Vernal pools, also called vernal ponds or ephemeral pools, are seasonal pools of water that provide habitat for distinctive plants and animals. They are considered to be a distinctive type of wetland usually devoid of fish, and thus allow the safe development of natal amphibian and insect species unable to withstand competition or predation by fish. Certain tropical fish lineages have however adapted to this habitat specifically.
The grass Tuctoria mucronata, which is known by several common names including prickly spiralgrass, Solano grass, and Crampton's tuctoria, is a federally listed endangered plant species endemic to two counties in northern California.
Potentilla hickmanii is an endangered perennial herb of the rose family. This rare plant species is found in a narrowly restricted range in two locations in coastal northern California, in Monterey County, and in very small colonies in San Mateo County. This small wildflower, endemic to western slopes of the outer coastal range along the Pacific Ocean coast, produces bright yellow blossoms through spring and summer.
Elaphrus viridis, the Delta green ground beetle, is a species of ground beetle restricted to a small region within Solano County, California. Its color is a metallic-green, usually with bronze spots on its elytra, though some lack these spots. The lack or reduction of circular pits on the elytra helps distinguish it from other ground beetles. Typical adults are about a quarter-inch (0.6 cm) in length.
Lasthenia conjugens, commonly known as Contra Costa goldfields, is an endangered species of wildflower endemic to a limited range within the San Francisco Bay Area of the state of California, USA. Specifically this rare species occurs in Napa, Santa Barbara, Solano, Contra Costa, Santa Clara, Monterey and Alameda Counties. This annual herb typically flowers from March through June, and its colonies grow in vernal pool habitats at elevations not exceeding 100 meters above sea level. The Jepson Manual notes that the present distribution is limited to the deltaic Sacramento Valley, principally Napa and Solano Counties, but the historic range of L. conjugens is known to be significantly wider. In any case, historically the range has included parts of the North Coast, Sacramento Valley, and San Francisco Bay Area as well as the South Coast. Alternatively and less frequently this taxon has been referred to as Baeria fremontii var. conjugens.
Legenere is a genus in the bellflower family, with only one species, Legenere limosa, an annual wildflower endemic to limited portions of Northern California. The species common name is false Venus's looking glass or Greene's legenere.
Linderiella occidentalis is a species of fairy shrimp native to California. It is a small crustacean in the family Chirocephalidae. It has a delicate elongated body, large stalked compound eyes, no carapace, and eleven pairs of swimming legs. It glides gracefully upside down, swimming by beating its legs in a complex, wavelike movement that passes from front to back. Like other fairy shrimp, L. occidentalis feeds on algae, bacteria, protozoa, rotifers and detritus.
The conservancy fairy shrimp is an endangered small crustacean in the family Branchinectidae. It ranges in size from about 1.25 centimetres (0.49 in) to 2.5 centimetres (0.98 in) long. This species is endemic to California in the United States.
The midvalley fairy shrimp, Branchinecta mesovallensis, is a small freshwater crustacean in the Branchinectidae family. The midvalley fairy shrimp was only recently formally described as a species in 2000 by Belk and Fugate. Midvalley fairy shrimp are endemic to shallow ephemeral pools near the middle of California's Central Valley. These vernal pool ecosystems are home to other unique organisms adapted to the ephemeral nature of the water cycle in the pools in California's mediterranean climate.
Lepidurus packardi, the vernal pool tadpole shrimp, is a small, rare species of tadpole shrimp (Notostraca) found in temporary ponds of the western United States.
Neostapfia is a genus of endemic Californian bunchgrasses, in the subfamily Chloridoideae of the grass family, Poaceae. The only known species is Neostapfia colusana, with the common name Colusa grass.
Great Valley Grasslands State Park is a state park of California, United States, preserving a parcel of remnant native grassland in the San Joaquin Valley. Such a temperate grasslands, savannas, and shrublands biome was once widespread throughout the whole Central Valley. The 2,826-acre (1,144 ha) park was established in 1982. Largely undeveloped, it was formed by combining two former state park units: San Luis Island and Fremont Ford State Recreation Area. Its chief attractions for visitors are spring wildflowers, fishing, and wildlife watching.
The Loch Lomond Vernal Pool Ecological Reserve is a nature reserve of 8.22 acres (33,300 m2) in the community of Loch Lomond in Lake County, California. It is one of 119 ecological reserves managed by the California Department of Fish and Game (CDFG). The ecological reserve system was authorized by the state legislature in 1968 for the purpose of conservation and protection of rare plants, animals and habitats.
The San Luis National Wildlife Refuge Complex is located in the northern San Joaquin Valley, within Merced County and Stanislaus County of California. The complex, with four federal National Wildlife Refuges, is managed by the U.S Fish & Wildlife Service.
Orcuttia is a genus of grass in the family Poaceae. Plants grow up to 20 cm (8 in) tall, usually with many stems emerging from the base of the plant, and forming a tuft. The spikelets are several-flowered, with reduced upper florets. The lemma tips have between two and five teeth.
Orcuttia californica is a rare species of grass known by the common name California Orcutt grass.
Orcuttia viscida is a rare species of grass known by the common name Sacramento Orcutt grass.
Pogogyne nudiuscula is a rare species of flowering plant in the mint family known by the common name Otay mesa mint. It is native to southern San Diego County, California, where it is known only from Otay Mesa near the border with Baja California. It was identified on land south of the Mexican border, but these occurrences have probably been extirpated. It is now known from seven vernal pool complexes just north of the border, and it is a federally listed endangered species of the United States.
Trichostema ruygtii, with the common name Napa bluecurls, is a species of flowering plant in the mint family. It was first described to science in 2006.
The Phoenix Vernal Pools are located in Fair Oaks, California, a suburb of Sacramento city around 20 miles east of the city of Sacramento and north of highway 50. This land consists of seasonally inundated wetlands that form after winter rains. The climate type of Phoenix Vernal Pools is classified as Mediterranean, receiving 24 in (610 mm) of rain per year. The rainwater percolates into the soil until it reaches an impermeable hardpan that causes an elevated water table, forming the vernal pools. The Phoenix Vernal Pool ecosystem is relatively unique as is supports many species of fauna and flora endemic to vernal pools.
