Randy Watkins

@bluetortoise3

Lead Field Biologist on large water and power projects in the Eastern Mojave, from 1999-2010 for the Southern Nevada Water Authority. Link:

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Randy Watkins@bluetortoise3· 10d

The Ramones were popular w/ students, and many college stations had their music in regular rotation. I used to hang out at KUNV, the radio station on the UNLV campus, and I would help w/ music programming. The Ramones playing this benefit concert for KUNV was one of the best shows I‘ve ever seen.

The Ramones play benefit concert for KUNV radio at the UNLV campus December 7, 1984.

Randy Watkins@bluetortoise3· 13d

The Tule Springs Fossil Beds National Monument passed both houses of Congress in December 2014 and signed into law by President Obama to protect Ice Age paleontological discoveries. I did archeo work out there as part of cultural anthropology coursework. Awesome place! www.nps.gov/articles/ser...

A part of the Tule Springs fossil beds with Gass Peak in the background

Tule Springs Fossil Beds National Monument preserves thousands of Pleistocene (Ice Age) fossils that help tell the story of an ever-changing ecosystem. These fossils were preserved within expanding and contracting wetlands between 100,000-12,500 years ago.

Randy Watkins@bluetortoise3· 13d

President Biden established Avi Kwa Ame National Monument under the Antiquities Act. It's named for Avi Kwa Ame, also known as Spirit Mountain. It's considered to be among the most sacred places on Earth by the Mojave, Chemehuevi, and some Southern Paiute people. www.blm.gov/avi-kwa-ame-...

Grapevine Canyon Petroglyphs, in the Avi Kwa Ame National Monument

Summit area of Spirit Mountain (Avi Kwa Ame) National Monument

Randy Watkins@bluetortoise3· 13d

President Obama designated the Gold Butte National Monument monument using his powers under the Antiquities Act the same day as the designation of Bears Ears National Monument. A two year effort by local conservation groups, lawmakers and the Moapa Band of Paiutes. www.blm.gov/programs/nat...

The brightly hued sandstone of Gold Butte National Monument provides a stunning canvas for the area’s famously beautiful rock art

Randy Watkins@bluetortoise3· 13d

The Basin and Range National Monument area has geological, ecological, cultural, historical, paleoecological, seismological, archaeological, and paleoclimatological significance. The area is located in a transition zone between the Mojave and Great Basin Deserts. www.blm.gov/programs/nat...

Secretary Jewell & Director of the Bureau of Land Management Neil Kornze Joins Nevadans to Celebrate Designation of Basin and Range National Monument Designation preserves stunning landscapes, ancient rock art; protects existing ranching, military and recreation uses

Official map of Basin and Range National Monument, Nevada USA. Created by the Bureau of Land Management

Randy Watkins@bluetortoise3· Jul 20

Love to you and the band…I was there🥰

Randy Watkins@bluetortoise3· Jul 20

Biden conserved more lands and waters than any President in history, creating the largest corridor of protected lands in the lower 48 states; the Moab to Mojave Conservation Corridor. Trump is undoing it w/ the Bears Ears and Grand Staircase Monument reductions 🌎 www.npca.org/articles/644...

The Moab to Mojave Conservation Corridor

Randy Watkins@bluetortoise3· Jul 11

You are correct, they do have a “license plate” assigned to them once they are captured and examined. It’s a unique number issued by the USFWS for that particular desert tortoise from that particular location.

My trainee Sherry cleaning a location on the posterior of this Mojave desert tortoise. This is a standardized location for a USFWS ID tag.

This is the type ID tag used by the USFWS for Mojave desert tortoise identification purposes, unique to that tortoise and that specific location.

Randy Watkins@bluetortoise3· Jul 11

I've worked w/ Mojave desert tortoises since 1990 when they were given federal protection and listed federally as a Threatened species. I'm a USFWS Authorized Biologist, meaning I'm permitted by USFWS to handle them and train other biologists how to handle them so that they can become an A.B. too. 🌎

My trainee Sherry excavates a Mojave desert tortoise burrow as I show her how to safely capture a desert tortoise.

We are conducting a basic examination of a Mojave desert tortoise and I guide Sherry through taking measurements of the length of the tortoise's shell with a set of calipers for the USFWS.

We relocate our captured Mojave desert tortoise to a nearby shaded area that's a short distance away from the ROW for a planned substation construction project that will unfortunately displace this one.

Randy Watkins@bluetortoise3· Jul 7

I thought it was more like this.

Two male bighorn rams fighting at Lake Mead National Recreation Area on the SNWA ROW’s

Randy Watkins@bluetortoise3· Jun 26

I worked at Lake Mead from 1999 - 2010 as a wildlife biologist overseeing water infrastructure development for Las Vegas. The amount of Colorado River water dropped so fast that it threatened to expose water intakes on the island, so building a water intake under the lake bottom was fast tracked.🌍

Saddle Island at Lake Mead in 1999, where the water intakes for the city of Las Vegas NV are located

Saddle Island at Lake Mead in 2003, where the water intakes for the city of Las Vegas NV are located.

Randy Watkins@bluetortoise3· May 21

I don’t want to brag, but… One of many festivals I’ve attended. The Kinks were incredible.

Poster for the lineup of the first US Festival

Randy Watkins@bluetortoise3· Apr 12

This is the way it was during the construction of the second and third intakes by SNWA in the River Mountains at Lake Mead National Recreation Area.

Two male rams fight on a main access road for the River Mountains water treatment facility at Lake Mead National Recreation Area

Two male rams fight at a watering location in the River Mountains in the Lake Mead National recreation Area.

Randy Watkins@bluetortoise3· Apr 12

Bighorn Rams at Lake Mead National Recreation Area

A herd of male Big Horn rams, hiding in the shade of the River Mountains

Randy Watkins@bluetortoise3· Apr 12

How about some photos from the work I did at Lake Mead National Recreation Area for the SNWA. I have a lot of Big Horn Sheep photos.

A young male ram at Lake Mead national recreation area in 1999

A male ram hiding in the shade of the River Mountains Water Treatment Facility

Randy Watkins@bluetortoise3· Apr 9

And a very good night to you, you awesome Talking Heads drummer you. Loved you at the Greek Theater:

Concert poster for Talking Heads during their Speaking in Tongues tour, on August 29 and August 30, 1983

Randy Watkins@bluetortoise3· Mar 20

My job was a biological monitor for the wildlife, and also oversight of the construction because of federal permits for all of it, particularly for a National Recreation Area. One of the largest Bighorn sheep herds in NV is in the River Mountains (~250), and they would wander right through.

Two male rams, Bighorn sheep, fighting on a main access road for the SNWA River Mountains water pipeline construction project

A herd of rams, male Bighorn Sheep, hiding from the summer sun in a canyon of the River Mountains near construction for the SNWA water pipeline.

Randy Watkins@bluetortoise3· Mar 20

SNWA built their second intake into Lake Mead between 1997-2010. I worked at the Lake, through the mountains and into the Las Vegas Valley. We all watched the water levels drop dramatically at Lake Mead during that time. Saddle Island in the Lake is where the water intake systems are installed:

Saddle Island at Lake Mead is where Las Vegas withdraws its water allowance from, changing from an island into a peninsula between 2000-2010 due to the water level significantly dropping.

Randy Watkins@bluetortoise3· Jan 28

I was unfortunately there during part of the standoff. I worked for an enviro-consultant who had Overton Power District #5 as a client. I needed to collect seeds for restoration work on transmission lines that we had built through Bundy‘s grazing areas. Bundy posted a sign at one entrance ALT TEXT

Pictures from the Bundy Ranch standoff in 2014

Bundy Sign text: “We The People”, “This Is Our Land”, “No BLM”
“Take Your Turtles and Leave” - is a reference to the Mojave Desert tortoise, a federally protected Threatened Species that is found on some of Bundy’s grazing allotments and is the reason those permits were canceled. Bundy decided that the BLM no longer had any jurisdiction on federally managed lands.

Randy Watkins@bluetortoise3· Jan 11

The Grateful Dead 1983 Ventura County Fairgrounds concert promo

Randy Watkins@bluetortoise3· Dec 29

Gold Butte absolutely deserved National Monument status to help protect it , including from illegal cattle grazing by Cliven Bundy which is still unfortunately going on. Just look at all the petroglyphs.

A petroglyph panel from the Gold Butte National Monument

Randy Watkins@bluetortoise3· Dec 25

As Mr. Garrison from South Park would say, “Merry f$&@ing Christmas to yoouu”!!!

The POTUS wishes everyone a Merry Christmas, except to all of the radical left scum!

Randy Watkins@bluetortoise3· Dec 24

The Colorado River is in crisis due to climate change, worsening regional drought conditions, and reducing the amount of water entering the river basin. The extreme water level drop at the Lake Mead reservoir can be seen in these two photographs from 1999 and 2010 🌎 lasvegassun.com/news/2025/de...

Randy Watkins@bluetortoise3· Dec 5

I was a biologist on the construction of the Ivanpah Electric Generating System (ISEGS) at the CA/NV state line at Primm, NV. It’s located next to Primm Valley Resorts golf course w/extensive water features, attracts many migratory birds that fly through the solar fields and can catch on fire.

Ivanpah Electric Generating System at Primm, NV

Randy Watkins@bluetortoise3· Nov 12

The Colorado River Basin provides water for 7 U.S. states, 2 states in Mexico, and 30 federally recognized tribes.The states CO, N.M., UT, WY (Upper Basin) and AZ, NV, CA (Lower Basin) are negotiating a new management plan because climate change has reduced the amount of water to near-record lows.🌎

The Upper and Lower Colorado Basin States

Randy Watkins@bluetortoise3· Oct 19

Trump is a baby-man

Randy Watkins@bluetortoise3· Oct 10

The Institute for Energy Research (IER) webpage, for some reason, adds that photo of pv panels to the article when the article is forwarded or shared. There’s no photo attached to the source. It should be this photo:

Randy Watkins@bluetortoise3· Sep 30

I’ve seen this anti-science attitude before when the Mojave desert tortoise was federally listed in 1989. There was significant backlash in the Las Vegas area from developers, homebuilders, and some government officials, w/ accusations of biologists in a federal government plot to hurt Las Vegas.

Article from December 5, 1989 from the Las Vegas Review Journal discussing construction work stoppage around the greater Las Vegas Valley due to the Mojave desert tortoise becoming federally listed

Randy Watkins@bluetortoise3· Sep 18

Desert wildflowers for a Rose🌹

Randy Watkins@bluetortoise3· Sep 11

The Las Vegas Review Journal newspaper posted this photo earlier at the other place (X) of a marquee for a hotel casino off of the Las Vegas strip. Unfortunately, Kirk has a lot of fans in Las Vegas.