Habitat Preservation
 South San Francisco Bay is home to two endangered species, the Salt Marsh Harvest Mouse and the California Clapper Rail. Too much fresh water can threaten the balance of this fragile ecosystem by diluting the salt marsh habitat and converting it to either fresh or brackish marsh.
In 1990, the San Francisco Regional Water Quality Control Board directed the San Jose/Santa Clara Water Pollution Control to limit average flows from the Plant to 120 million gallons per day during the dry weather season (May-October) or to flows that would not further impact rare and endangered species habitat. Water conservation from residents and businesses and the Plant’s South Bay Water Recycling program are two critical methods that help us protect this sensitive habitat in the South San Francisco Bay.
 The Salt Marsh Harvest Mouse has brown fur with a cinnamon colored belly. On average, they have a combined head and body length of around 3 inches and an average weight of less than half an ounce.
 The California Clapper Rail is hen-like in appearance, with a long slightly downward curving bill. It has olive-brown upper parts, cinnamon-buff breast, dark flanks crossed by white bars and white undertail coverts. When fully grown, they can measure about 1-1 ½ ft long. The California Clapper Rail is endangered because of destruction of its coastal and estuarine marshland habitat. The largest population of California Clapper Rails, approximately 3,000, is right here in San Francisco Bay!
Pickleweed and cordgrass are both key plants in the salt marsh ecosystem.
To learn more about this unique ecosystem, visit the Don Edwards San Francisco Bay National Wildlife Refuge in Alviso or call (408) 262-5513. |
