CDFW News

Wildfire Impacts Lead to South Chimineas Unit Closure

Mon, 04 Aug 2025 15:57:19 GMT

Prescribed Burn Treatment Helped Keep Flames at Bay on Carrizo Plains

Due to impacts of the Madre Fire that burned last month on CDFW’s Carrizo Plains Ecological Reserve (ER) in San Luis Obispo County, certain hunting opportunities will not take place.

While other units of the ER were spared severe wildfire damage, thanks in part to a prescribed burn conducted in partnership with CAL FIRE in February 2025, impacts to the South Chimineas Unit call for it to be closed to all public access through spring 2026.

“The closure of the South Chimineas Unit will allow the habitat to recover,” said Brandon Swanson, CDFW’s unit biologist for San Luis Obispo County. “The closure will also give the wildlife on the South Chimineas Unit a break after the disturbances of wildfire that would be compounded by the pressures of hunting. The potential for dead trees to fall is also a public safety concern.”

Drive-on access for elk hunting on the ER within the La Panza hunt zone will be allowed on the North Chimineas Unit through the normal draw from public hunt tag holders, but not on the South Chimineas Unit.

The following South Chimineas Unit special hunts planned for this fall and winter have been canceled:

Sept. 12-14: Chimineas Junior Only Deer Hunt
Nov. 1: Chimineas Junior Only Quail Hunt
Dec. 13: South Chimineas Ranch Family and Mobility Impaired Upland Hunts
Jan. 3, 2026: Chimineas Upland Game Hunt
Jan. 3, 2026: Chimineas Mobility Impaired Quail Hunt

Chimineas Ranch special hunts still planned (applications due Aug. 11):

Sept. 6: Chimineas Ranch Family and Mobility Impaired Upland Hunts

To apply for these special hunts sill taking place, go to the special hunt online application instructions (PDF).

An estimated 25,000 acres of CDFW’s Carrizo Plains Ecological Reserve burned in the Madre Fire. The February 2025 prescribed burn conducted in partnership with CAL FIRE on the American Unit of the ER helped limit the spread of the Madre Fire. More information on the impact of this prescribed burn can be found in CAL FIRE's Madre Fire Fuels Effectiveness Report.

Nearly all of the tule elk’s home range on the ecological reserve saw flames, but tule elk are capable of moving great distances — a herd some 50 strong was sighted within the burned area on the South Chimineas Unit. CDFW buildings and other infrastructure such as wildlife watering wells and water storage tanks saw little damage due to firefighters’ efforts and weed abatement work by CDFW.

The 38,900-acre Carrizo Plains Ecological Reserve consists of oak and juniper woodland, chapparal, grassland and desert and coastal scrub, most of which is expected to recover from fire impacts and benefit from the elimination of invasive grasses.

For more information about the Carrizo Plain Ecological Reserve, visit https://wildlife.ca.gov/Lands/Places-to-Visit/Carrizo-Plains-ER.

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Media Contact:
Krysten Kellum, CDFW Communications, (916) 825-7120

Just the Facts About Lake Tahoe’s Black Bears: Keep Tahoe Bears Wild!

Tue, 18 Feb 2025 16:50:06 GMT

The Tahoe Interagency Bear Team (TIBT) is a collective of bear experts across federal, state and local agencies who study and understand bears and have devoted much of their professional lives to ensure the health and well-being of the Lake Tahoe Basin’s black bears. TIBT provides proven and scientifically backed information about the real issues and solutions for living and recreating in bear country.

Tahoe bears may at times seem unique due to their learned lack of fear and boldness around humans (habituation), but these black bears follow the usual biological patterns of black bears across California and Nevada. Whether living in or visiting bear country at Lake Tahoe or beyond, this information should clarify what is really needed to help wild bears survive and thrive.

Don’t Let Your House Become a Makeshift Den

Many have seen photos and videos perpetuating the myth that property owners and residents should allow bears to den under homes and in crawl spaces. Some may have even seen people encourage this unwanted behavior by laying out hay and other materials for bears. Surprisingly, however, most homeowners aren’t even aware that a bear is under or around their home until it has already established a makeshift den.

Bears often damage the insulation, exposing pipes to freezing temperatures or even damaging them in the process. Once a bear gets comfortable, it can be difficult to make it leave. This increases the chances of human-bear conflict and habituated behavior.

Bears under homes need to be addressed by trained agency professionals as bears can be dangerous. If disturbed, mother bears with newborn cubs may abandon the den, orphaning the cubs in the process. For this reason, only a wildlife professional should evaluate the situation and offer advice to homeowners.

It’s important to remember that bears have evolved to comfortably survive winter without human help, so it is essential to board up all crawl spaces around homes to discourage them from denning and damaging property. For more information about securing crawl spaces, watch this TIBT video.

Secure Your Trash

Black bears are very resilient and adaptive animals, and, as opportunistic omnivores, they will take advantage of any available food source, including human supplied foods like garbage. Their highly developed sense of smell allows them to find these food sources, even when locked in a vehicle or a home, which in turn may lead bears into conflict with people.

Never Feed Bears – Intentionally or Accidentally

It is true that bears need a lot of calories, especially in preparation for winter, but giving them handouts will not set them up to thrive. Repeated exposure to human foods can lead to food-conditioned bears that view neighborhoods as reliable sources of food.

When mother bears teach their cubs to access human foods, they not only continue the cycle of human food-conditioning, but the cubs are much more prone to conflict, including being hit and killed by vehicles.

Consuming human garbage can also be harmful for bears because the high sugar content can increase tooth decay and painful abscesses. Additionally, intentionally feeding bears is illegal in both California and Nevada.

As omnivores, a bear’s diet is about 85 percent plant-based, with the remaining proportion coming from consuming insects, small mammals and carrion. Thus, bears should be allowed to fulfill their very important and vital ecological role as seed dispersers, predators and scavengers.

Black bears are smart. They have learned how to unscrew lids and open sliding-glass and vehicle doors. They are also strong. In order to access food, they can peel a car door down from the top or break through a typical home door or window. Even after an incident like the 2021 Caldor Fire, where a huge swath of vegetation was burned, wildlife biologists saw these resilient omnivores find natural ways to survive.

Protecting Human Life and Property

On rare occasions, the California Department of Fish and Wildlife (CDFW) and Nevada Department of Wildlife (NDOW) must remove bears that are putting human life and property at risk. No one, including the agencies’ biologists who have dedicated their lives and careers to protecting bears, want this outcome. It is only used with great discretion and as a last resort.

Bears are large, strong animals and once they become conditioned to human foods or habituated to people, they pose a significant threat to human safety. For these reasons it is very important for people to be educated and dedicated to being “BearWise.” Learn how to live responsibly with black bears at the BearWise website.

It’s also important to note that except in the case of immediate protection of human life, the only people who can legally interact with wildlife are designated state agency or law enforcement professionals.

Protecting Bear Health and Wildness

It can be exciting to see a big, beautiful animal like a black bear in a neighborhood, but it is not where they belong. Human-developed areas pose many dangers to bears, particularly roads with cars, which bears must cross to get to the unhealthy human food and garbage in developed areas.

By allowing bears to comfortably live in or pass through neighborhoods, the chances that they will get struck and killed by vehicles increases immensely. If a bear is in your neighborhood, encourage it to move on by scaring it away so that it can lead a much safer life away from developed areas and conflict. For more information on bear-vehicle collisions, check out this TIBT video.

The TIBT is dedicated to creating the best environment for bears to thrive and remain wild in an ever-growing, ever-changing environment like the Lake Tahoe Basin.

CDFW and NDOW should be the only points of contact for any bear-related incidents or questions. CDFW and NDOW have trained black bear experts who can help navigate any human-bear conflicts.

Be sure to visit TahoeBears.org for accurate information about bears and to report any bear sightings or incidents.

To report bear incidents or conflict in the Lake Tahoe Basin, use the following:

In California, contact CDFW at 916-358-2917 or report online using the Wildlife incident Reporting (WIR) System.
Non-emergency bear collisions in California State Parks can be reported to public dispatch at 916-358-1300.
In Nevada, contact NDOW at 775-688-BEAR (2327).
If the issue is an emergency, call the local sheriff’s department or 911.

Thank you for helping keep Tahoe bears wild and safe!

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Media Contact:
Peter Tira, CDFW Communications, (916) 215-3858

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About the Tahoe Interagency Bear Team (TIBT)

The Tahoe Interagency Bear Team (TIBT) is a collaborative group of agencies and organizations trained and dedicated to reducing human-bear conflicts in the Tahoe Basin. The TIBT works together to promote bear safety through education, outreach, and the implementation of effective bear management practices. TIBT's efforts ensure that both bears and people can coexist peacefully in this beautiful region.

Endangered Southern California Steelhead Trout Rescued from Fire-Impacted Topanga Creek

Tue, 04 Feb 2025 16:57:00 GMT

Temporary Relocation Will Safeguard the Last Santa Monica Mountains Population from Post-fire Storm Impacts

Media Note: A link to download photos and video.

Watch CDFW’s video about the Topanga Creek steelhead trout rescue.

As part of statewide efforts to help Californians and wildlife recover from the Southern California fires, on Jan. 23 the California Department of Fish and Wildlife (CDFW) and its partners rescued 271 endangered Southern California steelhead trout (Oncorhynchus mykiss) from Topanga Creek, the last known population of this species in the Santa Monica Mountains.

These fish survived in the chilly waters of Topanga Creek as the Palisades Fire swept through Topanga Canyon, but rain brought the threat of localized extinction. Storm events in late January and future storms falling over the burn scar can carry ash, sediment and debris into the creek that would suffocate and wipe out the population. Fisheries biologists estimate the remaining population to be as few as 400 - 500 trout.

“The fires in Southern California have been incredibly devastating,” said CDFW Chief Deputy Director Valerie Termini. “CDFW stands with the victims who have lost their homes, and we’re here to help everyone recover. Part of that effort is to bring back habitats and wildlife. Our role is going to be for the long term — helping people and wildlife recover.

“People in California want to live where biodiversity is thriving,” added Termini. “It's important for California, and it’s important for our wildlife.”

With the help of teams from the Resource Conservation District of the Santa Monica Mountains, California Conservation Corps, Watershed Stewards Program, Cachuma Operation and Maintenance Board, and California State Parks, CDFW staff set out Jan. 23 to ensure the steelhead survive. Equipped with backpack electrofishers, nets and buckets, the trout were captured from the creek and relocated to CDFW’s nearby Fillmore Fish Hatchery to prevent a likely mortality event during the rains. There, they will be held in a specially designated area of the hatchery that is set aside for the conservation of imperiled fish until it is safe to be returned to their home waters or another suitable creek in the area. Most of the netted fish were no bigger than 12 inches in length.

“Southern California steelhead are critically endangered within the Santa Monica Mountains,” said CDFW Environmental Program Manager Kyle Evans. “Topanga Creek is their only remaining population, when historically trout were found in streams across the Los Angeles area.

“These fish are incredible. They are adapted to drier summers and warmer water temperatures; they have a really complex life where they can either stay in the creek their whole life or go to the ocean and come back,” added Evans. “They're a very adaptable, important, iconic species whose success represents a healthy watershed, and healthy watersheds mean better water quality for us all. Protecting this population and their home habitats isn’t just good for the trout, it benefits the Californians of this community and beyond.”

In addition to this one-day operation to rescue the population of critically endangered fish, CDFW is working alongside California’s resource agencies to support state fire response and recovery efforts following the Southern California fires. CDFW staff are working to rescue and relocate animals impacted or displaced by the fires and are supporting and monitoring intake of injured wildlife to licensed wildlife rehabilitators.

As climate disruption continues to impact California residents, CDFW is working to help California be more resilient. Since 2021, CDFW’s Wildfire Resiliency Initiative has increased the pace and scale of vegetation management activities on its 1.1 million acres of state lands. Fire fuels reduction has been implemented on more than 100,000 acres annually across 90 high fire-risk lands statewide, providing protection to disadvantaged communities and adjacent natural lands.

Advances in veterinary medical science have come as a result of CDFW’s work in collaboration with the UC Davis School of Veterinary Medicine — the application of fish skin to treat animal burn victims, first used in North America on bears and a mountain lion injured in a 2017 wildfire and today on animal burn patients around the world.

CDFW’s work in wildlife science has helped save rare populations of animals during fires, floods and drought. In 2020, mountain yellow-legged frog tadpoles were pulled out of the blackened landscape of a 116,000-acre wildfire, where most breeding pools were destroyed by charred rubble. CDFW supported efforts to help riparian brush rabbits to higher ground during 2023 flooding events. Salmon spawning and rearing habitats have been restored in drought-impacted creeks and streams across California.

These advances not only support the species themselves, but the Californians living near and benefitting from healthy, biodiverse habitats.

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Media Contacts:
Kyle Evans, CDFW Environmental Program Manager, (805) 794-9547
Krysten Kellum, CDFW Communications, (916) 825-7120

CDFW Provides Nearly $36 Million for Projects to Save Salmon and Other California Fish and Wildlife Species

Thu, 13 Apr 2023 08:20:24 GMT

The California Department of Fish and Wildlife (CDFW) today announced nearly $36 million in projects to benefit salmon and their habitats, and to further support climate resiliency, wildlife corridors and wetlands restoration.

Saving salmon and rebuilding their populations for future Californians involves many key actions including investing in and restoring salmon strongholds as climate refugia, increasing partnerships, working with Tribes, doing more large-scale restoration at a faster pace, modernizing old infrastructure and creating fish passage around migration barriers. Today’s awards invest in those types of salmon projects.

Salmon Strongholds: the Klamath, Scott and Shasta Rivers

CDFW is awarding $20 million in Drought Emergency Salmon Protection Grants to 10 projects demonstrating support from and collaboration with Tribes and landowner interests in the Shasta and Scott rivers and their watersheds. These include habitat improvement, removal of barriers to fish passage and groundwater recharge projects. CDFW is also awarding $9 million from the same fund to Tribes in the Klamath River mainstem for post-McKinney Fire debris flow damage remediation, slope and sediment stabilization, and restoration for salmonids.

“These projects will help us save our struggling salmon populations,” said CDFW Director Charlton H. Bonham. “The Klamath, Scott and Shasta rivers are historic salmon strongholds where this kind of restoration investment will make a big impact. Rebuilding these watersheds and reconnecting salmon within them is one step further toward salmon recovery. The investments to support these 10 projects is happening in parallel to the largest river restoration in America’s history now underway to remove four dams on the mainstem Klamath River.”

View these projects online.

Climate Resiliency and Nature-Based Solutions

Additionally, CDFW is awarding $6.9 million to nine projects to further support nature-based solutions, climate resiliency, wildlife corridors and wetlands restoration.

“Each week, each month that passes by on the calendar, California’s climate challenges increase, change and present a need to implement projects designed to keep pace,” Bonham said. “We are matching this pace with ongoing funding commitments to new projects, moving away from a once-a-year announcement of awards to fund more projects, toward sustained momentum.”

Projects funded with these grants will go toward planning and implementation of wetlands and mountain meadows including expanding habitat for Lahontan cutthroat trout habitat on the Upper Truckee River, addressing urgent degrading water and habitat conditions due to climate change impacts in Shasta and Sonoma counties, and creating habitat connectivity through wildlife corridors funding for species such as Clear Lake hitch and newts, among other projects.

View these projects online.

Next Steps

These projects will soon commence work. Meanwhile, CDFW will continue to accept applications for new projects and make awards on an ongoing basis with an emphasis on a strategic approach to rebuild salmon and other species by removing barriers to migration, improving water management and quality, restoring core salmon strongholds, taking substantial steps to modernize older infrastructure for salmon-friendly results and other actions.

Background

In late 2022 CDFW announced the availability of $200 million in new funding for restoration, including $100 million in emergency drought funding for protecting salmon against drought and climate change. Funding under the Addressing Climate Impacts and Nature-Based Solutions initiatives provides grant funding for projects addressing water and habitat impacted by climate, as well as restoring wetlands and mountain meadows, and creating wildlife corridors. On March 7, 2023, CDFW announced its first round of awards totaling $22.5 million for 19 projects from this funding.

This funding also supports key initiatives including conserving 30 percent of California’s lands and coastal waters by 2030 under California’s 30x30 initiative, Nature-Based Solutions and increasing the pace and scale of restoration through Cutting Green Tape.

California must get more restoration done at a faster pace. To achieve that goal, CDFW has developed a single set of General Grant Program Guidelines with an overview of eligible project types, priorities and information on the application process, available at www.wildlife.ca.gov/Conservation/Watersheds/Restoration-Grants/Concept-Application. Applications submitted under these new initiatives may also be considered for further evaluation under CDFW’s Proposition 1 and Proposition 68 Grant Programs, and a separate call for projects will also be released for these programs in Spring 2023.

More information about these funding opportunities, including guidelines and how to apply, general information about CDFW’s grant programs, as well as a schedule for upcoming grant solicitations, once available, can be found at www.wildlife.ca.gov/grants.

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Media Contacts:
Matt Wells, CDFW Watershed Restoration Grant Branch, (916) 216-7848
Jordan Traverso, CDFW Communications, (916) 212-7352

Forest Grouse, Mountain Quail Hunters Advised to Check for Wildfire-Related Closures Before Heading Afield This Season

Fri, 09 Sep 2022 15:06:57 GMT

For the first time in three years, grouse and mountain quail hunters should find the state’s national forests along with California Department of Fish and Wildlife (CDFW) properties mostly open for hunting when seasons begin Saturday, Sept. 10, 2022. That’s the good news.

The discouraging news is that the state is once again confronting severe wildfire conditions with recent wildfires, active wildfires and fire restrictions occurring in some national forests historically popular with grouse and mountain quail hunters, including the Tahoe National Forest, the Modoc National Forest, the Klamath National Forest and the Six Rivers National Forest. Hunters are strongly advised to check for any emergency closures when planning their hunting trips. In the past two years, extremely dry wildfire conditions forced the closure of most of the state’s national forests and many adjacent CDFW properties just as hunting seasons for these special upland game birds were about to begin.

Ruffed grouse (Bonasa umbellas) and sooty grouse (Dendragapus fuliginosus) along with mountain quail (Oreortyx pictus) are forest-dwelling birds that offer hunters plentiful public land hunting opportunities. These species have been impacted by both wildfire and drought. The birds have lost forest habitat and hunters have lost some of their favorite bird hunting spots because of recent wildfires. A third year of California drought means less green grass and fewer seeds for the birds to eat and fewer insects that their chicks depend on in the first weeks of their lives. Burned habitat, however, does offer hope that it will regenerate anew to provide even better quail and grouse habitat in future years.

Hunters are reminded that nonlead ammunition is required when hunting grouse and mountain quail and when taking wildlife anywhere in California with a firearm.

Ruffed Grouse and Sooty Grouse

Ruffed grouse are the most widely distributed resident game bird in North America, found in every Canadian providence and from New England to Alaska in the U.S.

California accounts for just a tiny portion of their overall range and the birds are limited to the far northwestern corner of the state, primarily in Humboldt and Del Norte counties and portions of Trinity and Siskiyou counties.

Ruffed grouse favor young forests and disturbed forests, particularly aspen with a patchwork of small clearings created by logging, wind or wildfire. All the better if those clearings have some brush for cover and downed logs for display and drumming.

Sooty grouse are much more widely distributed throughout California’s forested landscape. Sooty grouse can be found in the northernmost parts of the state and along the spine of the Sierra Nevada mountains extending south to Inyo County and the edges of the Central Valley.

Both sooty and ruffed grouse are subject to the statewide hunt zone (PDF) and can only be legally taken in 28 of California’s 58 counties. The forest grouse season runs from Sept. 10 to Oct. 10, 2022. Shooting hours are from one-half hour before sunrise to sunset. The daily bag limit is two – all of one grouse species or a mix of the two species. The possession limit is triple the daily bag limit.

Mountain Quail

The colorful mountain quail is the first of California’s three native quail species to open to hunting each year. California’s early mountain quail season opens Sept. 10 and runs through Oct. 14 in the Q1 Quail Hunt Zone that encompasses all or parts of 26 counties in the northern part of the state and along the foothills and spine of the Sierra Nevada mountains. Beginning Saturday, Oct. 15, mountain quail can be taken as part of the statewide quail season that runs through Jan. 29, 2023.

As its name suggests, mountain quail can be found within forested, higher elevations typically than either the California quail (Callipepla californica) or the Gambel’s quail (Callipepla gambelii). Mountain quail favor edge habitat and hunters would do well to begin their early season hunts at the 5,000 to 7,000 elevation ranges at least until winter snow forces the birds down to lower elevations later in the quail season.

Mountain quail are unique among the North American quail species. They are the largest of the quail and are not sexually dimorphic, meaning male and female mountain quail are identically plumed and difficult to distinguish from one another, even in hand.

Identification is key when hunting mountain quail in the early season so as not to misidentify birds and shoot a California quail by mistake where their habitats can overlap. Shooting hours are from one-half hour before sunrise to sunset. The daily bag limit is 10 mountain quail. The possession limit is triple the daily bag limit.

Minimum hunting requirements for both grouse and mountain quail are a valid hunting license and upland game bird validation (validation not required for Junior Hunting License holders) and good footwear.

A light, fast shotgun of almost any gauge is the ideal tool given the long hikes often involved in searching for these birds and the quick, fleeting shots they sometimes present amid dense cover and forested habitat. Nonlead shotgun shells are required. Eye and hearing protection is recommended. A cooler with ice to store your birds, particularly in hot September weather, is always a good idea.

For many grouse and quail hunters throughout the nation, a well-trained hunting dog is a quintessential part of the overall experience, a valuable companion in locating birds and finding downed game. Plenty of California hunters, however, do quite well hunting grouse and mountain quail without the help of a dog.

Grouse and mountain quail hunters should know that California’s tree squirrel season also opens Sept. 10, 2022, throughout northern California and central portions of the state (PDF), offering mixed-bag opportunities as tree squirrels will often share the same forested habitat as grouse and mountain quail.

CDFW Photo: A painting of a ruffed grouse in flight by artist Jeffrey Klinefelter was chosen as CDFW's 2019-2020 Upland Game Bird Stamp.

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Media Contacts:
Katherine Miller, CDFW Upland Game Program, (916) 261-5019
Peter Tira, CDFW Communications, (916) 215-3858