The Historical ecology of the lower Santa Clara River, Ventura River, and Oxnard Plain: an analysis of terrestrial, riverine, and coastal habitats is the culmination of four years of research funded by the State Coastal Conservancy and conducted by a broad project team including the San Francisco Estuary Institute, the Southern California Coastal Water Research Project, CSU Northridge, Stillwater Sciences, and other researchers. It describes the rivers, wetlands, and terrestrial habitats of much of lowland Ventura County prior to substantial Euro-American modification, and includes a map detailing the former distribution of habitats and channels in the region.

The report can be accessed and downloaded for free here. GIS layers illustrating former habitat and channel distribution are also available upon request. Please contact Erin Beller, Historical Ecology Program, San Francisco Estuary Institute, (510) 746-7301, erin@sfei.org

The historical ecology project will be presented on Thursday, September 8, at the Ventura County Government Center as part of a half day workshop organized by the State Coastal Conservancy.