I have a different take on the Governor’s proposed closure of California parks. If we can find a way to truly keep humans and domestic animals out of the parks, what a blessing this would be for wildlife. Especially beach parks. There are practically no beaches that are safe harbor for wildlife. It is nearly impossible to find a beach free of dog or man. As a wildlife rescuer, I can see how profoundly human presence impacts wildlife. Even the most innocent of activities like a kite fluttering on a breeze can cause a Western snowy plover, a threatened species of shore bird, to abandon its nest and lose its precious offspring. Or how a human’s presence on a sandy beach can keep an injured marine animal, desperate to strand, in the sea fighting cold and fatigue.
Why don’t we think of these park closures as transfers, transfers of resources from the people back to their natural inhabitants?
Rebecca Dmytryk
Wild Rescue Carmel Valley