The 2,400-acre Wild Cherry Canyon property is located along California’s central coast in a region known as the "Irish Hills." The property is surrounded by largely undisturbed lands and is one of the last remaining landscape-scale conservation opportunities on California’s central coast. The Irish Hills encompass one of the most pristine, remote, and ecologically rich areas in Central California and the area is known for its abundant natural resources.

Coastal scrub, coast live oak woodlands, wildflower fields, native grasslands, and some of the only known undisturbed stands of coastal terrace prairie remaining in the state are found in the Irish Hills, as are mixed evergreen and oak forests and one of the few bishop pine forests in the country.

Upland habitat include chaparral and endemic serpentine habitats, and native steelhead trout and the threatened California red-legged frog are found in coastal creeks in the area. The healthy forests of the region support numerous neotropical migratory birds.

California Horned Lark @George Jameson	Coopers Hawk @www.lloydspitalnik.com	Bobcat @ALC

Elevations on the property range from near sea level to 1,186-foot Bald Knob, with terrain ranging from gently rolling hills to steep bluffs. Watersheds include Wild Cherry Canyon, upper Harford Canyon Creek, the headwaters of Rattlesnakes Canyon Creek, and the eastern half of the Upper Pecho Creek.

Numerous species listed as vulnerable or imperiled in California are assumed to occur on the Wild Cherry Canyon property due to the favorable habitat it provides, such as the California horned lark, western pond turtle, and Cooper's hawk. Other special status species that may occur on the site include the Coast Range newt (state species of special concern) and Townsend’s big-eared bat (federal species of management concern). Special status plants include La Cruz, Wells, and Pecho manzanita, and Hoover’s bentgrass.

The area has long been a target for conservation. Wild Cherry Canyon comprises one of the largest tracts of unprotected land within the Irish Hills and has been a particular focus of state and regional planning agencies, private foundations, national and local conservation groups, and state wildlife agencies. The project also helps fulfill the goals of more than a dozen state and local plans for resource protection and enhancement along the central coast, including:

California Department of Fish & Game State Wildlife Action Plan California Transportation Plan 2025 California Recreation Policy 2005 California Coastal Trail California Coastal Act San Luis Obispo Region: Community 2050 Irish Hills Coastal Watershed Conservation Plan

Conserving the Landscapes of San Luis Obispo County (authored by TNC, funded by the Packard Foundation) San Luis Obispo County Parks Department Parks and Recreation Element San Luis Obispo County Open Space & Agriculture Element San Luis Obispo County LCP Coastal Access Component San Luis Obispo County LCP Coastal Amendment (September 2007) Vision 2025: San Luis Obispo County’s Regional Transportation Plan

Western Pond Turtle @Christopher L. Christie

Help us make this outstanding conservation opportunity a reality.