Pika'aya Tooveep Project: Partnerships the key to success in learning more about 'tortoise country' – St George News stgeorgeutah.com - get the latest breaking news, showbiz & celebrity photos, sport news & rumours, viral videos and top stories from stgeorgeutah.com Daily Mail and Mail on Sunday newspapers.
Pika aya means tortoise in the Shivwits dialect of Southern Paiute.
Southern Paiute land in Washington County could hold some important information about Mojave Desert tortoises. To learn more, researchers are taking a holistic approach to studying this endangered animal.
The project is called Pika’aya Tooveep or “Tortoise Country” in Paiute. Part of the endeavor involves students and wildlife biologists surveying the Shivwits Band of Paiute Indians reservation for signs of tortoises, which isn’t usually allowed.
Ann McLuckie is a biologist with the Utah Division of Wildlife Resources. She said the land on either side of the reservation is an important recovery area for the tortoises. Surveying the animals on the reservation will help them understand how much movement there is between the two areas.
Published April 23, 2021 at 8:56 AM MDT Listen • 5:00
/ Salt Lake County has committed to reducing its water use by at least 5% in county-run facilities in response to the state’s drought emergency declaration issued last month. This story and more in the Friday morning news brief.
Friday morning, April 23, 2021
Region/Nation
Undocumented Students Meet With Secretary Of Education
The U.S. Secretary of Education met with undocumented students and educators from Utah and other states earlier this week. It came five weeks after Congress passed the American Dream and Promise Act, which could provide a pathway to citizenship for DACA recipients and Dreamers. Sinthia Rosado Veronica of Magna said this legislation could be transformative. “The passing of the Dream and Promise Act would allow a lot of us to breathe that sigh of relief that we ve been holding in for so long. And a pathway to citizenship for those who came to the United States as chil