NATIONAL PARK SERVICE • U.S. DEPARTMENT OF THE INTERIOR Foundation Document Overview Joshua Tree National Park California Contact Information For more information about the Joshua Tree National Park Foundation Document, contact: [email protected] or (760) 367-5500 or write to: Superintendent, Joshua Tree National Park, 74485 National Park Drive, Twentynine Palms, CA 92277-3597 Purpose Significance Significance statements express why Joshua Tree National Park resources and values are important enough to merit national park unit designation. Statements of significance describe why an area is important within a global, national, regional, and systemwide context. These statements are linked to the purpose of the park unit, and are supported by data, research, and consensus. Significance statements describe the distinctive nature of the park and inform management decisions, focusing efforts on preserving and protecting the most important resources and values of the park unit. The following significance statements have been identified for Joshua Tree National Park. (Please note that the sequence of the statements does not reflect the level of significance.) 1. Joshua Tree National Park preserves a world-renowned, undisturbed population of Joshua trees (Yucca brevifolia), an integral component of the Mojave Desert ecosystem. 2. Outstanding examples of Mojave and Colorado Desert landscapes that converge at Joshua Tree National Park create a biologically rich system of plant and animal life characterized by iconic Joshua tree woodlands, native palm oases, and vast expanses of creosote scrub that are uniquely adapted to desert conditions. The park also contributes significantly to the connectivity of open lands and large protected areas across the California desert. 3. Joshua Tree National Park provides accessible and diverse opportunities in a remote desert to large and burgeoning JOSHUA TREE NATIONAL PARK preserves urban populations. and protects the scenic, natural, and 4. Joshua Tree National Park preserves a rich array of cultural resources representative of prehistoric, historic, and contemporary resources that demonstrate the integral connection between desert the Colorado and Mojave deserts’ ecosystems, land use, and human cultures. rich biological and geological 5. Joshua Tree National Park lies along one of the world’s most diversity, cultural history, wilderness, active earthquake faults, the San Andreas Fault. Geologic recreational values, and outstanding processes, including tectonic activity, have played and continue to play a major role in shaping the mountains, opportunities for education and valleys, and basins of the park. scientific study. 6. Joshua Tree National Park offers unparalleled opportunities for research of arid land ecosystems and processes, adaptations of and to desert life, sustainability, and indications of climate change. The proximity of the park to urban regions of Southern California and Nevada enhances its value for scientific research and education. 7. Huge, eroded monzogranite boulder formations are world- renowned natural features that provide unique aesthetic, educational, and recreational opportunities for Joshua Tree National Park visitors. 8. Geologic, climatic, and ecological processes create scenic landscapes unique to deserts and fundamental to the character of Joshua Tree National Park. Fundamental Resources and Values Interpretive Themes Fundamental resources and values are those features, systems, Interpretive themes are often described as the key stories processes, experiences, stories, scenes, sounds, smells, or or concepts that visitors should understand after visiting other attributes determined to merit primary consideration a park—they define the most important ideas or concepts during planning and management processes because they are communicated to visitors about a park unit. Themes essential to achieving the purpose of the park and maintaining are derived from—and should reflect—park purpose, its significance. significance, resources, and values. The set of interpretive The following fundamental resources and values have been themes is complete when it provides the structure necessary identified for Joshua Tree National Park: for park staff to develop opportunities for visitors to explore and relate to all of the park significances and fundamental · Oases and other riparian areas resources and values. · Habitat for the desert tortoise The following interpretive themes have been identified for · Interconnectivity of California desert lands Joshua Tree National Park: · Biological diversity and healthy ecosystem function · Joshua Tree National Park encompasses two desert · Wilderness values and wilderness accessibility ecosystems within its boundaries; the higher, cooler · Recreational opportunities and values Mojave Desert in the northwestern portion of the park merges with the Colorado Desert, a region of · Night sky the lower, warmer Sonora Desert, creating an unusual · Clean and breathable air ecological transition zone rich in desert biodiversity. · Natural quiet (soundscape) · The Joshua tree, with its iconic shape and adaptations, · Prehistoric sites and ethnographic resources relating to is a perfect species to help us understand the American Indian inhabitants, including the type site for interdependence of organisms living in the desert; it Early Pinto culture is an important symbol and indicator species of the · Historic and ethnographic resources related to Mojave Desert. Other desert plants and animals, such European American inhabitants as the desert tortoise, creosote bush, and kangaroo rat, demonstrate creative solutions to the problems of · History of the desert preservation movement desert survival. · Museum collections of archives, natural history · The park area has been occupied since the early specimens, and archaeological artifacts, including the Holocene period by Native American groups. Campbell Collection Habitation and ceremonial sites, petroglyphs, and · Geological resources bedrock mortars remind us that human cultures can · Hydrological resources adapt successfully to life in a desert environment. · Desert landforms · Historic properties from the late 1800s through · Ever-expanding knowledge base the 1960s offer evidence for the era of prospectors, miners, cattle ranchers, and homesteaders. These · Opportunity to understand, apply, and share this popular visitor destinations help depict the challenges knowledge to benefit the park and beyond of rural life in an arid environment. The industry · Recreational activities centered around the boulders and resourcefulness of desert homesteaders, such and rock formations as the William F. Keys family, in this challenging · Viewsheds desert environment provide a compelling view of the desert’s past. · Access to scenic vistas · Mountain ranges, desert basins, and massive rock · Visibility outcrops were created by dynamic processes such as plate tectonics, volcanism, earthquakes, and erosion. 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