These monuments will play a vital role in saving hundreds of plants and animals, many of them unique to these landscapes, like the iconic Joshua Tree, desert bighorn sheep and pronghorn antelope ...

By Thursday morning, the roughly 50 animals were already arriving in the desert. Included are small mammals and birds, which tend to be more easily affected by poor air quality from the wildfire ...

The animals, some of which have been rehabilitated at the Big Bear zoo, are staying in private areas of The Living Desert and aren’t available for public viewing.

Back in 2002, the Alpine Zoo transported their animals to Living Desert. Big Bear’s Alpine Zoo has been closed since Sept. 9 and has a tentative reopening date of Saturday, Sept. 21.

The best time to visit Moab is in the spring and fall. Moab is a high desert and experiences extreme hot and cold temperatures, but ... Discover the top animal parks for education, ...

In the summer, the arid high desert can get quite hot, reaching temperatures of around 100 degrees Fahrenheit. According to Beebe, our visit in late May was perfect timing.