Kern River Preserve
Encyclopedia
The Audubon Kern River Preserve is a riparian nature reserve
owned by the National Audubon Society
in the US
state of California
, near Weldon
in Kern County
.
The preserve is located in one of the largest contiguous riparian forest
s remaining in the state. The 3000 acres (12.1 km²) preserve provides habitat for rare and Audubon's endangered birds, one of which is the federally-listed endangered Southwestern Willow Flycatcher, a subspecies of the Willow Flycatcher
. The preserve is located within a designated Globally Important Bird Area, a program of the National Audubon Society with its partner BirdLife International to identify and protect critical avian habitats.
The South Fork Kern River, designated a national Wild and Scenic River since 1987. flows down the South Fork Valley, through the Kern River Preserve and then into Lake Isabella
. The South Fork is the source for irrigation water for agriculture and the rare riparian forests of the valley. The river's upper reaches have populations of golden trout
, California's state fish. The golden trout is being reviewed by United States Fish and Wildlife Service for listing under the Endangered Species Act
.
Scientific research studies are conducted at the Kern River Preserve, including the Grinnell Resurvey Project, a 2008-09 resurvey by University of California, Berkeley
students of zoologist Joseph Grinnell
's 1914 landmark survey of California species.
The preserve features a visitor's center, a self-guided nature trail, monthly nature events, monthly volunteer work days and a variety of festivals during the year.
when the heirs sold the Brown Ranch to the Kern County Land and Cattle Company.
Development of the property was a possibility, however, The Nature Conservancy moved quickly to purchase 1600 acres (6.5 km²) of the ranch. The purchase was accomplished in 1979 with funds from donors, two of which were Getty Oil Company and the W. M. Keck Foundation
.
where the South Fork Kern River enters the reservoir. In 1981, a fence was constructed to protect the streamside vegetation from grazing cattle.
On March 31, 2005, Audubon California chapter and California Department of Fish and Game
bought 4358 acres (17.6 km²) of the Sprague Ranch. The purchase was in part to mitigate for the flooding of the South Fork Wildlife Area from Lake Isabella during high water years and resulting loss of Willow Flycatcher habitat. A total of 1640 acres (6.6 km²) was added to the preserve, the remaining 2718 acres (11 km²) of Sprague Ranch went to California Department of Fish and Game. Funding was provided by US Army Corps of Engineers; California Wildlife Conservation Board; and the National Audubon Society from a grant from the Packard Foundation
's Conserving California's Landscape Initiative.
On January 31, 2006, the purchase of 105 acre (0.4249203 km²) of the Alexander Ranch that flanks the South Fork Kern River was completed with funds from the Resources Legacy Foundation. The riverfront property has nesting sites of Vermilion Flycatcher
s, Yellow Warbler
s, Bullock's Oriole
s and Southwestern Willow Flycatcher. The land is in good condition, with ponds of duckweed and other wetland
plants that harbor several pond turtles.
There were two land acquisitions in 2009: On August 28, the 26 acres (105,218.4 m²) Vig property was purchased by Audubon, and November 20, the 80 acres (323,748.8 m²) Pond Ranch sale closed a gap between Fay Ranch Road and Sierra Way Road. The Pond Ranch purchase added one-quarter mile of the South Fork Kern River frontage to the preserve
s on a federal grazing allotment. Hafenfeld has entered into a perpetual conservation easement
with the Natural Resources Conservation Service
(formerly Soil Conservation Service) to ensure the property is maintained as a working ranch. “We developed a management plan for 1.3 acres along the Kern River Preserve, went after a wetland reserve grant, and developed habitat that increased opportunities for species to come onto my land. We were trying to show that we were not a liability, but an asset.” Hafenfeld said, speaking at the 2007 Conference of the Riparian Habitat Joint Venture. The Riparian Habitat Joint Venture is a cooperative conservation agreement between federal, state and private entities modeled after the Joint Venture projects of the North American Waterfowl Management Plan. It was started in 1994 by Partners in flight
.
It took eight years, working with multiple agencies, to form the conservation easement for the Hafenfeld Ranch.
is the heart of the preserve and the South Fork Valley.
The river begins at elevation 10400 feet (3,169.9 m) in the Inyo National Forest
at Mulkey Meadows, named after Cyrus Mulkey, sheriff of Inyo County, California from 1871 to 1874.
The river flows down the South Fork Valley, through the Audubon Kern River Preserve to Lake Isabella at 2605 feet (794 m) elevation. The South Fork Valley, only a few miles wide and 15 miles (24.1 km) in length, is at the southern end of the Sierra Nevada Mountains
in northeastern Kern County. Although the valley was the first area settled in the county, it contains the largest contiguous riparian forest still remaining in the state. There are several types of riparian forest, the South Fork Valley has the Great Valley Cottonwood Forest, distinguished by a majority of Fremont cottonwood and willow tree species. The understory is dense with wild rose and shade-tolerant Oregon ash. The soils are fine-grained alluvial with annual river flooding that maintains fertility.
The University of California, Santa Barbara
's Biogeography Lab report describes the distribution of this type of riparian forest as "Formerly extensive along the major low-gradient (depositional) streams throughout the Great Valley, but [are] now reduced to scattered, isolated remnants or young stands because of flood control, water diversion, agricultural development, and urban expansion..."
Rare wildflowers include the alkali mariposa lily
. Listed by California Native Plant Society
as "rare, threatened or endangered in California and elsewhere", it has been observed near the South Fork Kern River, as well as the surrounding counties and in the state of Nevada. It is a perennial bulb that blooms in April and May, and is threatened by grazing, trampling, road construction, urbanization and horticultural collecting. Water diversions can also impact this primarily wetland species.
, a cavity-nester; the Yellow Warbler
, the Yellow-breasted Chat
, and the Southwestern Willow Flycatcher.
The federally-listed endangered Southwestern Willow Flycatcher has small populations in the preserve and is closely monitored by Audubon volunteers and staff. The US Fish and Wildlife Service designated critical habitat
for the Southwestern Willow Flycatcher which includes 9.6 miles (15.4 km) of the South Fork Kern River and excludes Hafenfeld Ranch which has the conservation easement in place.
Another notable bird is the Summer Tanager
. The Summer Tanager breeds in lowlands along streams and is known as a bee and wasp specialist. The Summer Tanager will remove the bee's stinger before ingesting by rubbing the bee on a branch. The Least Bell's Vireo is a species that will hopefully reestablish nesting in the South Fork Kern River Valley. It is one of four subspecies of Bell's Vireo
, which disappeared from California's Central Valley by the 1960s, and has been federally-listed as endangered since 1986. The US Fish and Wildlife Service's 5-year review of Least Bell's Vireo, dated September 2006, lists the primary cause of population declines to loss of riparian habitat in California. Another threat listed by the review is from the Brown-headed Cowbird
which lays its eggs in other birds' nests, called egg parasitism. The Southern Sierra Research Station, which conducts research on the Kern River Preserve, has a cowbird eradication program which has reduced the rate of parasitism to 20 per cent from 60 to 70 per cent (percentage of Willow Flycatcher nests studied by Southern Sierra Research Station staff).
, California ground squirrel, American black bear, and bobcat. Uncommon species include mountain lion and an introduced species of beaver. There are 50 species of mammals found on the Kern River Preserve.
There are three species of amphibians and 24 species of reptiles, including the common garter snake
, California kingsnake
, several lizard species and the California toad
. The only venomous snake at the preserve is the Northern Pacific rattlesnake
. Also found at the preserve is the Pacific pond turtle
, a species of concern in California and listed as endangered in Washington state.
The South Fork Valley is unique in California, as three of the ten floristic provinces in the nation meet and overlap here. The floristic provinces are: Great Basin Desert, Mojave Desert, and Californian Province (in which one finds numerous ecotypes: grassland, riparian forest, oak woodland, interior chaparral, mixed conifer, sequoia, red fir, subalpine.) The resulting diversity is evident in the numbers of species: There are 31 species dragonfly
, of and 53 species of butterfly
, including the alkali skipper (grass skipper) and the rare San Emigdio blue butterfly.
The San Emigdio blue butterfly is a species of concern due to its limited local range consisting of Southern California from Inyo County south through the Mojave Desert
, San Joaquin Valley
, Bouquet and Mint canyons of Los Angeles County.
A resurvey of Grinnell's original route was begun by the museum to research, document and model changes in the distribution and habits of animal species in the timespan between the early 1900s and the current century. The Kern River Valley area, called the Whitney transect, was studied in June and September 2008 and in May 2009 by the resurvey teams. The original Grinnell 1911-1914 field notes are online and searchable. (See External links section.) Parts of the resurvey of California are completed, including Yosemite National Park
, and show changing trends in wildlife territory and range; some expanding, some contracting and some species moving to higher elevations.
The Southern Sierra Research Station, a non-profit organization, conducts research at the preserve on the Western Yellow-billed Cuckoo and Southwestern Willow Flycatcher.
Biologist Donald Mitchell from the University of Minnesota
studied migration of hummingbirds at the preserve. Mitchell is a federally-permitted hummingbird bander and has served as Vice President of the Minnesota Ornithologists' Union.
Dirkson, Diane and James, Recreational Lakes of California 12th ed. Recreation Sales Publishing 1999
Nature reserve
A nature reserve is a protected area of importance for wildlife, flora, fauna or features of geological or other special interest, which is reserved and managed for conservation and to provide special opportunities for study or research...
owned by the National Audubon Society
National Audubon Society
The National Audubon Society is an American non-profit environmental organization dedicated to conservation. Incorporated in 1905, Audubon is one of the oldest of such organizations in the world and uses science, education and grassroots advocacy to advance its conservation mission...
in the US
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
state of California
California
California is a state located on the West Coast of the United States. It is by far the most populous U.S. state, and the third-largest by land area...
, near Weldon
Weldon, California
Weldon is a census-designated place in Kern County, California, United States. It sits at the southeast tip of Lake Isabella. Weldon is located east-southeast of Wofford Heights, at an elevation of 2654 feet...
in Kern County
Kern County, California
Spreading across the southern end of the California Central Valley, Kern County is the fifth-largest county by population in California. Its economy is heavily linked to agriculture and to petroleum extraction, and there is a strong aviation and space presence. Politically, it has generally...
.
The preserve is located in one of the largest contiguous riparian forest
Riparian forest
A riparian forest is a forested area of land adjacent to a body of water such as a river, stream, pond, lake, marshland, estuary, canal, sink or reservoir. -Etymology:...
s remaining in the state. The 3000 acres (12.1 km²) preserve provides habitat for rare and Audubon's endangered birds, one of which is the federally-listed endangered Southwestern Willow Flycatcher, a subspecies of the Willow Flycatcher
Willow Flycatcher
The Willow Flycatcher is a small insect-eating bird of the tyrant flycatcher family.Adults have brown-olive upperparts, darker on the wings and tail, with whitish underparts; they have an indistinct white eye ring, white wing bars and a small bill. The breast is washed with olive-grey. The upper...
. The preserve is located within a designated Globally Important Bird Area, a program of the National Audubon Society with its partner BirdLife International to identify and protect critical avian habitats.
The South Fork Kern River, designated a national Wild and Scenic River since 1987. flows down the South Fork Valley, through the Kern River Preserve and then into Lake Isabella
Lake Isabella
Lake Isabella is a reservoir in Kern County, California created by the earthen Isabella Dam. It was formed in 1953 when the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers dammed the Kern River at the junction of its two forks at Whiskey Flat. At 11,000 acres , it is one of the larger reservoirs in California...
. The South Fork is the source for irrigation water for agriculture and the rare riparian forests of the valley. The river's upper reaches have populations of golden trout
Golden Trout
The golden trout is a sub-species of the rainbow trout, and it closley resembles the juvenile Rainbow trout. The fish is also known as the California golden trout and is native to Golden Trout Creek, Volcano Creek and the South Fork Kern River. Another variant, O. m...
, California's state fish. The golden trout is being reviewed by United States Fish and Wildlife Service for listing under the Endangered Species Act
Endangered Species Act
The Endangered Species Act of 1973 is one of the dozens of United States environmental laws passed in the 1970s. Signed into law by President Richard Nixon on December 28, 1973, it was designed to protect critically imperiled species from extinction as a "consequence of economic growth and...
.
Scientific research studies are conducted at the Kern River Preserve, including the Grinnell Resurvey Project, a 2008-09 resurvey by University of California, Berkeley
University of California, Berkeley
The University of California, Berkeley , is a teaching and research university established in 1868 and located in Berkeley, California, USA...
students of zoologist Joseph Grinnell
Joseph Grinnell
Joseph Grinnell was a field biologist and zoologist. He made extensive studies of the fauna of California, and is credited with introducing a method of recording precise field observations known as the Grinnell System...
's 1914 landmark survey of California species.
The preserve features a visitor's center, a self-guided nature trail, monthly nature events, monthly volunteer work days and a variety of festivals during the year.
History
The Preserve is located on the former cattle ranch of Andrew Brown, which dates to the 1860s. The ranch was bought by The Nature Conservancy in 1979 and the deed transferred to National Audubon Society in 1998.Pioneer Andrew Brown
Andrew Brown was born in Ireland in 1829, arrived in California in 1852, and eventually settled in Kern County. He operated a general store in Kernville, and expanded into Weldon township with the purchase of a second store and a ranch. Brown raised cattle, sheep, hogs and wheat. He built a flour mill in Weldon and later a sawmill near what is now Wofford Heights. Business success enabled Brown to purchase and trade for other ranch and farm land, and he incorporated all his interests into the A. Brown Company in 1901. Brown was company president until his death in 1909. The Brown family continued operations until the 1970s.when the heirs sold the Brown Ranch to the Kern County Land and Cattle Company.
Development of the property was a possibility, however, The Nature Conservancy moved quickly to purchase 1600 acres (6.5 km²) of the ranch. The purchase was accomplished in 1979 with funds from donors, two of which were Getty Oil Company and the W. M. Keck Foundation
W. M. Keck Foundation
The W. M. Keck Foundation is an American charitable foundation supporting scientific, engineering, and medical research in the United States. It was founded in 1954 by William Myron Keck, founder and president of Superior Oil Company . The Foundation's trust fund currently has assets in excess of 1...
.
Expansion of the preserve
The Nature Conservancy acquired adjacent acreage through a program of land trades which swapped pasture land parcels for riparian forest parcels with nearby Sprague Ranch and the Prince Ranch in 1980. The preserve now bordered the Army Corps of Engineers' (now Sequoia National Forest) South Fork Wildlife Area on the west and the eastern end of Lake IsabellaLake Isabella
Lake Isabella is a reservoir in Kern County, California created by the earthen Isabella Dam. It was formed in 1953 when the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers dammed the Kern River at the junction of its two forks at Whiskey Flat. At 11,000 acres , it is one of the larger reservoirs in California...
where the South Fork Kern River enters the reservoir. In 1981, a fence was constructed to protect the streamside vegetation from grazing cattle.
On March 31, 2005, Audubon California chapter and California Department of Fish and Game
California Department of Fish and Game
The California Department of Fish and Game is a department within the government of California, falling under its parent California Natural Resources Agency. The Department of Fish and Game manages and protects the state's diverse fish, wildlife, plant resources, and native habitats...
bought 4358 acres (17.6 km²) of the Sprague Ranch. The purchase was in part to mitigate for the flooding of the South Fork Wildlife Area from Lake Isabella during high water years and resulting loss of Willow Flycatcher habitat. A total of 1640 acres (6.6 km²) was added to the preserve, the remaining 2718 acres (11 km²) of Sprague Ranch went to California Department of Fish and Game. Funding was provided by US Army Corps of Engineers; California Wildlife Conservation Board; and the National Audubon Society from a grant from the Packard Foundation
David and Lucile Packard Foundation
The David and Lucile Packard Foundation is a private foundation that provides grants to not-for-profit organizations. It was created in 1964 by David Packard and his wife Lucile Salter Packard. Following David Packard's death in 1996, the Foundation became the beneficiary of part of his estate...
's Conserving California's Landscape Initiative.
On January 31, 2006, the purchase of 105 acre (0.4249203 km²) of the Alexander Ranch that flanks the South Fork Kern River was completed with funds from the Resources Legacy Foundation. The riverfront property has nesting sites of Vermilion Flycatcher
Vermilion Flycatcher
The Vermilion Flycatcher is a small passerine bird in the Tyrannidae, or tyrant flycatcher family. Most flycatchers are rather drab, but the Vermilion Flycatcher is a striking exception...
s, Yellow Warbler
Yellow Warbler
Dendroica petechia is a New World warbler species or superspecies; the subspecies group around D. aestiva is increasingly treated as good species Dendroica aestiva again. The name for the entire cryptic species complex is Mangrove Warbler, and another group of subspecies is known as Golden Warbler...
s, Bullock's Oriole
Bullock's Oriole
The Bullock's Oriole, , is a small New World blackbird. At one time, this species and the Baltimore Oriole were considered to be a single species, the Northern Oriole...
s and Southwestern Willow Flycatcher. The land is in good condition, with ponds of duckweed and other wetland
Wetland
A wetland is an area of land whose soil is saturated with water either permanently or seasonally. Wetlands are categorised by their characteristic vegetation, which is adapted to these unique soil conditions....
plants that harbor several pond turtles.
There were two land acquisitions in 2009: On August 28, the 26 acres (105,218.4 m²) Vig property was purchased by Audubon, and November 20, the 80 acres (323,748.8 m²) Pond Ranch sale closed a gap between Fay Ranch Road and Sierra Way Road. The Pond Ranch purchase added one-quarter mile of the South Fork Kern River frontage to the preserve
Cattle and conservation
In addition to real estate purchases, the Audubon California organization continues to work with private land owners in the South Fork Valley on conservation issues. Bruce Hafenfeld, of the California Cattlemen’s Association, operates a family ranch raising commercial calves and cows on both private property and public landPublic land
In all modern states, some land is held by central or local governments. This is called public land. The system of tenure of public land, and the terminology used, varies between countries...
s on a federal grazing allotment. Hafenfeld has entered into a perpetual conservation easement
Conservation easement
In the United States, a conservation easement is an encumbrance — sometimes including a transfer of usage rights — which creates a legally enforceable land preservation agreement between a landowner and a government agency or a qualified land...
with the Natural Resources Conservation Service
Natural Resources Conservation Service
The Natural Resources Conservation Service , formerly known as the Soil Conservation Service , is an agency of the United States Department of Agriculture that provides technical assistance to farmers and other private landowners and managers.Its name was changed in 1994 during the Presidency of...
(formerly Soil Conservation Service) to ensure the property is maintained as a working ranch. “We developed a management plan for 1.3 acres along the Kern River Preserve, went after a wetland reserve grant, and developed habitat that increased opportunities for species to come onto my land. We were trying to show that we were not a liability, but an asset.” Hafenfeld said, speaking at the 2007 Conference of the Riparian Habitat Joint Venture. The Riparian Habitat Joint Venture is a cooperative conservation agreement between federal, state and private entities modeled after the Joint Venture projects of the North American Waterfowl Management Plan. It was started in 1994 by Partners in flight
Partners in flight
Partners in Flight / Compañeros en Vuelo / Partenaires d’Envol was launched in 1990 in response to growing concerns about declines in the populations of many land bird species, and in order to emphasize the conservation of birds not covered by existing conservation initiatives...
.
It took eight years, working with multiple agencies, to form the conservation easement for the Hafenfeld Ranch.
South Fork Kern River and Valley
The South Fork Kern RiverSouth Fork Kern River
The South Fork Kern River is a tributary of the Kern River in the Sierra Nevada of the U.S. state of California. It is one of the southernmost rivers on the western slope of the mountains, and drains an area of that comprises mostly rugged mountain ridges and dry evergreen forest...
is the heart of the preserve and the South Fork Valley.
The river begins at elevation 10400 feet (3,169.9 m) in the Inyo National Forest
Inyo National Forest
Inyo National Forest is a federally administered forest in the United States. The forest covers parts of the eastern Sierra Nevada of California, and the White Mountains of California and Nevada. It contains two wilderness areas: the John Muir Wilderness and the Ansel Adams Wilderness...
at Mulkey Meadows, named after Cyrus Mulkey, sheriff of Inyo County, California from 1871 to 1874.
The river flows down the South Fork Valley, through the Audubon Kern River Preserve to Lake Isabella at 2605 feet (794 m) elevation. The South Fork Valley, only a few miles wide and 15 miles (24.1 km) in length, is at the southern end of the Sierra Nevada Mountains
Sierra Nevada (US)
The Sierra Nevada is a mountain range in the U.S. states of California and Nevada, between the California Central Valley and the Basin and Range Province. The Sierra runs north-to-south, and is approximately across east-to-west...
in northeastern Kern County. Although the valley was the first area settled in the county, it contains the largest contiguous riparian forest still remaining in the state. There are several types of riparian forest, the South Fork Valley has the Great Valley Cottonwood Forest, distinguished by a majority of Fremont cottonwood and willow tree species. The understory is dense with wild rose and shade-tolerant Oregon ash. The soils are fine-grained alluvial with annual river flooding that maintains fertility.
The University of California, Santa Barbara
University of California, Santa Barbara
The University of California, Santa Barbara, commonly known as UCSB or UC Santa Barbara, is a public research university and one of the 10 general campuses of the University of California system. The main campus is located on a site in Goleta, California, from Santa Barbara and northwest of Los...
's Biogeography Lab report describes the distribution of this type of riparian forest as "Formerly extensive along the major low-gradient (depositional) streams throughout the Great Valley, but [are] now reduced to scattered, isolated remnants or young stands because of flood control, water diversion, agricultural development, and urban expansion..."
Rare wildflowers include the alkali mariposa lily
Calochortus striatus
Calochortus striatus is a species of mariposa lily known by the common name alkali mariposa lily. It is native to California and Nevada where it grows in the Mojave Desert....
. Listed by California Native Plant Society
California Native Plant Society
The California Native Plant Society is a California not-for-profit organization that seeks to increase understanding of California's native flora and to preserve that flora. Its "paramount purpose is to preserve wild plants".-History:...
as "rare, threatened or endangered in California and elsewhere", it has been observed near the South Fork Kern River, as well as the surrounding counties and in the state of Nevada. It is a perennial bulb that blooms in April and May, and is threatened by grazing, trampling, road construction, urbanization and horticultural collecting. Water diversions can also impact this primarily wetland species.
Bird species
The streamside habitat provides nesting sites for riparian-dependent bird species: The Western Yellow-billed Cuckoo, endangered in California; the Brown-crested FlycatcherBrown-crested Flycatcher
The Brown-crested Flycatcher is a passerine bird in the tyrant flycatcher family. It breeds in open woodland from southern California, southern Nevada, central Arizona, and southern Texas southward to Argentina and Bolivia, and on Trinidad and Tobago...
, a cavity-nester; the Yellow Warbler
Yellow Warbler
Dendroica petechia is a New World warbler species or superspecies; the subspecies group around D. aestiva is increasingly treated as good species Dendroica aestiva again. The name for the entire cryptic species complex is Mangrove Warbler, and another group of subspecies is known as Golden Warbler...
, the Yellow-breasted Chat
Yellow-breasted Chat
The Yellow-breasted Chat is a large songbird, formerly considered the most atypical member of the New World warbler family, though the long-standing suspicion is that it does not actually belong there. Its placement is not definitely resolved. It is the only member of the genus Icteria...
, and the Southwestern Willow Flycatcher.
The federally-listed endangered Southwestern Willow Flycatcher has small populations in the preserve and is closely monitored by Audubon volunteers and staff. The US Fish and Wildlife Service designated critical habitat
Critical habitat
Critical habitat is a habitat area essential to the conservation of a listed species, though the area need not actually be occupied by the species at the time it is designated. This is a specific term and designation within the U.S...
for the Southwestern Willow Flycatcher which includes 9.6 miles (15.4 km) of the South Fork Kern River and excludes Hafenfeld Ranch which has the conservation easement in place.
Another notable bird is the Summer Tanager
Summer Tanager
The Summer Tanager, Piranga rubra, is a medium-sized American songbird. Formerly placed in the tanager family , it and other members of its genus are now classified in the cardinal family...
. The Summer Tanager breeds in lowlands along streams and is known as a bee and wasp specialist. The Summer Tanager will remove the bee's stinger before ingesting by rubbing the bee on a branch. The Least Bell's Vireo is a species that will hopefully reestablish nesting in the South Fork Kern River Valley. It is one of four subspecies of Bell's Vireo
Bell's Vireo
The Bell's Vireo is a small North American songbird. It is 4-3/4 to 5 inches in length, dull olive-gray above and whitish below...
, which disappeared from California's Central Valley by the 1960s, and has been federally-listed as endangered since 1986. The US Fish and Wildlife Service's 5-year review of Least Bell's Vireo, dated September 2006, lists the primary cause of population declines to loss of riparian habitat in California. Another threat listed by the review is from the Brown-headed Cowbird
Brown-headed Cowbird
The Brown-headed Cowbird is a small brood parasitic icterid of temperate to subtropical North America. They are permanent residents in the southern parts of their range; northern birds migrate to the southern United States and Mexico in winter, returning to their summer habitat around March or...
which lays its eggs in other birds' nests, called egg parasitism. The Southern Sierra Research Station, which conducts research on the Kern River Preserve, has a cowbird eradication program which has reduced the rate of parasitism to 20 per cent from 60 to 70 per cent (percentage of Willow Flycatcher nests studied by Southern Sierra Research Station staff).
Mammals, amphibians, reptiles and insects
Common mammals include mule deer, coyote, dusky-footed woodrat, long-tailed weaselLong-tailed Weasel
The long-tailed weasel , also known as the bridled weasel or big stoat is a species of mustelid distributed from southern Canada throughout all the United States and Mexico, southward through all of Central America and into northern South America.-Evolution:The long-tailed weasel is the product of...
, California ground squirrel, American black bear, and bobcat. Uncommon species include mountain lion and an introduced species of beaver. There are 50 species of mammals found on the Kern River Preserve.
There are three species of amphibians and 24 species of reptiles, including the common garter snake
Garter snake
The Garter snake is a Colubrid snake genus common across North America, ranging from Alaska and Canada to Central America. It is the single most widely distributed genus of reptile in North America. The garter snake is also the Massachusettsstate reptile.There is no real consensus on the...
, California kingsnake
California Kingsnake
The California Kingsnake is a non-venomous colubrid snake found in the western United States and northern Mexico. It is a relatively small subspecies of the Common Kingsnake and is naturally found in a wide variety of habitats...
, several lizard species and the California toad
Western toad
The Western toad more commonly known as is a large toad species, between 5.6 and 13 cm long, of western North America. It has a white or cream dorsal stripe, and is dusky gray or greenish dorsally with skin glands concentrated within the dark blotches...
. The only venomous snake at the preserve is the Northern Pacific rattlesnake
Rattlesnake
Rattlesnakes are a group of venomous snakes of the genera Crotalus and Sistrurus of the subfamily Crotalinae . There are 32 known species of rattlesnake, with between 65-70 subspecies, all native to the Americas, ranging from southern Alberta and southern British Columbia in Canada to Central...
. Also found at the preserve is the Pacific pond turtle
Western pond turtle
The western pond turtle , or Pacific pond turtle is a small to medium-sized turtle growing to approximately 20 cm in carapace length. It is limited to the west coast of the United States of America and Mexico, ranging from western Washington state to northern Baja California...
, a species of concern in California and listed as endangered in Washington state.
The South Fork Valley is unique in California, as three of the ten floristic provinces in the nation meet and overlap here. The floristic provinces are: Great Basin Desert, Mojave Desert, and Californian Province (in which one finds numerous ecotypes: grassland, riparian forest, oak woodland, interior chaparral, mixed conifer, sequoia, red fir, subalpine.) The resulting diversity is evident in the numbers of species: There are 31 species dragonfly
Dragonfly
A dragonfly is a winged insect belonging to the order Odonata, the suborder Epiprocta or, in the strict sense, the infraorder Anisoptera . It is characterized by large multifaceted eyes, two pairs of strong transparent wings, and an elongated body...
, of and 53 species of butterfly
Butterfly
A butterfly is a mainly day-flying insect of the order Lepidoptera, which includes the butterflies and moths. Like other holometabolous insects, the butterfly's life cycle consists of four parts: egg, larva, pupa and adult. Most species are diurnal. Butterflies have large, often brightly coloured...
, including the alkali skipper (grass skipper) and the rare San Emigdio blue butterfly.
The San Emigdio blue butterfly is a species of concern due to its limited local range consisting of Southern California from Inyo County south through the Mojave Desert
Mojave Desert
The Mojave Desert occupies a significant portion of southeastern California and smaller parts of central California, southern Nevada, southwestern Utah and northwestern Arizona, in the United States...
, San Joaquin Valley
San Joaquin Valley
The San Joaquin Valley is the area of the Central Valley of California that lies south of the Sacramento – San Joaquin River Delta in Stockton...
, Bouquet and Mint canyons of Los Angeles County.
Grinnell Resurvey Project
Joseph Grinnell was one of the founding directors of the Museum of Vertebrate Zoology at the University of California, Berkeley from 1908 until his death in 1939. Grinnell undertook a biological survey project in 1908, which lasted 30 years and covered more than 700 locations in the state of California. The resulting database has more than 20,000 specimens, 13,000 pages of field notes, and 2,000 photographs. The Grinnell Survey database is one of the most comprehensive collections of its kind in the world.A resurvey of Grinnell's original route was begun by the museum to research, document and model changes in the distribution and habits of animal species in the timespan between the early 1900s and the current century. The Kern River Valley area, called the Whitney transect, was studied in June and September 2008 and in May 2009 by the resurvey teams. The original Grinnell 1911-1914 field notes are online and searchable. (See External links section.) Parts of the resurvey of California are completed, including Yosemite National Park
Yosemite National Park
Yosemite National Park is a United States National Park spanning eastern portions of Tuolumne, Mariposa and Madera counties in east central California, United States. The park covers an area of and reaches across the western slopes of the Sierra Nevada mountain chain...
, and show changing trends in wildlife territory and range; some expanding, some contracting and some species moving to higher elevations.
Other research
A subspecies of the Pacific (western) pond turtle is the southern Pacific pond turtle (Actinemys marmorata pallida). A project for headstarting pond turtle hatchlings on the preserve began in 2006 with grants from the Fish and Wildlife Foundation. As of July 2010, 17 juvenile turtles were released from captivity. This process is known as headstarting, where hatchlings are raised in captivity until they are large enough to avoid predators and then released to the wild.The Southern Sierra Research Station, a non-profit organization, conducts research at the preserve on the Western Yellow-billed Cuckoo and Southwestern Willow Flycatcher.
Biologist Donald Mitchell from the University of Minnesota
University of Minnesota
The University of Minnesota, Twin Cities is a public research university located in Minneapolis and St. Paul, Minnesota, United States. It is the oldest and largest part of the University of Minnesota system and has the fourth-largest main campus student body in the United States, with 52,557...
studied migration of hummingbirds at the preserve. Mitchell is a federally-permitted hummingbird bander and has served as Vice President of the Minnesota Ornithologists' Union.
Public access and education
Audubon's Kern River Preserve hosts four festivals annually, monthly nature education programs, and monthly volunteer days. The preserve is open sunrise to sunset all year, including holidays.- In April is the Kern River Valley Spring Nature & Earth Day Festival (formerly Bioregions Festival), and has guided hikes, workshops, crafts vendors, musical entertainment and exhibits.
- In June is the California Amphibian and Reptile Celebration, with educational displays including information by the HerpEcology organization.
- Held in August is the Kern Valley Hummingbird Celebration, and includes nature walks, workshops on identification of hummingbirds, information on gardening for hummingbirds, and musical entertainment.
- In September the Kern Valley Autumn Nature & Vulture Festival is held, and begins with a "Turkey Vulture Lift Off" and includes Turkey VultureTurkey VultureThe Turkey Vulture is a bird found throughout most of the Americas. It is also known in some North American regions as the Turkey Buzzard , and in some areas of the Caribbean as the John Crow or Carrion Crow...
interpretation during the birds departure from their overnight roost between 8:30 and 10 a.m. The festival includes free Bird walks, informational booths, interactive exhibits and displays featuring live reptiles, plants and wildlife along with musical entertainment. Activities are scheduled throughout the day.
- Monthly Nature Exploration events are held on the first Saturday of the month from 9 a.m - 11 a.m. Topics vary each month with experts from fields across the spectrum of outdoor adventures.
- Monthly volunteer workdays are held on the third Saturday of the month from 8 a.m - noon (with a summer hiatus in June, July and August). Projects vary each month depending on season. Rewarding projects have included: habitat restoration (riparian, upland and marshland), fence removal, cleanups, participation in the KRP Valley Pride Day team, and trail maintenance.
General references
US Fish and Wildlife Service Endangered Species Program.Dirkson, Diane and James, Recreational Lakes of California 12th ed. Recreation Sales Publishing 1999