Executive Director’s Blog
News and updates on the Conservancy
The Latest at the conservancy

December 21, 2022
They’re back!
We are so pleased to see one of the NBHCP’s “Covered Species,” the Burrowing owl (Athene cunicularia), back on Conservancy property! Going back 15 years, the owl used to be seen frequently on Conservancy mitigation lands. At the time, we documented too-common depredation of them by dogs from nearby residential…

July 27, 2022
Complex Versus Simple
The Conservancy has worked hard and spent money trying to improve prey production for the Swainson’s hawk (Buteo swainsonii). The hawk is one of two “primary” species covered under the HCPs. It has our attention due to diminished…

June 15, 2022
Nail Trim Needed?
Conservancy field personnel captured this close-up of an osprey (Pandion haliaetus) flying overhead from a nearby perch. The photo was taken on Conservancy mitigation land associated with a managed marsh complex. In prior years, some called this species…

June 7, 2022
It Really, Really Works!
The Conservancy causes the planting of various kinds of crops that promote Swainson’s hawk foraging. One of those crops is alfalfa. In this series of photos, you can see a Conservancy alfalfa field in the process of being…
“In essence, the Conservancy provides refuge and sanctuary for wildlife displaced by urban activity in the Natomas Basin.”