A New Team Member.

Pictured here are two photos, one of a goat about to give birth to a kid on a portion of the Conservancy’s preserves that benefit Swainson’s hawk. The hawks have migrated now, so the field’s vacant state was recently enlivened when this newborn made it …

Art for Wildlife’s Sake.

Now that the habitat conservation plans (HCPs) are being more actively used by private and public project proponents in the “Permit Areas,” the Conservancy steps up its advancement of implementation of the HCPs. That includes constructing additional ma …

The Hoot of Success

The Burrowing owl (Athene cunicularia) is one of the HCPs’ “Covered Species.” And, we on the Conservancy staff freely admit, it’s a favorite. The reason is simple: these birds are so gregarious and fun to watch, they are irresistible. Some 20 years or …

That sweet smell.

It’s a great time of the year when rice harvest begins. One of our favorite parts of harvest is the aroma of a freshly-harvested rice field. Maybe it has something to do with the bran or bran oil on the rice grain where the aroma is released in part by …

Prey production

The Conservancy has redoubled efforts to use mitigation lands for prey production purposes. A big component of that is an effort to enhance small rodent populations at strategic locations. These small rodents are favored prey of raptors, and the Swains …

Button, Button, Who Has the Button?

Okay, so some call it button bush (Cephalanthus occidentalis). We call it button-willow. It’s a favorite among the staff here at the Conservancy. It’s easy to see why. One of the reasons is that large insects are attracted to them. We’re trying to enha …