Saddle Peak Hills Wilderness

Saddle Peak Hills Wilderness is the smallest designated wilderness area created by the California Desert Protection Act of 1994.^[3]

Saddle Peak Hills Wilderness
IUCN category Ib (wilderness area)
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Location	San Bernardino County, California, United States
Nearest city	Baker, California
Coordinates	35°47′03″N 116°20′28″W
Area	1,530 acres (6.2 km2)
Established	1994 (1994)[1]
Governing body	Bureau of Land Management[2]

History

A 1980 Bureau of Land Management report recommended the area as unsuitable for wilderness designation, as the mineral resources identified in the study were likely to be commercially viable. These included copper, lead, silver and talc, all of which had been historically extracted in the area.^[4]

The area was given wilderness status on 21 October 1994.^[5]

Geology

The area contains considerable deposits of talc.^[4]

Ecology

Vegetation

Vegetation consists mostly of creosote bush and allscale scrubs. No sensitive or significant plant species are known to occur within the wilderness area.^[4]

Wildlife

The area is not known to support any listed, sensitive or rare species.^{[Note 1]}

The sandy substrate in an area of approximately 3 square miles (1,920 acres / 7.8 square kilometres) provides habitat for the Mojave fringe-toed lizard, a highly adapted sand-dwelling species.^[4]

See also

• List of U.S. Wilderness Areas
• Wilderness Act

Notes

1. According to 1980 report.^[4]

References

1. "Saddle Peak Hills in United States of America". ProtectedPlanet.net. United Nations Environment World Conservation Monitoring Centre. Retrieved August 23, 2019.
2. "Saddle Peak Hills Wilderness". BLM.gov. Bureau of Land Management. Retrieved August 23, 2019.
3. "Saddle Peak Hills Wilderness". Wilderness.net. University of Montana. Retrieved August 23, 2019.
4. United States. Bureau of Land Management (1980), Page 291–298, "California Desert Conservation Area: Environmental Impact Statement", Northwestern University Accessed online August 27, 2019.
5. Congress (2009), Page 452, "United States Code, 2006, Supplement 1, January 4, 2007 to January 8, 2008", Government Printing Office, ISBN 0160835127, Accessed online August 30, 2019.