“The Santa Cruz Mountains are almost like an island,” Bryan Largay, the Land Trust of Santa Cruz County’s Conservation Director, explains. “And islands are where extinctions happen.” But there is hope being generated in places like Rocks Ranch.
By Hilltromper staff
May 12, 2024–Driving south on Highway 101 past Gilroy the road veers southwest towards Salinas, wrapping around the bottom of the Santa Cruz Mountains. In doing so it unwittingly creates a deadly border for wildlife roaming to and from the Gabilan Mountain Range to the south.
A mountain lion in this region wouldn’t know whether they are passing through Santa Clara, Santa Cruz, Monterey, or San Benito counties, which have an almost Four Corners connection here. But the lion would know they are in peril from zooming vehicles on the highway.
A proposed wildlife crossing at Rocks Ranch, a property protected by the Land Trust of Santa Cruz County, exemplifies how forward-thinking conservation can help ensure that species like mountain lions and badgers can roam freely, promoting genetic diversity and ecological resilience—and avoiding extinction.
In this Wildlife Crossing to Safety article, published over on Hilltromper Santa Cruz, author Bridget Lyons explores Rocks Ranch and the benefits of wildlife crossings, from both the human and mountain lion perspectives.
Category:
