CONSERVATION OF

COASTAL SAGE SCRUB

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This Web project was developed as part of "Internet Resources" courses offered by the Biology and Geology departments of the California State University, Los Angeles in 1995 and 1996. It was submitted to the instructors for evaluation and then placed on-line by the Electronic Desktop Project (EDP). EDP does not update or maintain any of the material of this project, and does not vouch for validity or correctness. Furthermore, the student developing this project was instructed about the rules of copyrights. EDP can in no way be responsible for the inclusion of copyrighted material within this project.

What is Coastal Sage Scrub and Where is it Found?

COASTAL SAGE SCRUB is an interesting and complex assemblage of plants and animals and is one of two dominant shrubland vegetation types that occur in Southern California. Its DISTRIBUTION ranges from just south of San Francisco down into northern Baja.

Coastal sage scrub is usually found at elevations below 1800 feet. It generally occurs in a mosaic pattern across the landscape, along with chaparral ( CLICK HERE for a humorous but informative look at chaparral) and GRASSLANDS.

Coastal sage scrub derives its name from the California sagebrush which is the most common and widespread plant in the community. Other common species include:

CALIFORNIA BUCKWHEAT
California encelia
Purple sage
White sage
Black sage

If you would like to experience it up close and personal, there are several places in the Los Angeles area where you can go to see it (remember to stop and smell the sage):

The Santa Monica Mountains National Recreation Area - the largest remaining area of contiguous scrub habitat.
The Palos Verdes Peninsula - small but nice.
Caspers Wilderness Park - it's a really neat place.

How is Coastal Sage Scrub Being Threatened?

The threats to coastal sage scrub fall into three basic catagories:

Habitat destruction
- Up to 90% of the original coastal sage scrub habitat may have been destroyed due to agriculture and urban sprawl.
Habitat degradation
- Cattle grazing, invasion by non-native species, fires, AIR POLLUTION, and recreational activities have all contributed to a reduction in habitat quality. (So if you go out hiking, stay on the trails. And no grazing!)
Habitat fragmentation
- The plants and animals that live in the coastal sage scrub also need the surrounding chaparral and grasslands to provide corridors for migration and dispersal. Urban development is breaking the habitats up into small, isolated fragments that restrict movement and can lead to localized species extinctions
  .

Along with the habitat in general, there are also many plants and animals that are threatened or ENDANGERED. More than 100 species associated with coastal sage scrub have been listed under the ENDANGERED SPECIES ACT.

Can you guess which of the following species are threatened or endangered?

COASTAL CACTUS WREN

CALIFORNIA SAGEBRUSH

COASTAL CALIFORNIA GNATCATCHER

MANY-STEMMED DUDLEYA

CHALKY LIVE-FOREVER

BOBCAT

How is Coastal Sage Scrub Being Protected?

In the past, conservation efforts focussed on using ENVIRONMENTAL LAWS to gain protection for individual species. Although this process did protect some species, it did little to protect the community as a whole. Fortunately, there is now a new approach which seeks to protect the community and all of its inhabitants.

NCCP is a new program designed to target specific habitats which contain many threatened and endangered species. It is an attempt to prevent future listings by bringing conservationists, developers and local governments together in the development planning process.

This approach is meant to be a compromise which preserves habitat and species while allowing development in less sensitive areas.

For more information on the NCCP, check out these Web sites:

Want More Information?

Click on the following links:

GAP ANALYSIS and GIS - two techniques used to evaluate habitat conservation needs.
CONSERVATION - provides links to other conservation pages.
BIODIVERSITY - a good explanation of biodiversity and why it's important.
ENVIROGOPHER - a gopher link to "all on-line environmental information."
CSUBIOWEB - provides links to all areas of biology.
REFERENCES - my personal bibliography and the source of much of the information for this page.

The following has been added by the Electronic Desktop Project:

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