California wildlife areas to explore

The California Department of Fish and Game owns and maintains habitat for more than 1,275 species of mammals, birds, reptiles, amphibians, and fish.

The Department of Fish and Game manages 108 state wildlife areas composed of more than 648,954 acres. These areas are scattered throughout the state, most located in central and northern California. The state owns about two-thirds of this acreage while the remainder is managed under agreements with other public agencies.

On the South Coast you'll find reserves at San Felipe Valley and Hollenbeck Canyon, both in San Diego County.

Inland you'll find a number of wildlife areas including: Kelso Peak and Dad Mountains; Camp Cady, Marble Mountains in San Bernardino County. In Riverside County are San Jacinto and Santa Rosa Wildlife Areas. And in Imperial County is Imperial Wildlife area.

These wildlife areas create critical links in the network of open space and wildlife habitat that includes inland forests, coastal plains, and open desert. The land provides important foraging and nursery space for wildlife of all sizes, and preserves a wide variety of habitats such as riparian, oak woodland, and coastal sage scrub, chaparral and feshwater marshes.

It helps to study the Fish and Game website before going to these areas to view the wildlife. You'll learn a lot about each species of wildlife and plants that will enrich your visit and help you understand behaviors and migration cycles, as well as communities of interrelated species.