CAMERAS AND AUTONOMOUS RECORDING UNITS DETECT DIVERSE WILDLIFE PRESENCE WITHIN NEWLY RESTORED RIPARIAN HABITAT ALONG THE ALAMO RIVER CORRIDOR | |||
| Madeline G Perreault; River Partners; mperreault@riverpartners.org; Samantha Licona, Rachel Noriega, Emma Havstad | |||
In the Imperial Valley, agriculture and invasive salt cedar dominate much of the landscape, including the riparian corridors of the Alamo and New Rivers. Wildlife continues to rely on the remaining habitat, especially migratory birds of the Pacific Flyway. Large-scale habitat restoration offers a solution to the dwindling native vegetation and declining habitat connectivity in the valley. In 2020, River Partners launched its first-ever restoration project in Imperial County. The project is located along the Alamo River, an important riparian corridor that flows into the Salton Sea. Over 100 acres have been restored so far, with many more to go. To record species diversity in both pre- and post-restoration project fields, River Partners deployed six wildlife cameras and twelve autonomous recording units (ARUs). In one year of sampling, we have detected 124 species on the ARUs and 52 taxa on the cameras, several of which are sensitive species. Species richness was highest in the Spring and Fall, when seasonal bird migration occurs along the Pacific Flyway. Such rich biodiversity underscores the need to continue creating high-quality wildlife habitat along the Alamo. We will present our findings and recommendations for deploying these devices to support restoration efforts in the region. | |||
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