West Struve Slough Restoration Project on the Watsonville Sloughs Ecological Reserve

West Struve Slough Restoration Project on the Watsonville Sloughs Ecological Reserve

The California Department of Fish and Game owned, Watsonville Sloughs Ecological Reserve at West Struve Slough, is comprised of 110 acres of freshwater wetlands, wet meadow, coastal prairie, and coastal scrub habitats. Approximately 60 acres of the property is inundated with fresh water for the majority of the year in wet years and 50 acres of the property remain as upland throughout the year the property was acquired by the CA DFG in the 1970's after extensive use of the land for row crop farming and orchards, which led to its current condition of greatly reduced native habitat diversity and a predominance of exotic vegetation divergent from native ecosystem structure and composition. The West Struve Slough Restoration Project will remove invasive plant species and plant native species to restore and enhance coastal prairie, wet meadow, and coastal scrub habitat on 30 acres of the 50 acres of upland habitat on the property. The project will also maintain and enhance a grassed waterway planted with native perennial plant species, designed to filter storm water run-off from the adjacent urban land use (Pajaro Valley High School). Resulting habitat improvements will greatly benefit the numerous avian, reptile, and mammal species on the ecological reserve. Re-establishment of native wet meadow habitat in-particular will enhance the connectivity of wetland and upland habitat and contribute to greater potential for dispersal and habitat integration across ecological boundaries. Water quality improvements associated with the grassed waterway will reduce sediment and nutrients in the West Struve slough as well as throughout the hydrologically connected Watsonville Sloughs Wetland Complex. The project will also integrate an education component for students and community groups.

Santa Cruz