Microchips installed in Saguaros to deal with black market poaching

Saguaro cactus, found mostly in Arizona, can sell for over $1,000 which, in turn, has given rise to a pretty active poaching trade.
Saguaro cactus, found mostly in Arizona, can sell for over $1,000 which, in turn, has given rise to a pretty active poaching trade.

By Elizabeth Stuart | Phoenix New Times

It takes a saguaro cactus about 75 years to achieve its iconic, armed stature.

It takes a couple burly poachers about 30 minutes to steal it.

“They just wrap it in carpet to protect themselves from the spines, then they dig up its roots and heft it into a truck,” said Zeke Austin, special investigations supervisor for the Arizona Department of Agriculture. “It’s not sophisticated.”

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