“Unmolested and with grass to eat, a tortoise can live eighty years. Their populations have plummeted in the Mojave in recent years, victims of a perfect storm of drought, sprawl development, solar energy projects, off-road vehicle enthusiasts (who crush them under their wheels), poaching, vandals with pistols (who use them for target practice), and, not least, livestock grazing.” TortoiseMojave Desert Book:This Land: How Cowboys, Capitalism, and Corruption are Ruining the American West Source: This Land: How Cowboys, Capitalism, and Corruption are Ruining the American West