Conservancy E-News: June 2022

Wheel into the Wildlands this Summer!

There are over 42,000 acres of wildlands on Catalina for you to explore and the Conservancy's Wildlands Express shuttle makes it easy for you to get out there and start your adventure.

Wheel into the Wildlands with the Wildlands Express shuttle which stops at the Conservancy’s Airport in the Sky and Little Harbor Campground. Cyclists can take their bike to the Airport in the Sky and ride back down into Avalon, while beach bums and campers can spend a day (or a few!) in the sun at Little Harbor on the back side of the Island. Hikers can take a short hike around the Airport on the Airport Loop Trail or continue on to Little Harbor for one of the challenging hikes that surround the campground.

If you want the full Catalina experience but are short on time, the Conservancy’s 2 and 3-hour naturalist-led Eco Tours will show you parts of Catalina that most people never see while teaching you about the Island's natural and cultural history.

Eco Tour and Wildlands Express Reservations can be made with Guest Services at the Trailhead visitor center at 310-510-2595 x100. And don’t forget, Conservancy members can get discounts on both!

RESERVE YOUR SPOT ON THE WILDLANDS EXPRESS

Conservation's Seasonal Interns Making Huge Impact

Our 2022 ACE Seasonal Interns are hard at work with the Conservancy's conservation team. Over the course of three months, a single plant restoration intern improves 260 acres of habitat and mitigates over 8,000 invasive plant species. Since 2008, the Conservancy's ACE intern program has provided entry-level professionals with backgrounds in conservation, biology, ecology or botany the opportunity for a rewarding hands-on educational experience. So far this season our ACE interns have joined us on a herpetofauna survey and seabird surveys, collected seeds from native plants across the Island, helped with fox telemetry, removed countless invasive plants, installed and monitored trail cameras and assisted at the Ackerman Native Plant Nursery. We raised over $55,000 to support this vital internship program at the Conservancy Ball in April, but we have yet to reach our goal. Donate to the program now!

Help Document Coastal Biodiversity!

Mark your calendars - Snapshot Cal Coast 2022 is June 13-July 4. This is an annual California statewide community science effort that encourages people to make and share observations of plants, animals and seaweeds along the California coast (including Catalina Island!) using the iNaturalist app. If you are in Avalon, we invite you to join Conservancy staff for a BioBlitz, a short period of biological surveying in an attempt to record all the living species within a designated area, on Friday, June 24 from 12:00-3:00 p.m. Meet at the Trailhead, bring your smart phone and get ready to find and identifying as many species as possible! Find more upcoming educational opportunities!

Conservation Team Conducts Daytime Circumnavigational Seabird Survey

For the first time in 30 years the Catalina Island Conservancy performed a daytime seabird survey circumnavigating the entire Island. With help from expert ornithologist Peter Larramendy, the Conservancy’s wildlife biologists and ACE interns counted over 2,500 birds composing 23 species. Some of the unique species observed were the pelagic cormorant (Urile pelagicus), wandering tattler (Tringa Incana) and surf scoter (Melanitta perspicilatta). The data they collected on certain species will be shared with the Audubon society and be added to a national database to help monitor those species across its range. In addition, the 63 nests observed help biologists determine when breeding occurs. In the words of Senior Wildlife Biologist, Emily Hamblen, “this data is crucial to understanding population demographics and the status of the seabird populations on Catalina. If we don’t monitor the populations, we can’t tell which species need help.” Learn more about our conservation work on Catalina Island.

562.437.8555 • www.catalinaconservancy.org

CATALINA ISLAND CONSERVANCY • P.O. Box 2739 • Avalon, CA 90704