Monterey County Animals Digest

The California Rangeland Trust announced the 9,400-acre Silacci Ranch's conservation was finalized, preserving the family's 140-year ranching legacy on land in Monterey and San Benito counties.

Local Dungeness crab is off the Christmas menu. And probably the New Year’s one also.

A coyote recently was found at the $27 million Russian Hill home of AI mogul Sam Altman. This relates to a study, which found that coyote sightings were more frequent in higher-income areas of San Francisco.

Conservationists intend to shoot all of the deer on Santa Catalina Island by helicopter. Some people are opposed, either for not wanting to eliminate the deer or for missing out on future chances to hunt them.

Livestock are responsible for half of all methane emissions in California. The White House is giving $21.4 million to California Dairies and $22.8 million to Dairy Farmers of America to help change this.

With a plentiful food supply, Monterey Bay is a coveted area for both local and migratory birds.

After its acquisition of the 5,105-acre Basin Ranch, the Big Sur Land Trust is in pre-planning stages for its first co-management agreement with the Esselen Tribe of Monterey County.
The acquisition creates a new nature preserve that will protect a critical wildlife corridor for a variety of vulnerable species.

A 2021 fire has helped bring wolves back to Southern California for the first time since the 19th century. A rancher is worried about how to keep wolves, which are federally protected, from harming cattle.

The Office of Habitat Conservation’s Restoration Center has awarded $27.8 million to bring Central California Coast coho salmon back to California rivers, funding projects by Trout Unlimited, the San Mateo and Gold Ridge Resource Conservation Districts, and the Nature Conservancy.

Researchers tell LAist that half of California’s population of Sierra Nevada bighorn sheep, which are endangered, died last winter due to record weather. Causes of death include avalanches, starvation and getting eaten by mountain lions after moving to lower elevations for food.

A new type of fishing gear in California is bringing high-quality swordfish to markets and restaurants in the Monterey Bay Area, with the added bonus of decreasing unintended catch.

The dolphin, described as small and slender with no dorsal fin, is typically seen in the cold water of the northwest.

Written by Center for Biological Diversity scientist Tiffany Yap and illustrated by artist Meital Smith, “Tales of the Urban Wild: A Puma’s Journey” takes the reader through diverse habitats, across busy freeways and inside science labs to learn about one mountain lion’s survival story.

A sticky and fluffy substance has been seen falling in Monterey, Santa Cruz and San Benito counties—a natural phenomenon called ballooning, when spiders use their webs to fly through the air.

There’s an official state bird, mineral, tree, fish, insect, lichen, fabric, sport, dance, soil and even dinosaur.

Less than 400 of the majestic birds live and fly in the wild.

Daniel Laggner, founder of Santa Cruz-based Wildstag Provisions, is on a mission to protect American wildlife by selling free range game meat.

In some areas, kelp has declined over the past 10 years to historically low levels. Yet kelp forests in other areas of the sanctuary appear to be holding their own against the voracious urchin hordes.

The SPCA Monterey County Wildlife Rescue and Rehabilitation Center responded to the unique hawk, found on the ground in San Benito County.

Many people kayak through Elkhorn Slough, but the El Cat is a very different watercraft: a 37-foot, ADA-compliant catamaran.

In a new study published Aug. 17 in the journal Science, fossil records at La Brea Tar Pits indicate that the disappearance of California’s sabertooth cats, dire wolves and other large mammals nearly 13,000 years ago was linked to rising temperatures and fire activity spurred by people.

California’s only native sunfish, the Sacramento perch, was once abundant before invasive species decimated it. As the planet heats up and threatens cold-water game fish, the Sacramento perch may be on the cusp of a comeback, thanks to its ability to tolerate warm water.

In two incidents, women were injured by repeated otter bites while swimming.

While the toxic algae bloom that sickened California marine mammals has dissipated, rescue centers prepare for more events as oceanographic conditions continue to present challenges.

The new pack consists of at least five individuals not previously detected in California, including one adult female, who is a direct descendant of California’s first documented wolf in the state in recent history, (OR7), and four offspring (two females, two males).

Keep in mind that most insect repellents don't kill insects. Insects that bite—not ones that sting—are kept away by repellents.

Luis Yauri Oyola hopes one day to buy a tractor to start a business in Peru; he estimates that he is six years away from that goal, for which he will have spent more than a decade of his life living thousands of miles away from his family. He is on call 24/7 and doesn’t leave the job site except for necessities.

Research by the California Department of Fish and Wildlife’s snake fungal disease project indicates that the pathogen is occurring in more locations and impacting more snakes in California than previously known.

In December, the Land Trust of Santa Cruz County spent $17 million to buy Rocks Ranch, a 2,600-acre property near San Juan Bautista that has been eyed by developers. The group is working to build a crossing so that wildlife can traverse Highway 101 without being killed.

The SPCA Monterey County Wildlife Center partnered with The Tree Man—a Salinas-based tree service company—to install a heavy-duty nest designed by the wildlife rescue team after the young hawk’s nest was damaged.

California condors will receive a vaccine for a deadly strain of avian influenza that threatens the already critically endangered vulture species. More than a dozen condors recently died from the bird flu.

A federal regulatory group voted to officially close king salmon fishing season along much of the West Coast after near-record low numbers of the fish returned to California rivers in 2022. The approved closure of the 2023 season is for all commercial and most recreational fishing.