"Hipster tastes have fueled a spike in succulent poaching. Now conservationists are finding creative ways to rescue them"

"When most people drive through the Cactus Forest in Saguaro national park, their gazes are fixed skyward. Towering saguaros fill the view on either side of the road, rising 40, even 60ft high, their human-like arms outstretched.

But on a recent December afternoon, Ray O’Neil was focused on the ground. He was looking for holes. As the park’s chief ranger, O’Neil is on constant alert for an unusual menace: cactus poachers. Saguaros aren’t just beautiful to look at; they also fetch a hefty price, up to $100 a foot, on the black market, where they are enormously popular with landscapers.

As the sideways winter light illuminated the saguaros with a golden effervescence, O’Neil scanned the scene. “People try to steal all kinds of things from the park, even rattlesnakes,” said O’Neil, staring out the open window of his SUV. “But cactus has always been the biggest target.”"

Annette McGivney repors for the Guardian February 20, 2019. [2]