Habitat loss and fragmentation from land use change are a leading driver of wildlife declines and species extinctions. California continues to undergo land use change from ongoing urbanization and agriculture, including expanding cannabis cultivation. To understand impacts on wildlife, we employed non-invasive, automated field methods (ARUs, traditional camera traps, and novel drift fence/camera methods) combined with efficient, cutting-edge data processing tools (e.g., BirdNET and Wildlife Insights). These approaches facilitated large-scale surveys encompassing 170 long-term monitoring sites in north-central CA, where we conduct biennial surveys of bird, bat, reptile, and terrestrial mammal species from rodents to large carnivores. We then integrated this wildlife occurrence data with land use data, to assess how urban development, well-established agriculture like vineyards, newly established agriculture like cannabis, and the resulting habitat edge influence the distributions of vertebrate wildlife species, groups of species, and the entire community. In doing so, we provide critical information on how to minimize the impacts of continuing human development on vulnerable wildlife species and ensure long-term conservation of the region’s biodiversity.

[last name pronounced like "tennis"]: Matt Toenies is a Senior Environmental Scientist with the California Department of Fish and Wildlife. He studied Wildlife Management at the University of Minnesota, and a Master's in Ecology at Penn State University. His primary roles are to lead his team's large-scale avian monitoring and assist with monitoring other taxa including reptiles and mammals. Matt is a birder and a native plant enthusiast and is passionate about rigorous science that directly informs management and conservation of vulnerable ecosystems and species.