NPS works to save wildlife corridors

National Park Service scientists and South Coast Wildlands have released the Missing Linkages report that recommends habitat conservation and wildlife corridor enhancements to ensure the future of wildlife, including cougars and steelhead trout.

Directed to local planning and land management agencies, the linkage plan for the Santa MonicaSierra Madre Mountains connection identifies links between parklands and open space between the Santa Monica Mountains National Recreation Area and the Los Padres National Forest.

The report was sent to many agencies, jurisdictions and groups focused on open space and wildlife habitat conservation in the region. Certain species, including mountain lions, can survive by the preservation of corridors. The report includes photos, maps and a 3-D model that's available at www.scwildlands.org.

To conserve the ecosystem, the report addresses many species of flora and fauna that live in the Santa Monica Mountains. In response to development, remaining habitats have become fragmented and separated by housing developments, roads and other barriers.

The report identifies linkages that, if maintained, will allow animals to move between and persist in these areas, including parklands of the Santa Monica Mountains, Simi Hills, Santa Susana Mountains, and Sierra Madre Mountains of the Los Padres National Forest.