Although we live in the Chihuahuan desert here in Las Cruces, in April Penny and I decided to go the Sonoran Desert. The Chihuahuan and Sonoran deserts are adjacent as you drive from New Mexico into Arizona, but each has its own climate and character. On this trip we visited Saguaro National Park, which is divided into east and west sections with the City of Tucson in between.
We had gone to the east section back in June of 2019, when the desert was more in bloom. The saguaros were not as plentiful but the other flora was astoundingly beautiful. As I was writing this post, I decided to look at some of the photos I took with my only camera back then–the Olympus EM-5 Mark II. I am pleased with these shots from an older camera. So I am presenting them here, before we delve into the saguaro-rich western park and gardens.
So now we get to what really makes the western section of the national park unique–the literal forests of saguaros, those icons of the US southwest.
Saguaros are found exclusively in the Sonoran Desert because this climate offers the temperature range and the amount of rain they need to thrive. With the right growing conditions, it is estimated that saguaros can live as long as 150-200 years. But they are very slow-growing. After ten years they may only be a little more than a foot high. However, in time they can grow to be 40-60 feet tall (12-18m) and weigh 3,200-4,800 pounds (1,400- 2,200 kilos).
Although the Sonoran climate is conducive to their growth, conditions like periodic droughts have given saguaros intricate strategies to survive. With its ribbed, accordion-like structure and succulent stems, an individual saguaro can store hundreds of gallons of water when it rains. As the water accumulates, the saguaro’s skin stretches to accommodate the increasing volume.
One of the most distinctive features of some saguaros is their arms, which can number as many as 25 on a single cactus. But others do not any grow any arms at all, and the reason for this is not yet known. (I count nine in my photo below.)
In the center of the saguaro is a woody skeleton, consisting of 15-20 woody ribs. The ribs support the immense weight and size of the cactus and all of the water stored within its tissues. They are so strong that they can be used to construct shelters and furniture.
Here are some more photos I took of saguaros and other cacti in the park. I hope you enjoy them.
Tucked right next to Saguaro National Park West is the Sonoran Desert Museum. This combination of gardens, zoo and natural history exhibits is a great way to see the desert’s flora and fauna in one place. Here I was able to photograph some of the animals that inhabit the region. Some roam about the museum, like the ground squirrel and cactus wren in the photos below. Other animals are rescues that for whatever reason cannot be returned to the wild and are housed in natural display areas.
It was very hot that day so many animals were hiding from the heat. But I was not really that disappointed because it would have been impossible to see some of these species in the wild.
