Devereux Slough North Shore Margin Enhancement

Devereux Slough is a coastal estuary on the U.C. Santa Barbara West Campus managed by the UC Natural Reserve System Coal Oil Point Reserve. The 157-acre reserve encompasses the estuary, sand dune habitat, a dune swale and associated pond, and surrounding uplands and has the primary missions of conservation, education, research and public outreach. The slough provides habitat for waterfowl and the state-listed Belding’s Savannah Sparrow, which breeds in the pickleweed marsh and forages in the transition zone at the margins of the slough. Two species of marsh dependent butterflies, the Pygmy Blue Butterfly and the Wandering Skipper, utilize the marsh vegetation during the larval phase and surrounding upland during the adult stage. The Devereux Slough North Shore Margin Restoration project consists of 1) removal of non-native invasive plant species, including pampas grass, Melaleuca, Myoporum, harding grass, tamarisk, and palm from a seasonal wetland on the margin of Devereux Slough; and 2) revegetation of the salt marsh and willow woodland plant communities with native species. The project is a cooperative effort of the UCNRS and the Santa Barbara Audubon Society. A large number of volunteers from the local community and U.C. Santa Barbara have helped and have learned concepts of restoration, conservation, and wetland function while participating in the project.