36,000 acres in Arizona designated to protect two species of cactus
by Brandon Loomis | The Republic
(Photo: Javier Ignacio Acuña Ditzel via Flickr)
Land in Maricopa, Pinal counties will be critical habitat areas, which require federal agencies to consult with experts before working.
A sprinkling of ridges and valleys in northern and southern Arizona have new federal protections for the sake of endangered cactus species.
The U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service on Wednesday designated about 36,000 acres of critical habitat for the Fickeisen plains cactus in Coconino and Mohave counties and the acuña cactus in Maricopa, Pinal and Pima counties.
Both small species live only in Arizona or, in the acuña’s case, in Arizona and in Mexico’s Sonora state. Both have suffered as drought and rising temperatures stress them.