"Joshua trees have dotted the Mojave desert for 2.5m years, but even if humans take urgent action to combat the climate crisis, their decimation is all but ensured by the end of this century, a study has found.

Only .02% of the tree’s current habitat in Joshua Tree national park would remain viable amid unmitigated climate change, according to research published in the journal Ecosphere. Even in a best-case scenario, with major efforts to reduce greenhouse gases, 80% of the trees’ habitat will be whittled away.

“Over the past couple of millions of years, we’ve had multiple ice ages with warming periods in between, and the Joshua trees have survived that,” said the ecologist Cameron Barrows, who co-authored the study. “But right now the warming is happening so quickly – and it’s getting hotter than any of those previous periods.”"

Maanvi Singh reports for the Guardian August 10, 2019. [2]