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 Each
year, desert tortoises in the Las Vegas Valley hibernate
in the fall and emerge in the spring. The Mojave
Max Emergence Contest encourages students to study the
conditions of the Mojave Desert and then estimate when
the live tortoise named MOJAVE MAX will emerge from
brumation (the reptilian form of hibernation) each year.
Mojave
Max is a live tortoise residing at the Red Rock National
Conservation Area Visitor’s Center. Like
Punxsutawney Phil, the famous groundhog, Mojave Max’s
emergence is a good indicator of when spring will arrive
here in Southern Nevada.
 Weather
is a very important component of the Mojave Max
Emergence Contest. Temperature, daylight, and an
internal clock are three critical factors that help
determine when Mojave Max will first exit his burrow
each year.
The
winner of the contest and his or her class will receive
medals, t-shirts, family park passes, and a trip to Red
Rock National Conservation Area.
One
teacher’s response to recently winning the contest was
“these children will never forget this.”
Mojave
Max, his emergence from brumation, and the related
education programs have received national recognition.
In 2005, all local news stations covered his emergence.
In 2004, the Associated Press, CNN, USA Today, and media
across the County ran the story of Mojave Max Emerging
from his burrow. In 2003, The Mojave Max Education
Program received the first place "Excellence in
Interpretation and Environmental Education” Award (the
highest award the Bureau of Land Management has for
educational programs).
2007
will be the eighth Mojave Max Emergence Contest.
As local biologists have learned, Mojave Max’s
emergence has been unpredictable, but quite accurate.
He has emerged as late as April 3, and as early as
February 14 in past years. The earlier emergences
did correlate to earlier warming temperatures as the
later emergences also correlated to later warming
temperatures in Southern Nevada.
 Mojave
Max is now being referred to as the “west coast
indicator of spring.” Clark County welcomes the
other communities of the Mojave Desert including
Southern California, Southern Utah and Western Arizona
to Mojave Max Emergence Contest. Since the Mojave
Desert, the primary habitat for the desert tortoise,
extends into these areas as well, these communities now
have a fabulous opportunity to provide additional
related lesson plans and environmental messages of the
Mojave Max Education Program to their residents.
While
anyone can enter the contest, prizes are currently only
available to children of the Clark County School
District and the Southern California Counties of
Imperial, Inyo, Kern, Los Angeles, Orange, Riverside,
San Bernardino, and San Diego.
Everyone
is invited to log onto www.mojavemax.com
or www.accessclarkcounty.com
for more information on the Mojave Max Program.
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