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plants such as tamarisk and arundo may affect water availability, nutrient cycling, sediment storage, and
flow and flood dynamics, as well as increasing the risk of future fire events. Activities may include
removing aquatic vegetation through hand-pulling and mechanical treatment, localized herbicide
application, or in the case of invasive species such as crayfish, eradication may be completed through
systematic surveys of the aquatic systems, followed by selective capture and eradication. In the San
Francisquito Creek watershed, invasive plants and non-native aquatic fauna have been targeted and
removal projects completed, but evaluation of those efforts will be necessary to continue those efforts.

Instream Habitat Restoration - The alteration of habitat after fire events is not confined to upland
environments. Sediment and debris that enters stream channels and floodplains may dramatically
modify the type and distribution of in-stream habitats throughout the stream network. These impacts
may be magnified when anthropogenic influences such as dams, diversions, or road crossings modify the
flow regime and prohibit the natural movement of sediment and other inputs through the system.
Instream habitat restoration may include removing or modifying culverts or other flow obstructing
features to enhance downstream sediment transport, restoring floodplain connectivity to streams to
disperse sediment from channel; and re-establishing habitat types necessary for various life-cycle stages
of aquatic organisms that have been eliminated or diminished as a result of the effects of the fire.

Instream Flow Restoration - Wildfire may have ramifications to local hydrology, particularly in the arid
Mediterranean climate of Southern California. Changes in soil infiltration rates, evapotranspiration, and
overland flows and pathways may all be impacted by post-wildfire events, which can lead to changes in
the quantity and timing of in-stream flows. These changes may in turn directly affect aquatic species
that are flow- and habitat-dependent to reach all life history stages. In addition, changes in hydrology
have implications for the supply and management of water for human populations that rely on local
sources of surface and groundwater. Where these hydrologic alterations are identified and understood,
efforts should be made to recover in-stream flows to conditions supportive of aquatic and riparian
species that exist in affected streams.

Riparian Corridor Restoration - Riparian corridors provide a number of ecosystem functions that support
both upland and aquatic environments. Stream side vegetation buffers pollutants from waterways,
contributes shade and habitat structure for both aquatic and terrestrial species, ameliorates fluctuations
in water temperature, reduces instream water temperature, stabilizes stream channel form and
function, and can help slow or halt advancing wildfire. However, the loss of riparian vegetation, and the
conversion of riparian systems from native species to invasive dominated vegetation such as Arundo
donax or tamarisk, can alter and degrade these functions in ways that have lasting impact across the
landscape. Riparian corridors will be assessed and restored, where appropriate, to help maintain healthy
watersheds and support species such as steelhead, arroyo toad, and southwestern willow fly-catcher.

Strategy 4. Species Specific Strategies
The ANF supports numerous federally threatened and endangered species, and Forest Service sensitive
plants and animals (Appendix A). Many of the activities identified in Strategies 1, 2, and 3 indirectly
influence the restoration and conservation of these species. However, where appropriate, projects
designed to specifically address species of particular interest occurring within the fire scars may be
addressed through this program. Some of the priority species of interest within the fire affected areas
on the ANF include: unarmored three-spine stickleback, California red-legged frog, arroyo toad,
southwestern willow flycatcher, and least bell’s vireo. Figure 5 illustrates known ranges on the ANF for a
few of those species.

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