WILDLIFE OF SAN JOSE - - -

WILDLIFE OF SAN JOSE - - -

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SAN JOSE

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  • SWAINSON'S HAWK

    ONE OF THE MAINT PREDA`TORS FOR THE CITY THAT KEEPS THE POPULATIONS IN ORDER

  • TRICOLORED BLACKBIRD

    A BEAUTYIUFL AVIAIN SPECIES THAT SPREADS THE SEEDS AROUND THE CITY TO PLANT NEW GROWTH

  • CALIFORNIA MYOTIS

    THE MOST CRUCIAL OF ALL THE INSECT CONTROL IN FOOD CHAIN

  • WESTERN GRAY SQURREL

    A STANDARD ADDITION TO THE CITY THAT CONTROL THE PLANTING OF SEEDS IN THE WOODED AREAS

  • BAY CHECKERSPOT BUTTERFLY

    A KEYSTONE SPECIES TAHT POLLINATES THE ENTIRE AREOF THE SANTA CLARA VALLEY AND ENDANGERED

  • CROTCH'S BUMBLEBEE

    ANOTHER ONE OF THE BIGGEST POLLINATORS IN THE CITY

SWAINSON’S HAWK

General Description

The Swainson's Hawk is light colored on their belly with a rust red chest and darker brown feathers on either exterior. The tips of their feathers are white and there are details of gray throughout.

The main difference between the males and females is gray heads are found on the former and brown heads on the latter. However there are some rare cases of exception.

There are also some notable versions of the Swainson's Hawkthat are darker in color, and they are also more common in the west than in the east. But they still only make up a tenth of the total population.


Travel Range and Population

The kettles of swainson's hawks can travel across vast ranges. Because of their maneuverability across the west of the american continents, it also gives them the advantage of getting out of the threats of an isolated population. They are not endangered because of this. On the map below, the breeding grounds in the north extends to much of the the rocky mountains and the great plains, 

The overall population is estimated to be in the hundred thousand range, and within California, there is a stable population of 17,000, with the large grasslands around San Jose making perfect grounds for their nesting and propagation. 



Reproduction

While they have a wide range of breeding grounds across North America, they prefer to have breeding and nesting in grasslands in small tree groves next to streams, 

Within a single nest, they can have a clutch of 1 to 5 eggs. The nests they have are often found in the only tree around, as their method for getting food for their young relies on the wide open grasslands that they breed in. 

However, they are still social creatures, so the kettles will often occupy in groups, which also helps with creating a stronger likelihood of survival for their population.


Rest and Activity

The hawk serves to control the population of the herbivore and insect populations in an environment. They typically groom by molting and cleaning their feathers in small water puddles. The spatial qualities that attract them are similar to their breeding grounds, but they enjoy roosting on man made elevated structures such as fence posts and telephone poles.

Hunting

As a buteo hawk, with longer span and shorter tail feathers, that makes them ideal fo ambush predator hunting, where they feed on rodents, rabbit and repitians. But that is only feedin their young to grow strong.

In most other occasions, their diet can best be described as insectivores, where their main targets are grasshoppers dragonflies and other grassland bugs.

TRICOLORED BLACKBIRD

General Description

The blackbird is one of the most prominent species in the area that has populated the Santa Clara valley. It is not as common as the regular blackbird , because the noisy and egregious males with their brilliant red shoulders make the desert lands of the valley feel almost tropical with their songbird calls throughout the state of California. 

They can be found in the outskirts of the city in the agricultural areas, but sometimes come to visit the city to feed on the corn and grain the the yards of the residents. 

Sadly, their population is declining, due to the loss of wetlands due to the practices of the agricultural businesses where they often nest.


Travel Range and Population

The tricolored blackbird has a travel range of 3 miles for their breed and food source scavenging. Primarily their population can be found in the central valley of the California mountains, but have been known to travel as far as the perimeter of the city for food as well. 

They are most commonly found in the marshes and croplands where the food is most commonly found for their species, and so they nest close to those food sources. However, their habitat areas are shrinking dur to human expansion into the wetlands. Current estimates place their population decline as close to threatened. In 1930, their population was estimated to be at 2.5 million. Today, it is estimated to be as low as 300,000.


Reproduction

The tricolored lives in the shrubs and brush growth as it needs it to protect its young from potential predators, like the Swainson’s Hawk, or human infrastructure. They nest in branch constructions in their main habitats, where they can live for up to a dozen years. 

Their mating habits revolve around itinerant breeding, where the red colored males leave after fertilization. The mother can have as many as four eggs in a single nest, but the survival overall is dependent on the environment that they live in. 


Rest and Activity

They roost in the brushes and small shrubs in the area surrounding wetlands. Their main purpose in life is to reproduce, but in the ecosystem, they can spread seeds through their droppings and manage grasshopper populations which can devastate agricultural growth. Sadly, agricultural practices lead to their overall decline through habitat destruction and the pesticides used by farmers throughout the late 20th century.

The spatial qualities that would attract them is the low growth around wetlands, or areas that allow for them to overlook a large area from a perched point to look for insects below.


Hunting

The main food supply for the tricolored is insects like the grasshopper and other small grassland species that can be found near wetlands. Their protein consumption increases during mating season, as the female looks for nutrients for their young. 

When they hunt for their prey, they can travel for up to three miles in search of calories. When outside of these areas, they can get their food off of grains and rices that naturally grow in the area, like wheat and rice grains. They do not however, store food, and must hunt daily in order to survive.


CALIFORNIA MYOTIS

General Description

The California Myotis is a very small bat native to North America, and are a subspecies of the vesper bat. The Bat is only about 5 grams, and are only a couple centimeters in length. Their bat wings are connected throughout their body and are typically found with a pale brown fur that covers with entire body. Their most valuable asset is their ears and their voice, where they use echolocation to find prey.

There are no notable distinctions between males and females, and their young are born frail and vulnerable, like most other rodent species.

Reproduction

Due to the lack of studies on the species, the overall mating pattern of the myotis is up for debate, but their offpring are produced one to one. What we do konw is that the range of births are typically from late spring to early summer, which gives their young a long period of time to adapt to their environment. During this time period, the myotis are often found in small colonies of around two dozen breeding pairs to raise their young.

Each mother can only raise one pup at a time,, but as each one has a life expectancy of 15 years, that means that one bat can produce as many as that, so long as the season goes well.

Travel Range and Population

The population of the myotis is primarily on the western coast with a large settlement on the bay area of San Fransisco and San Jose. But they are migratory in their yearly span of about 125 miles.

They have large breeding ground area, which is mainly under 6000 ft. Because of this, mountain ranges like the Rockies can frame their migration routes. However, they are not considered endangered, and have a generall safety in urban areas.

Estimates currently place their population in CA at around 10,000 individuals, but their number is self admitted to be a ballpark, as there are a lack of studies on the overall population of this specific bat species.

Rest and Activity

The myotis is most attracted to any narrow and secluded shelter that they can find. They have been found nesting and roositing in the separation between bark in trees, holes in those trees, mine shafts, rocky caves, the gaps between manmade structures, or even attic spaces.

They do not need much water, as their internal organs are adapted to arid climates and retain water over long periods of time.

Sadly, they are often distrubed in their nesting, because of human development and deforestation, but they are also being harmed by White Nose Syndrome, which inhibits them from hibernating effectively, waking up and remaining more active during these months, and thus losing body fat, and ultimately dying over the winter.

Hunting

The main food supply for the myotis is moths and some flies. They find their prey using echo location. Like most bats, they are also nocturnal, and so their hunting pattern is from dusk until dawn.

Their flight patterns are not that fast, but their agility and precision helps with their hunting greatly. They hunt in many wooded areas and some perimter spaces of urban areas, but they are most comfortable with a buffer space between active urban life and their hunting patterns.

They are however more vulnerable to burrowing owls and other predatory birds, which is their main threat.

BAY CHECKERSPOT BUTTERFLY

General Description

The bay checkerspot is a fairly small insect at only two inches in their wingspan. They are notable for their black banded winds with spots of white and pale orange deatils on the wings. There are also cases of the wings having red spots as well.

In caterpillare form, the insect is small and black with spikey protrusions along its back and hair folicals that allow for it to navigate effectivley.

The pupua is white with uneven markings in organe and black, mirroring the look of the adult form.

There aren’t any distinct differences between males and females

Travel Range and Population

The butterfly is found through the san Francisco bay area, with a historical habitat range of around 12,00 acres. Today, that population area is much more “consolidated” due to human expansion in the area. The overall population is shrunk greatly in the past few decades. Their habitat have been chipped away primarily from development, highways, invasive species, and natural disasters.

There are many sub populations in the area, but as a keystone species in the bay, their drop from 100,000 in 1981 to 1,000 by the 1990s.

Reproduction

The Bay Checkerspot have a short life expectancy as adults, at just over a week, but emerge just for reproduction. Males will try to find as many mates as possible in that time period, and finding nectar.

Eggs are laid on the underside of their primarily food sources, the dwarf plantain and owl’s clover, so that when their caterpillar forms emerge, they will have immediate food sources. Many of the caterpillars will not survive long, hence the need for mass reproduction.

The eggs can be laid in small masses ranging in the tens, to massive bunches of 250 or more. They will also typically deposit them in five or so masses.

Rest and Activity

Tulare hill is a notable location for the butterfly to be used for the butterfly, but also the Santa Teresa Hills, an area of just over 1,110 acres.

within San Jose itself, the checkerspot can be found in the coyote ride that goes straight through the city. This green ribbon through the city along the Coyote creek is the perfect buffer for the species to occupy within the urban environment.

As for other activities,, their biggest concern is propagation, so their primary habits revolve around ingrained instincts for survival.

Food

The main host plants that area used by the butterfly are the Dwarf Plantain and the Owl’s Clover.

This requires a large area that can be used as hosts for the population, and to make for an ideal hiding spot for the brood. these can be mainly found in the foothills along San Jose and the buffer zones of the forested zones.

But the most considerable factor is as an adult, their nesting habits also allow for pollination to occur between species, making the checkerspot an irreplaceable keystone in this ecosystem.

WESTERN GRAY SQUIRREL: THE URBAN ADAPTER

General Description

The Western Gray Squirrel has a silvery-gray back, a pure-white belly, and a beautiful long, bushy, blackish-gray tail edged with white. These squirrels prefer oak and conifer forests, traveling the arboreal pathways made by interconnecting tree canopies and feeding on pine cone.

-iNaturalist.com

Home to virtually every city in the western US, they still face dangers from the world including the expansion of humans cutting down their forest homes. But the squirrel is more than capable of adapting to the urban landscape by occupying the available landscape in the Santa Clara region.

They be best described as steel gray with white on their belly and their fur leading up to their head. they have distinct bushy tails with whitened tips on the edges and sometimes even patches of brown

Travel Range and Population

The western gray squirrel can be found in a wide range of areas, with populations being found as south as Baja and ranges up to the northern regions of Washington State. They tend to spread out fairly far, with only a family of 4 occupying each hectare. They are not migrants, and spend most of their lives where their nest is located within a one to two hectare range. Their total population is unclear, but their species is not listed on the endangered species list.

Rest and Activity

The benefit that the squirrel has to the local population is planting trees in forgotten hordes.

Every squirrel is likely to forget as many as a quarter of their foraging hoardes, and many of these, being buried artificially, become new trees that provide a habitat for future rodent, avian and insect species.

Whenever they are not being preocupied by planting trees accidently, they must be on the lookout from competition from woodpeckers and predators, like the Swainson’s Hawk.

Food

The Gray Squirrel eats mainly acorns and nuts and seeds of various forms, and as such relies on the trees and seeding plants to feed their young. Walnut trees and oaks are their primary nesting areas, so their seeds can be immediately accessed for food.

They also participate in ground forraging where they find seeds on the ground or anything else they find edible and bury it for a lter time, relying on their sense of smell to find their way back.

CROTCHES’S BUMBLEBEE:

POLLINATOR EXTRAORDINAIRE

General Description

A species discovered by entomologist GR Crotch, this unfortunately named species is found in most of Californian as one of the most important pollinators in the region. They are distinct from regular bumble bees with longer bodies and different head configurations, and an anatomy that allows for better water retention than the typical bee. they also have a suae fave and a different shaped ankle on the midleg, and some slight variation of color between the males and the females.

Sadly, where once it had a dramatic near 150,000 square kilometer range, the abundance of the bee has dropped nearly to zero, and was placed on the endangered species list back in 2014.

Travel Range and Population

The western gray squirrel can be found in a wide range of areas, with populations being found as south as Baja and ranges up to the northern regions of Washington State. They tend to spread out fairly far, with only a family of 4 occupying each hectare. They are not migrants, and spend most of their lives where their nest is located within a one to two hectare range. Their total population is unclear, but their species is not listed on the endangered species list.

Rest and Activity

In the process of gathering pollen to make into honey for its hive, the cross pollination they provide acts as a catalyst for the growth and blooming for other species of flora and fauna.

Their acitivities are the crux for much of the agricultural landscape and the local economy of produce.

Food

The Crotch’s Bee needs to collect pollen actively to produce honey for its hive, and so it must spend virtually all day collecting this, going as far as 10 miles in search of pollen.

Crotch’s Bumblebee:

Habitat:

  • California based

  • Hibernation in low leaf cover and soft soil

  • Non migratory

  • Eats milkweeds, small spices, and other smaller plants

  • Current range 144acres

  • In rapid decline: 

    • 80% reduction in the population since the beginning of 21st century