CNDDB News Blog

The California Department of Fish and Wildlife (CDFW) will be conducting a status review for the Temblor legless lizard (Anniella alexanderae) to inform the California Fish and Game Commission's decision on whether to list the species under the California Endangered Species Act (CESA). More details about the listing proposal and CDFW's request for public comments may be found in our CDFW newsletter. As part of this process, the CNDDB would like to encourage anyone who has observed Temblor legless lizards to submit their findings to us. People who have questions or comments about the review process should email our Wildlife Branch. The deadline for both data submission and comments is October 1, 2022 to allow us sufficient time for evaluation.

The Temblor legless lizard is a unique, limbless lizard endemic to the alkali desert scrub and annual grasslands of the southwestern San Joaquin Valley, east of the Temblor mountains at 168-466m (551-1,529 ft.) elevation. This fossorial (burrowing) and crepuscular (active at dawn and dusk) species uses the ground surface, soil, and leaf litter for feeding and mating. Temblor legless lizards eat larval insects, adult beetles, termites, and spiders. Threats include habitat loss due to oil and gas development, urbanization, agriculture, and industrial solar projects, climate change, and invasive species. Habitat loss, degradation, and fragmentation can restrict the species’ ability to feed, burrow, and reproduce.

As of July 1, 2022, the Temblor legless lizard is considered a candidate species under CESA and will therefore receive the same legal protection afforded to an endangered or threatened species. Take of this species is prohibited without an appropriate permit for scientific, educational or management purposes. For more information on permitting, visit our CESA permits web page.

We need your help in better understanding the status of the Temblor legless lizard. If you have ever seen them in the wild, submit your findings to us through our Online Field Survey Form. Together, we can help the Fish and Game Commission make an informed decision on the listing proposal for the Temblor legless lizard.

Lime Ridge eriastrum (Eriastrum ertterae)
Photo credit: Jeb Bjerke, CDFW

The California Department of Fish and Wildlife (CDFW) has initiated a status review for Lime Ridge eriastrum (Eriastrum ertterae). Lime Ridge eriastrum is a low-growing herbaceous annual plant that was first discovered in 2003. It is currently only known to occur within Lime Ridge Open Space in Walnut Creek, Contra Costa County, and has a California Rare Plant Rank of 1B.1 (rare, threatened, or endangered throughout its range).

Lime ridge eriastrum is now a candidate species under the California Endangered Species Act (CESA) and will therefore receive the same legal protection afforded to an endangered or threatened species. As of March 4, 2022, take of this species is prohibited without an appropriate permit for scientific, educational or management purposes. For more information on permitting, visit our CESA permits web page.

During the first part of this status review process, CDFW will accept any data on the species' ecology, genetics, life history, distribution, abundance, habitat, and threats, as well as comments on current and future management of the species. The call for data ends on August 12, 2022. CDFW will review the petition, evaluate the available information, and report back to the Fish and Game Commission on whether the petitioned action is warranted. For more specifics on the process and timing, please read our Eriastrum public notice letter (PDF).

If you have any questions or can provide us with any information, please email us at nativeplants@wildlife.ca.gov.

Desert tortoise (Gopherus agassizii) on the sandy desert floor of the Mojave Desert
Photo credit: Clayton Harrison/Shutterstock

The California Department of Fish and Wildlife (CDFW) will be conducting a status review for the desert tortoise to inform the California Fish and Game Commission's decision on whether to uplist the species from threatened to endangered under the California Endangered Species Act (CESA). More details about the uplist proposal and CDFW's request for public comments may be found in our CDFW newsletter. As part of this process, the CNDDB would like to encourage anyone who has observed desert tortoises to submit their findings to us before August 1st.

The desert tortoise (Gopherus agassizii) is found in the Mojave Desert, the western Sonoran Desert and the southern Great Basin Desert. They spend much of the year underground in burrows to shelter from extreme temperatures. When they do emerge, they feed on native forbs and grasses. Their densities have declined drastically in many places in California in the past 20 years. Threats include habitat fragmentation, development in these desert regions, increasing drought due to climate change, invasive grasses out-competing food items preferred by tortoise, disease, predation by coyotes and ravens, and human-caused mortality.

We need your help in better understanding the status of the desert tortoise. If you have ever seen desert tortoises in the wild, submit your findings to us through our Online Field Survey Form. Together, we can help the Fish and Game Commission make an informed decision on the uplisting proposal for the desert tortoise.