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Boyd Deep Canyon Desert Research Center
Regional
CALEON - California Ecological Observatory
University of California Riverside
Desert
North American Deserts
containing a major portion of an entire drainage system on the north side of the Santa Rosa Plateau fronting Palm Desert, spanning montane forest to Sonoran desert scrublands. Cut into the plain, dry streambeds mark a history of floods. Centuries-old barrel cacti stand on slopes, long protected from floods and illegal collectors. Farther up, the canyon narrows to a steep-walled gorge, water trickles intermittently from pool to pool along the polished streambed that forms the upper canyon floor. Above the gorge, steep slopes open to a rolling plateau, cut by a series of shallow canyons and ridges. Higher still, the Santa Rosas form a dark backdrop to the landscape.
Terrestrial
This study area, know as the Deep Canyon Transect
Unmanaged/successional vegetation
The foresight of its founders made the research center possible years ago when more than twenty kilometers separated this pristine canyon from the scattered development of Palm Springs. Today development has spread close to the boundaries of the reserve, and real estate values in the area have skyrocketed. Philip Boyd and a handful of scientists recognized in 1958 that the need for long-term environmental research would increase and the number of possible research sites would decline. Thanks to their vision, the Boyd Deep Canyon Desert Research Center now protects a full spectrum of desert habitats for research and teaching for generations to come.
11 - 50 beds
yes
yes
1 - 2
1 - 2
1 - 2
1 - 2
< 30
Broadband
yes
Grid
< 50 miles
6749
0
no
Application proces required
Two laboratories w/ basic equipment (balances, etc.), herbarium, small library, housing facilities
Allan Muth
Manager
deepcanyon@mindspring.com
760-341-3655
Kevin Browne
UCNRS Information Manager
kbrowne@ucnrs.org
