March 10, 2021 – The California Department of Fish and Wildlife (CDFW) is asking retailers and consumers to help stop the spread of a dangerous invasive mussel that has been found in aquarium moss balls sold in California and nationwide. CDFW was notified last week that zebra mussels, highly invasive freshwater mussels which are illegal […]
California Department of Fish and Wildlife
Gray Wolf Travels from Oregon to the Central Sierra Nevada
February 26, 2021 – Another GPS-collared gray wolf has dispersed from Oregon into California. The wolf, known as OR-93, has traveled farther south in California than the collared wolves that have preceded him. OR-93 is a young male that dispersed from Oregon’s White River pack, southeast of Mt. Hood. He was fitted with a tracking […]
California Wildlife Rehabilitation Centers Receive Financial Support from the State
December 9, 2020 – The California Department of Fish and Wildlife (CDFW) is directing approximately $550,000 in grant funding to 45 nonprofit wildlife rehabilitation organizations to immediately support care for injured, sick and orphaned wildlife. The funds are made available from taxpayer contributions to the Native California Wildlife Rehabilitation Voluntary Tax Contribution Fund. “California’s injured, […]
Agencies responding to Walnut Creek gasoline spill
Walnut Creek December 9, 2020 – Cleanup operations and an investigation are ongoing into an underground gasoline spill stemming from a cracked pipeline in Contra Costa County. Kinder Morgan, the pipeline operator, is responding with support from the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (U.S. EPA), the California Department of Fish and Wildlife’s Office of Spill Prevention […]
CDFW Works with Crab Industry and Environmental Community to Implement New Regulations to Protect Whales from Entanglement
November 5, 2020 – The commercial Dungeness crab season in the central management area, which was scheduled to open Sunday, Nov. 15, will be delayed due to the presence of whales within fishing grounds and the potential for entanglement. In mid-November, the California Department of Fish and Wildlife (CDFW) Director will re-assess entanglement risk in […]
CDFW: New Video Series and Website Help Tell the Story of Vulnerable California Species
September 30, 2020 – According to a 2019 United Nations report on species extinction, an estimated one million animal and plant species worldwide are now threatened with extinction, many within decades, more than ever before in human history. Still, there is plenty we can do to address the challenges facing listed species. Several state and federal […]
Watch out for Wildlife Week Educates Drivers about Increased Animal-Vehicle Collision Risk
September 21, 2020 – Every autumn, as Daylight Saving Time concludes, the number of vehicle-wildlife collisions on California roadways increases. As drivers adjust to less daylight during the evening commute during the first week of November, the California Department of Fish and Wildlife (CDFW) and Caltrans issue a reminder to be alert and aware of […]
CDFW Extends Land Closures Through Monday, Sept. 21
September 15, 2020 – The California Department of Fish and Wildlife (CDFW) has extended closures on 49 properties that lie within or immediately adjacent to U.S. Forest Service (USFS) boundaries through Monday, Sept. 21. The closures were put into place on Saturday, Sept. 12 due to unprecedented and historic fire conditions. All closures are CDFW […]
California Fires Force Closure of CDFW Properties
August 20, 2020 – The California Department of Fish and Wildlife (CDFW) is temporarily closing some of its public lands in response to multiple active fires in Colusa, Lake, Lassen, Merced, Monterey, Napa, Santa Clara, Santa Cruz, Sierra, Solano, Sonoma and Yolo counties. The closures will help ensure safety and accommodate the needs of fire […]
Pipeline company, contractor responsible for 2016 Ventura oil spill reach $1.6 million civil settlement with state, county agencies
Ventura, Calif. July 21, 2020 – State and local officials announced a comprehensive civil settlement with Crimson Pipeline, L.P., and its contractor CD Lyon Construction, Inc. and CD Lyon, Inc. (collectively CD Lyon), the companies responsible for a June 2016 crude oil spill in Hall Canyon, Ventura. The spill occurred from a crude oil pipeline […]
CDFW: Wildlife Harmed by Exposure to Anticoagulant Rodenticides
July 4, 2020 – In late April, a dead owl was found on a nature preserve in San Luis Obispo County. CDFW’s Wildlife Investigations Lab (WIL) performed the necropsy and found excessive bleeding on the owl’s leg and abdomen. With no associated wound or apparent trauma, additional toxicology testing was performed. Cause of death: fatal […]
Deadly Disease Detected in California Wild Rabbits for the First Time
May 13, 2020 – The California Department of Fish and Wildlife (CDFW), in conjunction with the California Animal Health and Food Safety Lab, San Bernardino has diagnosed Rabbit Hemorrhagic Disease (RHD) in a black-tailed jackrabbit carcass submitted from private property near Palm Springs in early May. Samples submitted to the National Veterinary Services Laboratory in […]
CDFW Responds to Request from Sierra County About Fishing
April 24, 2020 -California Department of Fish and Wildlife (CDFW) Director Charlton H. Bonham took two specific and limited steps for fishing in Sierra County. As requested by county officials, CDFW suspended fishing on the mainstem of the North Fork Yuba River and delayed the trout opener on the entire Downie River mainstem in the […]
California Fish and Game Commission Allows CDFW to Temporarily Delay, Restrict or Suspend Fisheries Where Needed to Prevent the Spread of Coronavirus
On the first day of its April remote meeting, the California Fish and Game Commission revised its agenda and took up the ability for the California Department of Fish and Wildlife (CDFW) to temporarily delay, suspend or restrict recreational fishing if the director of CDFW, in consultation with the president of the Commission, finds that […]
Delay in California’s 2020 Recreational Ocean Salmon Opener
April 1, 2020 – California’s recreational ocean salmon fishery will be delayed statewide through the month of April, despite plans made earlier this year for the fishery to open in some locations as early as this Saturday, April 4. The delay is the result of an in-season action taken Tuesday by the National Marine Fisheries […]
CDFW Pollution Patrols Result in Arrests, Cleanup of Dry Creek Dump Site
March 5, 2020 – A two-year effort by the California Department of Fish and Wildlife (CDFW) to monitor a popular northern California “dumping ground” for hazardous materials has been very successful, resulting in 34 citations, multiple towed vehicles and three felony arrests over the last 24 months. Since early 2018, CDFW’s Law Enforcement Division has […]
Convicted Poacher Fined $17,500 For Unlawful Take of Deer Over Bait
March 2, 2020 – A Granite Bay man has been convicted of poaching a trophy class deer with the use of bait, and will pay an enhanced penalty. A tenacious investigation by the California Department of Fish and Wildlife (CDFW) and prosecution by the El Dorado County District Attorney’s office made the conviction possible. […]
Distemper Cases Rise Among California’s Foxes, Raccoons, Skunks
February 12, 2020 – The California Department of Fish and Wildlife (CDFW) is reporting an unusually high number of canine distemper virus (CDV) cases in wildlife populations throughout the state. CDV can infect a wide range of domestic and wild carnivores, including some non-canids. Gray foxes, raccoons and skunks are the most commonly affected species. […]
Oregon wolf OR-54 found dead in Shasta County
February 6, 2020 – OR-54, a female dispersing wolf approximately 3-4 years old, was found dead in Shasta County on February 5, 2020. OR-54 was born into Oregon’s Rogue Pack most likely in 2016. She was the fourth Rogue Pack wolf known to have spent time in California. OR-54 weighed 83 pounds when collared by ODFW biologists in October 2017. On January […]
CDFW: Roadkill Still Illegal to Possess on Jan. 1, Despite Passage of the "Wildlife Traffic Safety Act"
Dec. 23, 2019 – The California Department of Fish and Wildlife (CDFW) reminds the public it is still illegal to collect or possess roadkill animals and violators could face citation, even after Jan. 1, 2020. SB 395 – Chapter 869 (Archuleta), also known as the “Wildlife Traffic Safety Act,” was enacted with the intent to […]