do to conserve species. It was extinct in the wild by the early 1970s, but was saved in zoos and private preserves and reintroduced into the wild starting in 1980.

Neighbours of the oryx are the African wild dogs. They have an open-top enclosure with wire mesh fences all around. There's a hill in the middle that provides sufficient options to hide, a pool and a few trees for shade, but it is not very large though. An atypical mixed-species desert comprises slender-horned gazelle, grey crowned crane (Balearica regulorum) and yellow-billed stork follows, with another bird - the kori bustard - in a separate enclosure next-door.

While it is almost impossible to create satisfying environments for most animals in captivity, it is even harder to create a situation that cheetahs can express their natural behaviour - running at high speed. Nevertheless, at the Living Desert the two cheetahs have a great exhibit at their disposal. Though not really a savannah-like plain as it is rather undulating, but it is large and elongated so some speed can be achieved when the cats want to stretch their legs.

Both the addax and dromedary camel are housed on the same dull compound, though separated by a wooden fence. The reason that I thought it is worth mentioning the camel is the fact that this species well-known for its adaptation to arid areas seemed to suffer from the local heat as much as I did:

A breeding pair of leopards is kept in a nice varied enclosure with lots of shade due to natural vegetation (trees and shrubs), though it contains a near empty pool. There's little exposure to the public due to only one small viewing window embedded in a rock face wall. Several high level observation posts in the shadow, but a wire mesh rooftop at about 4 m high, which is rather low for this species to express its natural behaviour - climbing trees, unfortunately.

Just around the corner in this section - with the African village WaTuTu as a geographical reminder there's the unavoidable petting zoo, called petting kraal this time (kraal is South African for corral) with Ankole cattle, Sicilian dwarf donkeys, and Nigerian dwarf goats.

The highlight of my day came at the end of it, with the mixed-species exhibit comprising reticulated giraffe, greater kudu and ostrich. A large paddock - savannah in an undulating landscape, beautifully set against the backdrop of the Santa Rosa mountain range near Palm Desert, and a pool close to one of the savannah lookouts. Especially the seemingly endless grounds of the paddock, because you cannot see the end of it due to your position at the 'foothill' of the enclosure, was impressive, in addition to the great light at that time of the day.

Well, as already mentioned the grounds of The Living Desert covers a larger area than just the collection of exhibits. It is also a nature preserve, in fact, 435 of the 480 hectares are undisturbed Sonoran Desert. In the preserve there are three nature trails, all starting from the Living Desert, a hiker can choose from to experience the real undisturbed desert. The Zoo closes these trails during summer until October due to the heat.

It is remarkable for a Zoo of such a size and intentions regarding conservation efforts that many ungulates are represented by only a few specimens. This makes it less probable to achieve good breeding results, and it also does not demonstrate good husbandry for hoofed animals that live in herds in the wild.

A lot of indigenous species can be seen in their native habitat, the desert, of the Zoo's gardens. Different lizard species, hummingbirds, and the odd rattlesnake do not recognise the boundaries of the Zoo grounds and are there for you, besides the captive species, to enjoy as well. Although I can imagine that a close encounter with a rattlesnake is not what most of us look forward to. Nevertheless, it is a delight to stroll through this garden. Due to the layout of the North American section I found myself many times seemingly alone with nobody within hearing distance.

[1] = Wikipedia, Palm Desert, California

[2] = Treehugger, natural sciences, 10.07.2013

Gallery

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More info

Wildlife rehabilitation

Wildlife Rehabilitation

The Living Desert is running a Wildlife Rehabilitation Program of which its mission is to provide injured or orphaned native and migratory wildlife with a second chance in the wild. Besides offering medical attention and provide feed and shelter for those animals brought in by caring citizens from the Coachella Valley, the Zoo can also be consulted on these matters.

Not many zoos around the world promote bringing injured or orphaned animals to their facilities. But besides doing so, The Living Desert provides information on their website for people explaining how to decide when an animal needs to be rescued, how to do act and how to identify different species.

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