February 2010

Bobcat Family: Over the years, anecdotal, and very informal reports of Bobcat sightings have reached the More Mesa Preservation Coalition.  Moreover, we have never received any written or photographic documentation of these reports. However this year, it has become clear that a Bobcat family is frequenting More Mesa.  The mother was first seen in spring,…

Many different raptor species have been observed on More Mesa in the past few weeks.  These include: Peregrine Falcon Sharp-shinned Hawk Cooper’s Hawk Loggerhead Shrike Merlin Golden Eagle As evidenced by sightings of a female Northern Harrier Hawk, winter residents are also coming back.  A female Harrier has been seen in the northeast corner of…

White-tailed Kites Have the Last Word! In the March News of this website we reported that there was evidence of potential nesting for the White-tailed Kite. This was welcome news as our famous signature raptor, a bird that historically lives and breeds in profusion on More Mesa had not produced a single chick for at least three years….

GREAT NEWS! On April 13th, we passed the first hurdle on our Coastal Commission appeal of the Hacienda Vieja project! After a short presentation by MMPC, and one by the developer, members of the Coastal Commission voted overwhelmingly against their staff’s recommendation of “NO significant issues”. This means that, some time in the future, MMPC…

Mother Nature Does Her Thing, Even with a Record Breaking Drought In spite of what is shaping up as yet another drought year, More Mesa is green and blooming. In one short walk we spotted Poppies, California Brittlebush, Blue-eyed Grass, Redmaids, Owl’s Clover and Miniature Lupine. Many of these were in profusion and all a…

HACIENDA VIEJA There has been no update from the Coastal Commission staff on the Hacienda Vieja Project. It is probable that they will not complete their analysis for several months. We will keep you posted on developments as soon as we hear anything. USAGE SURVEY As we reported last month, MMPC has been out on…