Mojave Max breaks record for latest emergence in 23-year history

Temperatures in the Las Vegas Valley may be warming up, but Mojave Max is still missing in action.

Mojave Max, the mascot of the Clark County Desert Conservation Program and Nevada’s own iteration of Punxsutawney Phil, has broken his 23-year brumation record.

Every year, Clark County School District students guess what time and day Max will emerge from his burrow after his brumation, or hibernation for reptiles, at the Springs Preserve. His emergence for many Las Vegas residents symbolizes the beginning of spring in the Mojave Desert.

The latest Max had emerged prior to this year was April 17, 2012, at 12:41 p.m. according to the Desert Conservation Program.Max’s earliest emergence was on Valentine’s Day in 2005 at 11:55 a.m. Last year, Max emerged from his burrow on March 26 at 12:21 p.m.

Katrina Smith, Max’s caregiver and senior zoologist at the Springs Preserve, attributed Max’s delayed debut to unseasonably cold temperatures.

“Even though our daytime temperatures have been warming up, and to us, it feels like, ‘Oh, this is fantastic’ … that’s still a little bit on the chillier side for Max,” Smith said.

For desert tortoises to emerge from brumation, temperatures need to level out and overnight lows need to warm up.

Max’s current burrow is also deep in the ground — so deep, in fact, that Smith isn’t sure how deep exactly the burrow goes.

Three’s company

Max typically chooses a different burrow each year to spend the winter in, and this year he hunkered down with two female tortoises that live with him in the preserve’s 15-acre desert tortoise habitat.

Smith said Max will need to feel the temperature changes from deep within the burrow before he emerges.

But don’t worry about Max’s well-being. All tortoises at the preserve are regularly tracked with a transmitter glued to the back of their shells to ensure they are all accounted for, she said.

The Desert Conservation Program monitors the burrow with a motion-sensor camera, according to public outreach coordinator Audrie Locke.

That camera caught one of Max’s burrow mates briefly emerge last month before she went back inside, where she’s been ever since.

“I think they came out and realized it wasn’t quite time for them to make an appearance permanently for the next season,” Locke said. “Maybe they gave Max a little hint that it wasn’t quite warm enough to stay out yet, so he’s staying inside.”

Once Max emerges from his burrow, the Springs Preserve staff will bring in Max for a wellness check, according to Locke. Then, during a pizza party, Max will be shown off to the student and class who correctly guessed his emergence time and day.

For those inquisitive minds who want an up-close look at Max before then, you’re out of luck. Smith says the location of Max’s burrow is kept secret and asks that visitors respect his space and stay on designated trails.

“You have a really slim chance of seeing a tortoise, so if someone is out and active and you see him walking across the pathway, enjoy that experience,” Smith said. “But please do not leave the pathway to try to find a burrow or try to find a tortoise.”

Contact Taylor Lane at tlane@reviewjournal.com. Follow @tmflane on Twitter.