Miley Cyrus Asked To Remove Joshua Tree Picture To 'Educate' People

What seemed like an innocent social media post has landed Miley Cyrus into some trouble. The “Wrecking Ball” singer recently posted a photo of herself sitting on a Joshua tree which has raised concerns about the damage to the fragile tree.

“Looking down at all the petty drama like…” Cyrus captioned her post on Instagram showing her sitting on a Joshua tree.

In another picture from the same photo shoot, the singer could be seen hanging from the tree. “Monkey Bizzzzznassssss,” she captioned the second post.

The photos caught the attention of the Mojave-Desert Land Trust executives. Geary Hund, who is the executive director of the trust, told USA Today that Joshua trees have shallow root systems, so any additional weight can damage the branches of these trees.

Hund asked Cyrus to remove the pictures from her social media pages. The “Malibu” singer is a public figure, and Hund feels that her removing the pictures will help “educate” the public about the Joshua trees and help prevent potential damage to these trees.

Susan Burnett manages a hotel in downtown Joshua Tree, and she feels that Cyrus’ picture represents that it is “cool” to climb these endangered trees. After the people in the community have tried so hard to educate the people about these trees, she feels the singer’s post is a “monumental setback.”

“I’m counting on her to help make this right and use her platform to help us preserve these ancient beauties,” Burnett said in a statement.

While the Joshua trees are endangered, there are ways for people to appreciate them without causing any damage. Christine Pfranger, owner of Coyote Corner, said that people can hug the trees and even kiss them, but they should never climb on them or hang from them.

It isn’t clear if Cyrus took the photos at Joshua Tree National Park, where these trees are protected. The park spokesperson George Land said that they don’t want to incite people to carry out any threats against the singer. They just want her to be careful with such activity since she has a large fan following.