Oswit Land Trust

03/27/2026

What an incredible moment! 🦅
We are so grateful to the Desert Wildlife Center, Palm Springs Animal Control, and our wonderful neighbors for making this possible. Releasing this magnificent Red-Tailed Hawk back into the wild at Prescott Preserve was truly surreal, a beautiful reminder of why we do what we do! 💚

02/13/2026

Restoration at Prescott Preserve: The First Six Months (Phase 1)

Restoring a landscape like Prescott Preserve isn’t a single event — it’s a thoughtful, long-term process. Over the past six months, Oswit Land Trust has been laying the groundwork behind the scenes: securing permits, building our restoration team, expanding our Native Plant Nursery, managing invasive species, and preparing for large-scale planting in the right season.

While much of this work isn’t immediately visible, it’s essential to ensuring the Preserve is restored in a resilient, science-based way. Major planting is planned for fall 2026 when conditions are best for long-term survival, and phased restoration will allow us to move forward carefully and sustainably. There’s much more to share...

👉 Read the full update on our website to learn more about where we are and what’s ahead: https://oswitlandtrust.org/restoration-at-prescott-preserve-the-first-six-months-phase-1/

Thank you for your continued patience and support as this important work moves forward. 🌴✨

02/12/2026

INCREDIBLE NEWS 🦉✨
We all love the videos of bobcats, raccoons, and coyotes — and yes, they’re amazing. But this discovery on our wildlife cameras is something different and SUPER exciting! We’ve confirmed burrowing owls on the Desert Dunes property!!! This species is in steep decline and is under consideration for endangered species status (they currently receive the same legal protections as other endangered species).
Cute wildlife moments always make us smile but discoveries like this are also a reminder of why protecting this property is so important! We will continue working toward acquisition of this amazing property! 💚🌵🦉

02/04/2026

UPDATE ON FIRE AT PRESCOTT PRESERVE
Watch this video!!! Share!!

The fire at Prescott Preserve caused serious damage to our beloved Palm Oasis, and while our team and volunteers moved quickly to respond, the impacts are real and ongoing. In the days immediately following the fire, large burned debris filled the ponds and we were unable to locate the turtles, raising deep concern about their survival. After hours of careful clearing, we were relieved to see them reappear—but the habitat they depend on has been significantly disrupted, and wildlife throughout the preserve remains vulnerable as recovery begins.
Restoring this fragile ecosystem will take time, expertise, and continued community support. We are working closely with environmental pond specialists, wildlife experts, and biologists to stabilize water quality, rebuild lost habitat for turtles, birds, and bats, and protect the site from future harm. A huge thank-you to filmmaker Chris Wheeler of Great Divide Pictures, who urgently stepped in to create a powerful three-minute video showing the damage, the response, and why this moment matters. Please watch and share the video—and if you’re able, consider donating to help us protect and restore Prescott Preserve when it needs us most.

www.oswitlandtrust.org/donate
— The Oswit Land Trust Team

Enjoy the videos and music you love, upload original content, and share it all with friends, family, and the world on YouTube.

02/02/2026

🚧 Trail Closure Notice 🚧
The Prescott Preserve Pond Trail is closed to the public until further notice due to an active investigation and for public safety.

We appreciate your patience and understanding while this area remains closed. More updates will be shared as more information becomes available.

02/02/2026

2/2/26 - Prescott Preserve Update from Jane Garrison, Executive Director of Oswit Land Trust

02/02/2026

Our staff, board, and dedicated volunteers are heartbroken and devastated by today’s fire at Prescott Preserve. Our beautiful palm tree oasis surrounding the ponds is almost gone...

What makes this loss even more painful is that we can say with a high degree of certainty that this fire was human-caused. An arson investigation will be taking place this week. The trails on the east side of Farrell will be closed until further notice.

At this time, there is still much we still do not know:
* It is important to be clear that this fire was NOT caused by dry conditions. The preserve is healthy and green.
* We have not yet been able to assess how the turtle population fared ( or the owls, bats, coots, etc).

Because the palm oasis was so well-established and thriving, it was not included in our restoration grant. As a result, all immediate response, recovery and replanting efforts will need to come from donations. We need help ASAP to cover the costs of:
1. Hiring people to immediately to clear burned vegetation and assess the damage.
2.Removing damaged or hazardous trees
3.Replacing and expanding security camera coverage
4.Potentially replacing equipment that may have been damaged in the fire.
5. Ultimately, restoring and replanting this critical habitat.

We can't thank the fire department enough for their quick response. This could have been even worse for both humans and wildlife.

Today is an incredibly difficult day. I know I personally shed a lot of tears today. The kind messages, calls, and texts we have received mean more than we can express. We are deeply grateful for this community.

If you are able to help in any way, large or small, we appreciate your support www.oswitlandtrust.org/donate

01/14/2026

We’re excited to bring our to community our first project in partnership with Blue Zones Project Palm Springs. This video shows today’s guided wander through the preserve and a visit to the native plant nursery — learning the land before loving it back. 💙

Next week brings sunshine, soil, and planting as we help the wildlife corridor begin to bloom again. ✨🌱

01/13/2026

Oswit Land Trust featured on American Dream TV. The interview was not only on national TV/CNBC, but also can be found streaming on AppleTV, ROKU, and YouTube.

Watch it here:

Copyright / Credits: Kate Castle, American Dream TV

12/10/2025

🚨🚨🚨We need you to attend a RALLY at the CITY COUNCIL MEETING Wednesday December 10th at 5 pm! 🚨🚨🚨

BRING YOUR SIGNS AND BRING YOUR VOICE!

SAY NO TO MASSIVE WAREHOUSE AT THE ENTRANCE TO OUR CITY!

Rally will be in front of City Hall at 5pm followed by public comment at 5:30 in Council Chambers. Be prepared to speak during the public comment period.

🟢What's happening?
City Council will be reviewing a request from a private developer to build an enormous 2.85 million square feet of warehouse space on 217 acres of Tribal Land at the entry to Palm Springs (that is zoned for open space). The Tribal Council has asked the City to prepare a report and vote on whether or not this proposed project conforms to City zoning and planning and to share its views and recommendations with the Tribal Council before the tribe makes a decision.

🟢Urge the City Council to vote on three things:
that this project DOES NOT CONFORM with zoning and applicable laws as this is sensitive land that is zoned open space.
to request that the city council conduct a JOINT MEETING with the Tribal Council. For the city council to share with the tribe that the city council supports OPTION 3 of the tribe's three options for this project. Option three is to- SUPPORT THE NO-BUILD ALTERNATIVE.

🟢Please show up with your voice and signs!
We can't do this alone! (Please respect the two minute time limit and focus on the points below or just urge the city council to vote on the three requests above). Please do not attack the Tribe or City Council

🟢 Topic ideas for your two minutes:
- Violates air quality standards and will harm public health. The Tribe's own Environmental Impact Statement says that health impacts from this project cannot be mitigated and that it violates air quality requirements.
- Risks aquifer quality and water supply.
- Will result in harm to animals including federally protected endangered species.
- Will cause major traffic backup on the 10, 111, and Tipton Road impacting our tourism economy and quality of life.
- Potential for flooding
- Will cost City taxpayers to cover costs for police, fire, roads, and other expenses.
- Will forever change the entrance to our city.

SHARE THIS FAR AND WIDE.
BE AT THE RALLY AND LET YOUR VOICE BE HEARD!

Let's keep our iconic city entrance blight free.

12/07/2025

The endangered peninsular bighorn sheep make their home in the San Jacinto Mountains and Santa Rosa Mountains. At one point in recent history the local herds almost went extinct. A dedicated team led by the helped to save the sheep and today they can be seen throughout the range, reoccupying historic habitat they haven't used in decades.

In a world threatened with constant development, it is now more important than ever to save natural habitat for flora and fauna, including the mountain slopes that are home to the endangered bighorn. While the sheep were saved from extirpation (local extinction), there is still work to do and habitat to save to make sure this species, and other desert wildlife, have a forever home in an ever changing world dominated by the human species. It is our job to be better stewards of the land so future generations (humans, domestic animals, and wildlife) have the opportunity to live the lives they deserve.



Picture 1- A bighorn ram overlooks his mountain terrain at sunrise with the city below

Picture 2 - A dam(mom) nurses her lamb while another lamb looks on from the mountainside

Picture 3 - A bighorn 'family' with a ram, ewe, and her lamb

08/12/2025

Desert Wildlife Center: Friends of wildlife,
We are receiving multiple reports of coyotes being hit by cars on local roads. This is a time when young coyotes are being taught to forage and hunt wild prey like rodents and rabbits by their parents. Young coyotes haven’t yet learned to navigate roads and highways so they are especially vulnerable to injury. We can all help wildlife by being alert while driving and not speeding. If you see a coyote that is injured or needs help, please call the DWC helpline at (760) 203-5500.
Thank you for caring!

Photo credit: Joshua Wilking/Unsplash

Friends of wildlife,
We are receiving multiple reports of coyotes being hit by cars on local roads. This is a time when young coyotes are being taught to forage and hunt wild prey like rodents and rabbits by their parents. Young coyotes haven’t yet learned to navigate roads and highways so they are especially vulnerable to injury. We can all help wildlife by being alert while driving and not speeding. If you see a coyote that is injured or needs help, please call the DWC helpline at (760) 203-5500.
Thank you for caring!

Photo credit: Joshua Wilking/Unsplash