Osoyoos, British Columbia and its surrounding area is Canada's only bona fide desert (receiving less than 250mm of precipitation annually). Hot summers, mild winters and (despite locally low precipitation) readily-available water for irrigation provide an ideal environment for viticulture.

As you might imagine, though, Canada's only desert and surrounding region contains (or contained) a number of species that are very sensitive to encroaching development and agriculture; the South Okanagan-Similkameen region holds roughly thirty percent of the provincial red-listed species (source: “Canada's Endangered Desert Country”). These threatened species include plants like the Columbian carpet moss, endemic to semi-arid regions of western North America. As the link reports, one of the few remaining populations of this moss was possibly eradicated by the establishment of a vineyard.

Ensuring that the natural denizens of the region are not displaced or exterminated by expanding agriculture and development is obviously one of the challenges in the area. Some of the wineries recognize this fact and participate in conservation initiatives. As an example, the winery where this photograph was taken from supports conservation directly through sales and fundraising events and indirectly through public education – at the very least, a good start on tackling the challenges.

Photography / nature resource link: Digital Morphology via the University of Texas. “A dynamic archive of information on digital morphology and high-resolution X-ray computed tomography of biological specimens.” The site favours vertebrates, but there are a few plants on the site (click on Browse the Library by Common or Scientific Names), including a tulip – be sure to try the “dynamic cutaway” movies.