Chapters 1 - U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service

Chapter 4
north as Alaska (Southwest Fisheries Science Center 2007). Stinson (1984) reviewed sea turtle
sighting records from northern Baja California to Alaska and determined that the East Pacific
green turtle was the most commonly observed hard-shelled sea turtle on the U.S. Pacific coast.
Most of the sightings (62.0%) were reported from northern Baja California and southern
California. The northernmost reported resident population of East Pacific green turtles occurs in
San Diego Bay.
On the Seal Beach NWR, East Pacific green turtles have been observed in the 7 th Street Pond, as
well as the channel that extends from Anaheim Bay into the 7 th Street Pond. Between 2006 and
2008, turtles were often observed in groups of two to four individuals.
4.3.6 State Listed Species
Two of the federally listed endangered species supported by Seal Beach NWR, including California
least tern and light-footed clapper rail, are also listed as endangered by the State of California.
The salt marsh habitat within the Refuge also supports the Belding’s savannah sparrow, another
species listed by the State of California as endangered.
4.3.6.1 Belding’s Savannah Sparrow (Passerculus sandwichensis beldingi)
The Belding’s savannah sparrow is one of four subspecies of savannah sparrows that are otherwise
widely distributed and occur in a variety of habitat types, including grassland, high-elevation
meadow, and marshes (AOU 1983; James and Stadtlander 1991). The Belding’s savannah sparrow
is unique in that it represents one of only two wetland-dependant avian species that reside yearround
in the coastal salt marshes of southern California (Powell and Collier 1998). This salt marsh
species is therefore reliant upon coastal salt marsh habitat for its entire life history requirements.
This subspecies ranges along the southern California coast from Santa Barbara County (Goleta
Slough) in the north to El Rosario, Baja California, Mexico in the south (James and Stadtlander
1991).
The Belding’s savannah sparrow is a small brown sparrow with fine streaking on the head and face,
pale beige to white belly; it often shows a dark central breast spot. As with most ground-dwelling
species, this bird is inconspicuous and blends well with its environment. The most distinguishing
characteristic is the yellowish color of the lores (area between the bill and eyes) (Massey 1979).
This subspecies prefers to nest in the mid- to upper-littoral zones of coastal salt marshes (Collier
and Powell 1998) generally nests within dense stands of pickleweed. The breeding season is
generally defined as March 1 to September 1. Breeding territories can be very small and the birds
nest semi-colonially or locally concentrated within a larger block of habitat (Zembal and Hoffman
2002).
The main factors that influence the long-term survivability of this subspecies are the health and
security of its habitat. In southern California, the long-term protection of coastal salt marsh
habitat is closely tied to ownership and use of the land. While threats to salt marsh habitat loss or
degradation due to the direct impacts of urban development have slowed, the indirect impacts of
intensifying development adjacent to areas of coastal salt marsh continue to increase. Human
impacts, such as trespassing into closed areas, off-trail use in areas open to the public, and
domestic and feral pets entering the marsh, continue to represent a serious threat to the long-term
survivability of the Belding’s savannah sparrow throughout its range.
This subspecies was listed as endangered by the State of California in 1974 due to a dramatic
decrease in the Belding’s savannah sparrow population (Zembal et al. 1988). This population
decrease was attributed to the development, degradation, and fragmentation of coastal salt marsh
4-70 Seal Beach National Wildlife Refuge