Rhizomatic Entanglements- Art+Science Root Excavations Toward Reparative Joshua tree Conservation

Yucca brevifolia (Joshua tree) is an iconic species of the Mojave Desert, recently granted legal protection under the California Western Joshua Tree Conservation Act, and the first in the state to be safeguarded primarily due to climate-related threats. While this legislation marks a critical step in conservation, existing regulations limit development within 10 feet of each tree, despite limited empirical understanding of Joshua tree root extent or its co-evolved pollinators. This study integrates quantitative field science, ecological physiology, and transdisciplinary art-based methods to investigate the root systems of mature Joshua trees. Using air excavation, root tracing, physiological measurements (photosynthesis and water potential), and artistic interventions, we document extensive lateral root spread, up to 14 meters long, and consistently shallow rooting depths across sampled individuals. These findings reveal that current regulatory setbacks dramatically underestimate the spatial footprint of Joshua tree root zones, exposing root systems to potential harm from nearby construction or land alteration. Additionally, we recovered and dissected four suspected Tegeticula moth pupal exoskeletons—the obligate pollinators of Joshua trees—from the soil. If verified through pending genetic analysis, these will constitute the first confirmed field observations of yucca moth pupae, underscoring the critical but overlooked ecological importance of belowground microhabitats in conservation planning. This project incorporates community involvement through ritual and art which, informed by feminist science, ecological aesthetics, queer ecologies, and Indigenous knowledge systems, challenges extractive scientific practices by embedding care, community ritual, and artistic inquiry into ecological research. We recommend that regulatory buffer zones be extended and redefined based on evidence of root architecture and multispecies dependencies. Protection of Joshua trees must account for both morphology and entangled life above and belowground. This work advocates for a conservation science that is both rigorous and reparative, capable of responding to the ecological urgency of climate change while engaging with the epistemological legacies of colonial land management.