User:Deezeewye/Spea hammondii

Southern California
Spea hammondii has lost up to 80% of its native habitat due to urban development within Southern California. Most of the remaining vernal pools that the toads rely on for reproduction lie on protected public land or preserves. Spadefoot toads have been known to take advantage of man-made standing water sources such as road ruts, cattle ponds, and artificial pools. The species is currently under review to be listed on the federal Endangered Species Act. However, it is listed as a Species of Interest for the Central Subarea and a fully covered species for the Coastal Subarea on the Natural Community Conservation Plan (NCCP) and Habitat Conservation Plan (HCP) for the County of Orange Central and Coastal Subregion. Within this region, Spea hammondii is managed as though it is listed as a state and federal endangered species.

Development in Orange County placed populations of Spea hammondii under threat, and they were relocated to newly constructed mitigation pools in 2005 and 2006. These mitigation pools are located in East Orange, Shoestring Canyon, and Irvine Mesa within Orange County Parks in the foothills of the Santa Ana mountains. A study was conducted in 2016 to monitor the reproductive success of the toads at these mitigation pools. It found that none of the five pools at East Orange or the six at Shoestring Canyon retained water during the 2016 rainy season. 12 of the 16 pools at Irvine Mesa retained water for more than 30 days. Of these 12, seven pools had successful reproduction with newly metamorphosed frogs. A 1991 study found that the average duration of vernal pools that produced metamorphosed frogs was 83.1 days. The soil at the East Orange and Shoestring Canyon sites was believed to be too porous to hold water, and the study recommended that soil may need to be compacted underneath the mitigation pools. Another suggestion was use an artificial lining under the pools to hold water. Overall, it was concluded that the mitigation pools were successful with a surviving population of Spea hammondii after 10 years.

A restoration project began in 2019 with a partnership between the California Department of Fish and Wildlife, California State Parks, Orange County Parks, and the Natural Communities Coalition to create 16 artificial breeding pools across Crystal Cove State Park and Laguna Coast Wilderness Park. The pools are expected to be completed in 2023. Ten pools will be lined with clay, while the other six will be lined with PVC to study differences in water retention. The project also will restore 15 acres of coastal sage scrub around the pools to provide foraging areas for the spadefoot toads, as well as nesting opportunities for the cactus wren.