Quino Checkerspotted Butterflys were detectedd in Marron Valley on April 9, 2004 during detection surveys. Two males were detected at both Quino Hill and Quino Road. They were not detected at Quino Flat.
The +84-acre Marron Valley Road property was carefully surveyed during the FWS-monitored survey period to determine if the endangered Quino checkerspot butterfly (Euphydryas editha quino; QCB) was present onsite. No QCB's were found during these surveys. The recent fire through the area does not provide the best conditions for the butterfly. Those areas that were not affected by fire were carefully searched as well as areas that were burned but recovering.
Remotely sensed imagery may significantly aid the City of San Diego (City) in managing natural lands of the Multiple Species Conservation Program (MSCP). The primary objective of this study was to investigate the utility of high resolution, multispectral imagery for quantifying the cover proportions of shrub, herbaceous, and bare ground cover within vegetation stands. The proportional distribution of these cover types may be an indicator of habitat quality. Mapping these cover types using remotely sensed imagery may enable frequent assessment of habitat conditions and changes in conditions over time. In addition, the project analyzed spectral signatures of vegetation stands dominated by native and non-native plant species, investigated the effect of fire and fire recovery on overall image brightness, and evaluated image segmentation techniques for semi-automated delineation of vegetation stands within multispectral imagery.
Remotely sensed imagery may significantly aid the City of San Diego (City) in managing natural lands of the Multiple Species Conservation Program (MSCP). The primary objective of this study was to investigate the utility of high resolution, multispectral imagery for quantifying the cover proportions of shrub, herbaceous, and bare ground cover within vegetation stands. The proportional distribution of these cover types may be an indicator of habitat quality. Mapping these cover types using remotely sensed imagery may enable frequent assessment of habitat conditions and changes in conditions over time.
Results from this study indicate that image-based assessment of shrub, herbaceous, and bare soil cover may be sufficiently accurate to be adopted by the City as a method for regular monitoring of vegetation and habitat quality within the MSCP reserve. We provide specific recommendations for image acquisition and processing procedures which should enable the City to initiate a successful remote sensing-based mapping and monitoring program.
PROJECT OVERVIEW
Vernal pool habitat in southern California, and specifically southern San Diego County, has been
greatly diminished as a result of extensive development throughout the region. The value and
function of remaining vernal pool habitat continue to be degraded by development-related
disturbances such as trespassing, grazing, and invasion of nonnative species. As a result, the
sensitive species that are supported by vernal pool habitat are also at risk: San Diego fairy shrimp
(Branchinecta sandiegonensis), Riverside fairy shrimp (Streptocephalus woottoni), and Quino
checkerspot butterfly (Euphydryas editha quino; Quino), which are all federally endangered
species, as well as the federally and state listed San Diego button-celery (Eryngium aristulatum
var. parishii) and the federally threatened spreading navarretia (Navarretia fossalis). To halt the
decline and stabilize the vernal pools in San Diego County, and restore habitat function and
sensitive species populations, restoration and management actions are necessary.
The City of San Diego (City), in cooperation with other coordinating agencies such as the
County of San Diego (County), San Diego Association of Governments (SANDAG), U.S. Fish
and Wildlife Service (USFWS), California Department of Fish and Game (CDFG), and
California Energy Commission (CEC), obtained grant funding1 to protect, restore, and manage
portions of the remaining vernal pool habitat in southern San Diego County. AECOM (formerly
EDAW, Inc.) was retained by the City to conduct a comprehensive assessment of existing vernal
pool sites within the jurisdiction of the City and County, develop and prioritize recommendations
for restoration and management of those sites, and implement restoration and management of the
sites.
This report summarizes the results of implementation of the restoration and management
recommendation actions at five key vernal pool sites in the County, as shown in Figure 1 (Nobel
Drive, Goat Mesa, Otay Lakes, Proctor Valley, and Marron Valley). More detailed maps of each
site are provided in Figures 2 through 6. Chapters 2.0 through 6.0 of the report correspond to a
specific site. Within each of these chapters, a description of the restoration and management
actions undertaken at the site are included (i.e., dethatching, weeding, reseeding, recontouring of vernal pools, installation of artificial burrowing owl burrows, and/or access control). A summary
of the site condition foll
The City of San Diego (City) contracted with URS to conduct protocol presence/absence surveys for California gnatcatcher. Nine sites located throughout the City?s MSCP preserve were surveyed to determine presence of California gnatcatcher at each site in spring of 2001. The sites were located at Lake Hodges, San Pasqual Valley, Black Mountain, Los Penasquitos Canyon, Mission Trails Regional Park, Spooner?s Mesa, Otay Mesa/Spring Canyon, Lower Otay Reservoir, and Marron Valley. Gnatchaters were detected at all of the sites.
San Diego goldenstar (Muilla clevelandii) is a rare plant species associated with grassland areas. Monitoring for this plant was conducted on April 16, 2004 at Otay Lakes and Marron Valley by City of San Diego staff. Monitoring for this species began in 2001 and has been conducted annually (McMillan Biological Consulting and Conservation Biology Institute, 2001; Wildlife Research Institute, 2002). The goal of the effort was to continue the annual collection of data for long-term monitoring of San Diego goldenstar under the MSCP.
Vernal pools are seasonal, depression-type wetlands which function as micro-habitats that support multiple rare, threatened and endangered species. Vernal pools largely occur on tops of mesas within the western half of San Diego County. Due to decades of expansive urban development, only 5% of the original vernal pool population exists today and many of the remaining pools are severely degraded and are at risk of being destroyed. Vernal pools are now considered sufficiently critical that local, state and federal laws require the protection of vernal pools even when they occur on private property. Successful stewardship of vernal pools is dependent on the ability to locate and monitor the status of the pools and the species that occur within them. Currently, the management and monitoring of vernal pools is performed through field surveys which is time consuming, costly, and limited in spatial coverage. Remote sensing offers the opportunity to derive valuable habitat information at spatial and temporal scales that are not possible with ground sampling.
The utility of high spatial resolution, multispectral imagery was evaluated for multiple tasks associated with vernal pool mapping and characterization, including: locating unknown pools and delineating pool basin extents, mapping vernal pool plants, estimating pool depth, and characterizing land use and land cover adjacent to sensitive vernal pool habitats. ADAR 5500 multispectral imagery was acquired at multiple resolutions within two San Diego County study sites during February and May of 2001. The first site at Otay Mesa was reconstructed in 1998 as part of a land mitigation project and contains over 300 vernal pools within a small geographic area. Naturally occurring pools in this area were scraped and destroyed in the 1970s. The second site at Marron Valley contains a small number of naturally occurring vernal pools. This site is the subject of biological monitoring, as recent fires and many years of cattle grazing have degraded the habitat surrounding the vernal pools.
An experiment was performed with multiple resolutions of imagery at both study sites to determine to optimum spatial resolution for identifying and delineating vernal pools. One foot resolution image mosaics at each site were aggregated to simulate 2 ft, 4 ft, 8 ft, and 16 ft spatial resolutions. Nine interpreters visually identified apparent vernal pools beginning with the lowest resolution imagery and then with progressively higher sp
Badgers (Taxidea taxus) are wide-ranging mid-sized predators associated with grassland and
upland habitats. Their large home ranges, low densities, and low fecundity make them particularly vulnerable to habitat fragmentation and road mortality. The American badger is a covered species under the San Diego Multiple Species Conservation Plan (MSCP) and has been identified by the San Diego Monitoring and Management Program (SDMMP) Connectivity Monitoring Strategic Plan as a target species for monitoring regional-scale functional connectivity of upland and grassland habitats and is considered to be at risk of loss from the SDMMP Management Strategic Plan Area (MSPA).
In 2015, we continued studies of the spatial and temporal use of habitats by the American badger by conducting monthly field sign and infrared (IR) camera surveys across seven focal sites in the County where we previously documented substantial and/or repeated badger activity; Volcan Mountain Ecological Reserve (ER), Santa Ysabel ER, Ramona Grasslands Preserve, Barnett Ranch Preserve, Marron Valley Cornerstone Lands, Rancho Guejito (privately owned), and the upper San Diego River and El Capitan Grande Reservation. Our objective was to determine if badgers use these areas annually and if so, to better document the duration and season(s) of activity.
In FY 2011, the California Department of Fish and Game (DFG) funded this initial study by a Natural Community Conservation Plan (NCCP) Local Assistance Grant (LAG) to determine if badgers still persist in the western portion of San Diego County. Survey sites were prioritized according to three criteria; 1) areas with historical and/or recent badger records, 2) conserved lands with priority given to MSCP and Multiple Habitat Conservation Plan (MHCP) lands, and 3) areas containing moderate to abundant grassland habitat.
We conducted canine scent surveys for American badger scat using a specially trained canine scent team from Conservation Canines (Heath Smith and Pips; University of Washington) from November 14 to December 14, 2011. We surveyed for badger scat across 32 sites within San Diego County and two sites in southern Riverside County. Pips had positive behavioral responses to scat at 13 sites. Using a badger specific DNA test, we were able to verify the scat collected to be that of the American badger at twelve sites: Marine Corps Base Camp Pendleton (Juliett and Oscar One), Fallbrook Naval Weapons Station, Daley Ranch in Escondido, Ramona Grasslands, Warner Springs Ranch, Whelan Lake, Crestridge Ecological Reserve, Santa Ysabel Ecological Reserve, Hollenbeck Canyon Wildlife Area, Marron Valley, and the Santa Rosa Plateau.
Because badgers are present within the western portion of the County, they are a suitable species for assessing upland connectivity by means of radio-telemetry. As a priority for research, we recommend follow-up focused surveys to identify target areas for future live-trapping and telemetry and to better define any areas with higher densities of badgers. We recommend development of a microsat
