MOUNTAINS + MOLEHILLS
  • Blog
  • About
  • Our People
  • Contact

a Sonoma Land Trust stewardship blog

Mountains + Molehills focuses on the adventures of the Sonoma Land Trust stewardship crew, and the day-to-day challenges and blessings that they face. The daily schedule of each crew member may involve working with power shovels, connecting with landowners, hiking around the Sonoma Valley Wildlife Corridor, building habitat for burrowing owls, avoiding skunks, trooping through poison oak, and so much more. Every day is an adventure, and we hope to share those adventures with you!

a holiday blessing

12/14/2016

0 Comments

 

by Bob Neale

What a year! As we enter the season of hope and renewal — the end of one year and the beginning of the next — I’m spending too much time reading the news. 

The news isn’t great. Our animals are disappearing — giraffes and coho and lions and fishers. Climate change is all around us — we see it in the weather and in the tides. Political systems seem stretched beyond capacity around the world. It’s a distressing way to enter the season of hope and joy.

I read all this and put down my iPhone feeling powerless and glum. My dog gives a tail wag and I grab my coat and head outside. The sky is clearing from this welcome rain and a little sunlight shines through the yellow leaves of a maple tree. Walking towards the park, I wave to a neighbor, smile, check the creek running under the bridge — any steelhead? And I walk. Walking through the oak woodlands has been my tonic for years. The fresh rain smell wafts around me, my step lightens, Abbie the dog runs after the ball. By the end of my walk, my disposition had greatly improved. I was chilled on my cheeks and nose, but warm in my heart. 

I felt better. Nature makes me feel better. I’m so grateful to live here in Northern California surrounded by the spectacular drama of nature, grateful to be living and working in communities that appreciate the natural world. That gives me courage, gives me hope, and helps remind me not to give up or give in. ​

Read More
0 Comments

collaring cougars for conservation

12/2/2016

0 Comments

 

by Nicole Na

Picture
Photo: Audubon Canyon Ranch camera trap.
If you’re familiar with Sonoma Land Trust, you’ve probably heard of our work to protect the Sonoma Valley Wildlife Corridor, a band of habitat linking the Marin Coast to the Blue Ridge-Berryessa region in eastern Napa County and only three-quarters of a mile wide in some parts. This narrow strip of land is critically important. It serves as cover, easy passage, a source of food and water, and breeding habitat for Sonoma Valley’s wildlife — including mountain lions.

Mountain lions aren’t just cool to look at — they play an indispensable role in maintaining the biodiversity and stability of the Sonoma Valley ecosystem. The health of a mountain lion population can also give us insights on how wildlife in general can move between habitat areas as they need large ranges (anywhere from 10 to 370 square miles!) to survive — and if a mountain lion can survive in fragmented habitats, perhaps other species can too.

That’s why we’re a funding partner in Audubon Canyon Ranch’s ACR Mountain Lion Project, a research effort that involves the collaring of mountain lions in the Sonoma Valley Wildlife Corridor and the Mayacamas Mountains to the north. The collars gather GPS data points, which tell researchers about the animals’ behavioral patterns, including movement and feeding.
​
The first subject of the project, a female mountain lion dubbed P1 (for Puma 1), was captured the night of October 5 in a trap filled with roadkill on the grounds of our Glen Oaks Ranch. The humanely designed traps equipped with transmitters allow researchers to reach the lion as soon as possible to minimize stress. The research team reached the lion within 10 minutes, sedated her and fitted her with the GPS collar, and collected some biological samples (later analyzed at UC Davis). An hour later, the lion was moved to another location and walked away elsewhere on the property.
Picture
Photo: Audubon Canyon Ranch
P2, the one-year-old daughter of P1, was captured and collared near Annadel State Park on November 13 and released at the capture site.

Both lions were in great health. P1 is between 8 and 10 years old, weighs about 96 pounds and is 6 feet from head to tail. P2, a juvenile, weighs 70 pounds.
​
The importance of this work will have far-reaching impacts. ”This project is going to yield invaluable data for conservation efforts, not just locally, but throughout California,” said ACR executive director John Petersen to the Press Democrat — and we’re proud of the role Sonoma Land Trust in playing in saving the habitat that these lions call home.
​Sources: Audubon Canyon Ranch
Press Democrat
 
To find out more about how you can help protect the Sonoma Valley Wildlife Corridor, visit sonomalandtrust.org or read about it here.
Nicole Na is Sonoma Land Trust's communications coordinator.
0 Comments

    about us

    Sonoma Land Trust is a local nonprofit based in Santa Rosa, CA, that conserves scenic, natural, agricultural and open lands in Sonoma County for the benefit of the community and future generations. This blog focuses on SLT's stewardship team, whose members do hands-on work to directly protect, restore, and safeguard the land for generations to come.

    subscribe to our mailing list

    * indicates required
    Give Now

    archives

    March 2019
    February 2019
    January 2019
    December 2018
    November 2018
    October 2018
    September 2018
    August 2018
    July 2018
    June 2018
    May 2018
    April 2018
    March 2018
    February 2018
    January 2018
    December 2017
    November 2017
    October 2017
    September 2017
    August 2017
    July 2017
    June 2017
    May 2017
    April 2017
    March 2017
    February 2017
    January 2017
    December 2016
    November 2016
    October 2016
    September 2016
    August 2016
    July 2016
    June 2016
    May 2016
    April 2016
    March 2016
    February 2016
    January 2016
    December 2015
    November 2015
    October 2015

    categories

    All

Powered by Create your own unique website with customizable templates.
  • Blog
  • About
  • Our People
  • Contact