FROM THE DIRECTOR / SUMMER 2025
OVLC launched Rewild Ojai about two years ago and the community reception has been tremendous. The term “rewild” has come to mean many things. Typically, “rewilding” efforts are really targeted at the recovery of charismatic wildlife species like wolves, peregrine falcon or beavers. The direct and ancillary benefits from these efforts are well documented and successful rewilding projects can lead to landscape scale transformations.
In more urban and suburban settings, rewilding often focuses on replacing our ever-present non-native landscapes with native plants. The central outcome is to re-establish populations of the native plants (or micro-habitats) that native insects, birds and mammals all co-evolved with, thereby creating pockets that help biodiversity thrive during a time of remarkable stresses.
The premise is that if the base of the food chain is back for all of the insect pollinators and other invertebrates, then the larger animals will have more patches of habitat to rely on. OVLC partnered with the Ventura County Resource Conservation District to plant ½ acre of native habitat at the Ventura River Steelhead Preserve. I am pleased to report that the California thrashers have moved into the newly created habitat. The thrashers used to only ever be up on the hill but now spend lots of time in the newly established native habitat. I am also pleased to report that mule deer, California quail and several other bird species are routine sightings in the new patch of native habitat and just today we saw a coyote hanging out in there!
A recent journal article on rewilding efforts observes that ours is not a world of wilderness and nonwilderness. Rather, habitat exists on a continuum of suitability for native species. We can and are making a difference by “going native” in our yards. Research is also confirming that rewilding efforts in more urban settings leads to deeper connections and engagement to our natural world. Ideally, this further leads to stronger and more steadfast support for the benefits of preserving our natural capital while we still can.
Tom Maloney, Executive Director