Habitat Types
Resource Management - Refuge History - Habitat Types - Habitat Management - Waterfowl Surveys - Monitoring/Research - Endangered Species

Habitats
Many habitats are needed on the Refuges to provide the food, water, and cover critical for wildlife.

Seasonal Marshes are one of the most abundant habitats.They provide more food for wildlife during fall and winter than any other habitat. Common marsh plants include cattail, roundstem bulrush, alkali bulrush, swamp timothy, and smartweed.

Permanent Ponds are valuable year-round for resident wildlife, especially during summer when most of the seasonal marshes are dried up. Characteristic plants include cattail, roundstem bulrush, and sago pondweed.

Riparian areas are thick with plants, trees, and hiding places. This scarce waterside habitat supports the greatest diversity of wildlife. Cottonwoods, valley oaks, sycamores, willows, box elders, elderberry, and wild rose are common plants along the rivers, creeks, and waterways, offering fish and aquatic animals cooling shade.

Watergrass is an important food source during the early fall and winter. Smartweed, sprangletop, bermuda grass, and joint grass are usually mixed in with watergrass and also used by wildlife.

Uplands become carpets of green sprouts after seasonal rains. Annual grasses provide food for geese and wigeon. In early spring, vernal pools teem with aquatic creatures. Goldfields, downingia, and popcorn flowers bloom brilliantly after these pools evaporate in late spring.