[PCA] ARTICLE: 200 yo saguaro dies after heavy storms in Arizona

[De Angelis, Patricia]

A centuries-old cactus survived everything. Then summer rains came.
By Derek Hawkins
August 31, 2022

The saguaro cactus towered over the hilltop outside Tucson like a massive hand rising out of the earth.

Generations of hikers posed for pictures at the base of the hulking, treelike plant, whose longest arms stretched almost 30 feet into the air above Catalina State Park. Artists painted it. Scores of animal species relied on it for food and shelter.

Older than Arizona itself by nearly a century, it weathered droughts and monsoons, searing heat and cold snaps, that worsened with climate change. It outlasted the ranchers who grazed cattle and built dwellings near its roots. It survived wildfires and invasive grasses.

But at some point this month, after fierce rains swept through the park, the cactus split at the trunk and toppled to ground, removing one of the area’s most cherished landmarks from the skyline.

Link: https://www.washingtonpost.com/nation/2022/08/31/saguaro-cactus-arizona-catalina/

Related item:
Saving the West’s most iconic cactus from climate change
Story by Karen Peterson
Photos by Cassidy Araiza
March 10, 2021

TUCSON — The giant saguaro, an icon of the American West, is beloved in this state. Arms raised in a perpetual “hello there,” the saguaro covers the desert wilderness and thrives in cities. Its silhouette appears in fine art and on restaurant walls; businesses and schools carry its name. Arizona state law protects the plant, and it is revered by the native Tohono O’odham tribe.

https://www.washingtonpost.com/climate-solutions/interactive/2021/saguaro-cactus-climate-change/?itid=lk_interstitial_manual_7
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