0:04

Hi, I'm Rick Schwartz. When is the s

0:06

world?

0:07

Marco went Welcome to Amazing Wildlife,

0:09

where we explore unique stories of wildlife from

0:11

around the world and uncover fascinating animal

0:14

facts. This podcast is a production of

0:16

iHeartRadio's Ruby Studios and San

0:18

Diego Zoo Wildlife Alliance, an international

0:20

nonprofit conservation organization which

0:22

oversees the San Diego Zoo and Safari

0:25

Park. Well,

0:27

Marco, can you believe it? We are at the

0:29

end of season two of Amazing Wildlife.

0:32

Oh man, that's right. This is

0:34

episode twenty. And although I'm pretty

0:36

bumped to close out season two, rumor

0:38

has it we'll be working on season three soon

0:41

enough.

0:42

That's true. That's true.

0:43

And although this episode will wrap up

0:45

season two, it's gonna be a really

0:48

cool episode for us.

0:49

Oh, I know, I'm so stoked. I can't

0:51

wait to go out to the Biodiversity reserve

0:53

that's part of the Safari Park.

0:55

Oh, it's gonna be great to record in the wide open

0:57

space too. But honestly, before

0:59

we had out there into the wilds of southern California

1:02

coastal Sage scrub, I do want to

1:04

make sure our audience knows that the biodiversity

1:07

reserve at the Safari Park is not something

1:09

that a guest can go tour or go into.

1:12

However, they can see it all around.

1:14

All the undeveloped land in the area

1:17

of the Safari Park is technically coastal

1:19

sage scrub, and part of the actual

1:21

biodiversity reserve can be seen from

1:24

the guest areas. While you are visiting the Safari

1:26

Park. All you need to do is look

1:28

at the hills surrounding the park. Of

1:30

course, there's more to it than what you can see,

1:33

but it's all there. Yeah, that's a really

1:35

good point, Rick, I mean, I'm glad you helped clear

1:37

that up. I know for some people, they're

1:39

so excited to be at the Safari Park to

1:41

see the wildlife that we have there, they

1:43

might even forget that there's also a huge

1:46

amount of local wildlife living all

1:48

around.

1:49

Oh that's true. That's true.

1:51

Yeah, and you know, to take it beyond our own

1:53

coastal sage scrub ecosystem.

1:55

I hope this episode also reminds people

1:58

to take the time to get out soide and

2:00

enjoy their own local wildlife in natural

2:03

spaces.

2:04

Yeah, agreed, Marco, I completely agree.

2:06

And the Biodiversity Reserve is a great

2:08

place for our teams of researchers and

2:10

scientists to better understand the local

2:12

environment. And they do this by

2:14

going out there and doing the work, not just sitting

2:16

in a lab or looking over paperwork. It's

2:18

a great example of how anyone

2:21

can learn more about their local wildlife just

2:23

get outside and do some observations.

2:26

Oh hey, Rick, speaking of getting outside,

2:28

is it time ago?

2:30

Can we go now? Yeah? You know

2:32

what, Marco is time to go?

2:34

Yess I

2:38

am Charlie de la Rosa. I

2:40

am the Natural Lands program manager

2:43

for the San Diego Zi Wildlife Alliance.

2:45

Charlie, can you tell us and obviously

2:47

our listeners to where are we right now?

2:49

Where are we standing right now?

2:51

We are deep in the heart of the Safari

2:53

Park Biodiversity Reserve. And the Safari

2:55

Park Biodiversity Reserve is a nine hundred

2:57

acre coastal stage preserve that's part

3:00

of the Safari Park footprint in the Sampascull

3:02

Valley in San Diego's North County.

3:04

In this space, though, is not something our

3:06

public would normally see when they come to visit Safari.

3:08

Park, right, not normally something

3:11

they would see. I guess if they look up into the hills in the

3:13

surrounding area.

3:13

Though, yes, exactly.

3:15

So if you're driving down on Highway seventy

3:17

eight, you're going to look to your left, look

3:19

to your right, and you're seeing elements

3:22

the vegetation type that we're conserving here

3:24

on the biodiversity reserve.

3:25

Nice.

3:26

Yeah, and it's a beautiful area you guys. We're on top

3:28

of a hill right now. I can see the Safari balloon off

3:30

in the distance. And also I think it's worth acknowledging

3:33

that we're on the traditional land of

3:35

the sample it's called abandoned mission Indians and the Kumii

3:37

people. So there's a long standing history

3:39

with the people, the native indigenous people

3:42

and this land, and also now with useeing the Safari

3:44

Park here. So it's really great, thanks Charlie for taking

3:46

the time my pleasure.

3:48

I think it's also gone further with

3:50

what Marco said is not

3:52

only is there a deep cultural history

3:55

here in the land that we are on, and

3:57

there are people who were a part of

3:59

this land long before we ever showed up and

4:02

now part of your work, Charlie, I guess

4:04

we'll start with why is it important that this

4:06

land has been set aside.

4:08

There's a couple of ways that I could answer that question.

4:10

One is that this is an incredibly

4:13

imperiled habitat type.

4:15

If you think about it, Southern California

4:18

is really densely populated and people

4:20

want to live here. People are continuing to move

4:22

here, and a lot of the habitat

4:25

that covered our coastal areas in

4:27

southern California now has towns

4:29

and houses and farms and other

4:31

types of development. So it's really important

4:33

for us to conserve elements of

4:36

that type of habitat

4:38

that are still remaining. And

4:40

the other thing to keep in mind is we're in a biodiversity

4:42

hotspot in San Diego County

4:44

and southern California. That means

4:47

that we have a really high

4:49

number of species for the area,

4:52

but it also means that we have significant

4:55

threats to a lot of species. There's a lot of rare

4:57

species or endangered species.

4:59

And I want to add to when you're searing species,

5:01

it's not just animals.

5:02

Not just animals, what else, Plants,

5:05

fungi. Yeah, there's a lot of different

5:08

things out there, stuff that.

5:09

People don't know what to think of. But when you speak of biodiversity

5:11

and the value of that.

5:12

And when I say value, I don't mean monetary, the value

5:14

of keeping ecosystem balanced and being

5:17

a biodiversity hot spot and having this

5:19

land set aside now for you

5:21

and others to come out here and observe

5:24

and study and understand a what the

5:26

land needs and what it's going through. And therefore

5:28

then the fungi, the plants, the animals,

5:30

birds, mammals, reptiles, amphibians.

5:33

All sorts of stuff, insects exactly.

5:35

I love the connectivity of it as well, you know, even for native

5:38

sant nigans. As the year goes on, the

5:40

landscape transforms asn't it. And you and I have

5:42

been in little nature walks in here before and from

5:44

spring to what we see now, there's

5:46

still activity of life. There's still connections.

5:48

And when Rick, you know, you were talking about animals

5:50

and plant life, I always go back to, like that prickly pair

5:53

adventure that you and I had. Can you talk

5:55

about that particular plant species and why it's

5:57

so unique here here in this area.

5:59

Yeah, before you go and we're out here,

6:01

is there anywhere we could walk to go? Look?

6:03

Let's go fine, Let's

6:06

well, if you look down the hill here, you

6:08

can see yeah, you see

6:11

light green patches just

6:13

covered with prickly pear. Prickly pear is

6:16

kind of a blanket term for a number

6:18

of different species of cactus

6:20

that are in the Puntia genus.

6:23

And if you've ever seen cactuses

6:26

that look like they have mickey mouse ears,

6:29

you know, or donkey ears, those

6:31

are generally going.

6:32

To be a Puntia cactuses.

6:34

And now what we're looking at, we're looking

6:36

down a hill and we're looking at slopes

6:38

that are gently kind of sloping down into

6:41

the San Pasqua Valley and they're sloping

6:43

in a southern direction. And

6:46

if you could see what we're seeing, we're looking at

6:48

a dotted hillscate with tons

6:51

of these little green patches of cactus. We

6:53

have over two hundred acres of cactus

6:55

dominated coastal stage scrub in the biodiversity

6:58

reserve, and that's why I think this is a

7:00

very very endangered subtype of that

7:02

habitat. And there's a lot of species

7:05

that rely on the cactus.

7:07

So it's this whole little ecosystem

7:09

within an ecosystem.

7:10

Everyone's being a kid around here eating in Spanish

7:13

at don nes no like the little cactus fruit, you know, and

7:15

I never really thought about the connectivity with the

7:17

local wildlife. Do they need that for nerrous man

7:20

for some for moisture, right, because we're in a dryer

7:22

area here.

7:23

There's very few plants out here that produce

7:25

a fruit that's so full of sugars,

7:28

full of nutrients. And when

7:30

if you can imagine two hundred acres of prickly

7:33

pears starts fruiting, it's insane.

7:35

It looks like Christmas.

7:36

There's red fruits

7:38

all over the place, and all

7:41

different animals will take advantage of

7:43

that resource. So I've seen

7:45

ravens. Ravens will like to peck the fruits

7:48

and they'll eat the fruit from the inside out.

7:49

They leave just a little shell.

7:51

Smart.

7:51

So you walk around and you can see evidence of different

7:54

animals that are taking advantage of this delicious

7:56

smorgas board of food, bees,

7:59

foxes, coyotes, and

8:01

people. And the prickly pair

8:04

was an incredibly important food resource, seasonal

8:06

food resource for the Kumii, the Payam,

8:08

kowechum and other people that live in southern

8:10

California.

8:11

You mentioned some of the wildlife that

8:13

enjoy the prickly pair. You're out here quite

8:16

a bit, doing quite a bit of work, and also

8:18

you have eyes when you're not here, you've got camera traps

8:20

set up and everywhere else. What some of

8:22

the wildlife you know lives out

8:24

here on this land we're currently on.

8:26

You would be shocked because

8:28

there's so much cool stuff. And I think there's a lot of people

8:30

in southern California that are used to going out

8:32

and recreating and then you might see some

8:35

signs, and the signs say that there's cougars

8:37

and that there's foxes and coyotes, but you don't necessarily

8:39

run into them every day, but on the

8:41

cameras we see them.

8:43

They are here.

8:44

That's great.

8:45

So we have seen pumas in

8:47

the Biodiversity Reserve, really exciting

8:49

to see them. The fact that there's an

8:52

apex predator that's been able

8:54

to persist in these fairly small patches

8:56

of habitat that are left is just it's

8:58

miraculous.

8:59

It's incredible.

9:00

It's kind of one of the beauties of the Safari Parker. I think where

9:02

guests come in and you know they're expecting sea wildlife

9:04

from Africa, Australia, all over the globe, but

9:06

especially those who work here, we get excited

9:08

over the local wildlife. Yeah, right, were were just talking

9:10

about the zone tail hawk we just saw recently,

9:12

and that's one of the things about this reserve that I

9:15

just we're talking and seeing birds flying around

9:17

that hill. I just love it so much, as so much local

9:19

wildlife and benefit from this area, this reserve

9:21

that we have with the Safari Park.

9:22

Yeah, I'll just throw some quick numbers. Two

9:25

species of skunk. A lot of people

9:27

don't know that. Oh yeah, there's a stripe skunk

9:29

that we all know and love, and then there's a spotted

9:31

skunk. Could look that one up because they're super

9:33

great.

9:34

They're very cute, and I agree, they're like one of my face right.

9:36

Headstand kids, look

9:38

them up.

9:39

Yeah.

9:39

Sixteen species of snakes that we've

9:41

documented here on the biodiversity reserve

9:43

where you have an amazing herpetologist who's been

9:45

doing twenty plus years of field work

9:47

here, and that's a very high

9:50

diversity of snakes. Three species

9:52

of rattle snakes.

9:53

Wow yez.

9:55

Yeah, maybe scary, but they're also

9:57

just incredibly important elements

10:00

to this ecosystem.

10:00

Yeah, rosy boat king's sake. I mean, there's

10:03

so so many and we were talking

10:05

earlier, you know, the benefits for local wildlife,

10:07

for us, for indigenous people. But also side

10:10

note it sounds att odd, but we're utilizing this area

10:12

too for projects, right, conservation projects.

10:14

Yeah, right, earlier had the earlier episode with our conservation

10:16

tech team. Yeah, Charlie, they were telling us that they will

10:19

use this space in conjunction with you to

10:21

test out different equipment. Do you know,

10:23

off top of your head where some of the things that have been tested

10:26

here and the proving grounds if you will, Because

10:29

we do have some element of being able to get here, but

10:31

yet it's also away from things that

10:33

now has been maybe deployed or used elsewhere in

10:35

the world.

10:36

Yeah, that's a really unique feature

10:38

of the biodiversity reserve. We're so close to

10:40

our conservation science team. One

10:43

of the core purposes of

10:45

this land is to use it as a living laboratory

10:48

to be able to test out technologies

10:51

that our teams are developing, first off

10:53

to monitor biodiversity to conserve species

10:55

here, but also in other places where

10:58

they're working around the world. So some

11:00

great examples. Our conservation Technology lab

11:02

is developing a lot of really interesting

11:05

tools that use artificial

11:07

intelligence, that use machine learning to help

11:10

basically to sort images and

11:12

to send alerts. So we're

11:15

working on a system, for example

11:17

that if you've ever seen a security

11:19

camera, you know how they can pan and

11:21

usually there's a guy at a desk and he's moving it

11:23

around. Well, imagine a security camera

11:26

that's constantly watching a landscape

11:28

and it's taking pictures and it's pushing them through

11:31

algorithms that help to identify

11:33

what those pictures are and when it sees something that

11:35

it wants to see. So they're doing this for polar

11:37

bears. When it sees a polar bear on a white landscape,

11:40

it'll zoom in and it'll.

11:41

Follow it automatically. YEA, very

11:43

very cool.

11:44

So they're working on that at the Conservation Technology

11:46

Lab and this is a place where they can deploy it where

11:48

we don't. They don't have to fly to s Fallbarn to

11:51

do that, you know, they just have to drive ten

11:53

minutes. So it's a nice resource.

11:55

They're working on some other vision

11:58

related systems. We have

12:00

a system that they call Cougar Vision

12:02

and it uses a network of

12:05

traditional cellular trail cameras

12:07

which any of the listeners of this program

12:09

can go and buy them. You can find them on Amazon, and

12:12

they're essentially motion triggered cameras

12:14

that have a simplan and then

12:16

you can check the camera on an app. So

12:19

that's fun, but you have to manually check it. So

12:21

what our team has done is they've developed some

12:23

artificial intelligence tools to go through those

12:26

images and to sort them into

12:28

piles, into different species, and

12:30

when it sees something that you want to see, then it can

12:32

send out alerts, to can send text alerts and things

12:35

like that. So it's very cool stuff and they're testing

12:37

that out here.

12:38

That's so cool just standing here

12:40

looking across Aproscope Valley Safari Parks

12:42

down the hill and off in the distance, and hearing you talk about

12:44

all the things that have happened and

12:46

are happening out here, and knowing

12:48

that this space has been set aside.

12:50

And we mentioned at the beginning of the episode that while.

12:52

You're driving Surfari Park, look you're left and right here

12:54

in those amazing biodiverse ecosystem.

12:57

But it's just a reminder, I think, or it should be a reminder

12:59

for everyone, and that sometimes just the

13:01

wildlife in your own backyard is

13:04

so cool if you take the time to

13:07

set aside watching and observing

13:09

and being a part of what your local and native

13:11

species and what are they going through

13:13

and what can you do to help them? And I really appreciate

13:15

that. And then that leads me into Charlie,

13:18

is there any particular for you personally

13:21

a good story from you as far as either a moment

13:23

you've had out here or experience you've had

13:25

out here that has been meaningful for you.

13:28

I mean, I think what you touched on

13:30

is one hundred percent truth. There's meaning,

13:32

and there's incredibly interesting stories

13:35

hidden in everything here. So

13:37

I've had experiences where I've

13:40

come across more tarots,

13:42

you know, rock slicks and grinding

13:45

spots from the Kumiai

13:47

people who lived here for thousands of

13:49

years. That's incredibly meaningful,

13:51

not not only because it's a representation

13:53

of the people that who were here, but also

13:56

because it tells you something about the ecosystem

13:59

that was around them. There's so many

14:01

things here that are the same. We're

14:03

looking at these hills, the rock piles,

14:05

they've been here for thousands of years, the plants,

14:08

even some of these big Laurel sumacs,

14:10

these big shrubs that we can see. I

14:13

have aerial images that are almost one hundred

14:15

years old, and you can see the exact same plants

14:17

in the exact same spots. They're very

14:19

persistent and very very resilient.

14:21

But then there's a lot of things that have changed as well.

14:24

Yeah, it runs with like connectivity again growing

14:26

up in this area, specifically going hike cycle

14:28

like Hodges and when you just said that man gave me goosey,

14:30

just thinking like like I interacted with

14:33

with a sumac here that has been here for

14:35

years and years and years throughout.

14:37

History of that generation.

14:38

Yeah. Right, We're all connected in that way. And

14:40

I'm gonna say it again, you guys, like when you come to the park,

14:43

it's not just seeing the wildlife that we're offering,

14:45

but the senses of the area too,

14:47

Charlie. Right, Like we talk about the smell

14:49

in particular. Like I've said this before, like when we

14:52

travel around the world, we come back and for me, like

14:54

when I smell sage or chapara,

14:56

like to me, that's home, that's San Diego. And

14:58

you had a cool story yourself for better right, can

15:00

you share that story?

15:02

Sure?

15:02

Well, I moved to southern California in two thousand

15:05

and seven, so years and years

15:07

ago, and I moved from North Florida

15:09

and I came out to the start my first field

15:12

biology job working on Catalina

15:14

Island, and I remember

15:16

that it was so dry. It was July,

15:19

and everything was dusty. I was coming

15:22

from the pine flatwoods and the cypress

15:24

hammocks and these incredibly tall, big

15:26

trees, Spanish moss dripping

15:29

down, you know, crystal clear springs,

15:31

and I came out to this landscape and

15:34

there was nothing that was higher than my chest, you

15:36

know, no trees, and

15:39

everything was brown, brown, brown. Everything

15:41

was dusty and brown, and I thought,

15:43

what have I done? And

15:47

you know, I like to tell the story because I liked it.

15:49

There's so many people who are new to southern

15:51

California, so many visitors, and so many people

15:53

moving here, and maybe they're thinking the same

15:55

thing, and I want to tell them how I connected with

15:58

this ecosystem.

15:58

Please.

15:59

It came down to for me, it was the smells.

16:02

There's so many different species in

16:04

the coastal sage and chaparral that

16:06

have developed. They're you know, essentially

16:09

chemicals, but they produce these incredible aromas.

16:12

So think of a sage. I

16:14

mean, it's so strong, so musky,

16:17

the California sagebrush. It's actually not a

16:19

sage. It's in the sunflower family, very

16:22

similar types of smells. All

16:24

these different plants have their own

16:26

smells. And think about smelling something

16:28

from your childhood and the memories that that gives

16:30

you. In just a few short years,

16:33

you will, you know, go out and touch a plant

16:36

and well, make sure it's not poison.

16:38

But that's a good point. Yeah, as your parents

16:40

first, get.

16:41

A book, but make

16:43

that connection because it'll go

16:45

into your heart. Yeah, and then you you'll never

16:47

be able to get it out again.

16:49

Yeah. My parents talk like you rub the leaf

16:51

again, identifying their proper plant, and they make

16:53

me smell it, like me will smell this, and it just

16:55

reminds me. Those are the best memories I think of San Diego.

16:58

For me, it's the smell of that ecosystem.

17:00

There's kind of a big picture conservation

17:02

story here. Conservation is all about

17:05

people, and it's about people's connection to the land.

17:08

Yeah, it's about diversity, it's about

17:10

the plants and animals, but really it's

17:12

about people being invested and caring.

17:15

And I think that's really the philosophy

17:17

that we're bringing to the San Diego Zoo

17:19

and to the Biodiversity Reserve. We have

17:21

programs working with the SAMPA

17:23

squad band of Mission Indians working with other tribal

17:26

partners to provide

17:28

access to harvest cactus fruit to

17:31

help us with our restoration work. We

17:33

want scientists to come here, we bring out educational

17:36

groups, and we want guests to see it too, and we're

17:38

working with our Safari Experiences team

17:41

to put together guest experiences

17:43

that can help to tell these stories too.

17:45

Getting people invested. You know, there's a

17:47

trade off. There's a whole story

17:50

about loving something to death, and I'm sure you've

17:52

heard that about national parks and everything. I

17:54

think it's more dangerous for people

17:57

to not care. And there's

17:59

so much any other things that we can distract

18:02

ourselves with now, So you

18:04

know, come out and get invested.

18:06

That's the bottom line.

18:07

Yeah, yeah, I want to go back to what you said, or you

18:09

know, you first came out here and it was brown

18:11

and dusty and dry, like, oh my gosh, what have

18:13

I done?

18:14

Right now?

18:14

We are right at the just the edge

18:17

of the rainy season possibly starting for us.

18:19

They've called for a wet winter here in the San Diego

18:22

area, and looking around there's

18:24

a lot of dry looking

18:26

colors, browns and barely.

18:28

Any greens, and some tans. But then occasionally

18:30

you see these sticks with these white

18:32

flowers.

18:33

On them, and I point that out because for me,

18:35

it's always been one of those things where it's like, if you slow down

18:38

and sure we're driving by on the road, looks at these a bunch of dry,

18:40

dead plants, But these there's so much life

18:42

and vitality as soon as those rains hit, where

18:44

you can see everything green up and everything changes. But even

18:46

in the dry and almost right at the end of the dry season,

18:49

there's still some plants out there with little flowers on them,

18:51

just being a part of this ecosystem,

18:53

and it's so cool. And I want to go back to

18:55

something else you mentioned too, Charlie, the

18:57

idea that it's about the people's

19:00

that mark. When I've talked a lot about this season,

19:02

talk with the conservation groups, whether it's our you

19:04

know, in house folks, or whether it's our

19:06

partners, what would you say is

19:08

probably one of the most important things

19:10

the average person could do in

19:13

their.

19:13

Day to day routines to assist

19:15

with conservation.

19:17

I think we need to start small. It's

19:19

hard to get back and connect with nature. It takes

19:21

time. Some people might not have

19:24

the privilege to take off after work

19:26

and go for a hype, right, whatever you can

19:28

do to just take interest in

19:30

your local ecosystem. Learn a little bit. There's

19:32

a lot of really great online resources. There's

19:35

a Naturalists and amazing tool that

19:37

can help you to identify plants and animals

19:39

that are in your backyard. You start small

19:41

and teach your kids. Bring your kids to

19:43

the zoo and talk to the interpreters there. Inspire

19:46

a passion for nature. I think

19:48

that real change it has to start

19:50

with the young. So I guess just get

19:52

interested. Yeah, you know, start that

19:54

passion.

19:56

It's simple. Yeah.

19:58

So one other story that is

20:00

fresh to this area that

20:03

is, you know, borderline breaking news. Yes,

20:06

you had mentioned when we're talking about the different species

20:08

that live out here that you've seen and you were super excited

20:10

about an apex predator. And recently

20:13

there's been a development with the puma

20:15

or mountain lion or cougar, whatever you want to call it here

20:18

on this open space.

20:20

Can you share with our listeners what has

20:22

developed?

20:23

Yeah, so I'll try to keep a long

20:25

story short. I appreciate we

20:27

have a mountain lion research program

20:30

that's a collaboration with our partners at

20:32

UC Davis at the Wildlife Health Center, and

20:35

essentially that project has

20:38

to do with monitoring, you know, using

20:40

GPS callers and trail cameras

20:43

to get an idea about population

20:45

dynamics in southern California mountain

20:47

lions, and then also deterrent

20:50

research. And the idea with deterrence is

20:52

that we're trying to basically

20:56

provide non lethal alternatives

20:59

for people who having human wildlife conflict

21:01

with mountain lions, for livestock owners and things like

21:03

that. The development was

21:06

that we've been watching a mountain lion

21:08

who was collared here in the biodiversity

21:11

reserve, So she was carrying a GPS

21:13

collar for about two years and we were keeping tabs

21:15

on her and you know, using her data

21:17

for research, and she recently

21:20

was killed. She was killed by somebody who

21:23

she was attacking their livestock. And

21:26

this is just a tragic reality. If you took

21:28

out the species and took out the

21:30

location, you would think that this is a thing that

21:32

was happening in Africa or in South

21:35

America, but.

21:36

It's a human conflict is an ongoing

21:39

issue everywhere.

21:39

Yeah, in San Diego County right here.

21:42

So that was really tragic. We

21:44

knew from her GPS data that

21:47

she was probably Denning

21:49

with kittens. And we knew

21:51

this because if you look at the data, the

21:53

data are just points points in space

21:55

and time, and there was

21:57

a cluster of points in a

22:00

particular area, and there's

22:02

really only a couple of reasons that a mountain lion

22:04

would be going back and forth coming back to that specific

22:06

area, and based on the timing and the time of year,

22:09

we figured she probably had kittens. So

22:12

we found out from our Department of Fish and Wildlife

22:14

partners that she had been killed, and

22:16

that very same night, the UC Davis

22:18

team and our team got together and we

22:21

talked about a plan because we figured

22:23

we were going to try and go in and see if we could find

22:25

these kittens. We didn't know how old they would

22:27

be, we didn't know how many there would be, and

22:29

they were in a very remote area, so we had

22:31

to get access from the landowner,

22:34

and they were really great working with them,

22:36

and they were able to give us permission to access

22:38

the property. Really quickly. We put together

22:41

a team and over the course of about a week,

22:43

every day some of our team members would

22:46

be up there looking for these kittens, and

22:48

it was like a needle in a haystack. We ended

22:51

up finding three kittens, and

22:53

the average litter size is three to

22:55

four, so we figured that we probably

22:58

got all of them. Put out trail

23:01

cameras all over the area. We

23:03

had trapped, you know, just like live traps,

23:06

baited with all kinds of good ease to

23:08

try and bait these kittens in.

23:10

And just for the kids that are listening, these traps are the type

23:12

that just restrain and keep them in a

23:14

It's like I have a heart carrier or something

23:17

that closes in on them once they go in.

23:19

It's not something that's going to hurt them exactly. Actually we're have

23:21

a heart oh.

23:23

No, advertisement, but

23:26

yeah, that's exactly right. I had kind

23:28

of expected that they would be in a den,

23:31

you know, I've seen videos of this and stuff, that they would

23:33

be back in a rocky crack and we'd

23:35

find them and we'd pull them out and

23:37

yay, they'd all be together.

23:39

That these kittens were mobile.

23:41

Oh and we found the first

23:43

one on Saturday at about

23:45

eleven o'clock, the first day

23:47

that we were out in the field, and one of the

23:49

amazing field biologists with the Moundline

23:51

Project was able to locate it.

23:53

It was about one hundred

23:56

yards away from the last GPS point

23:58

cluster of the female, so it

24:00

was a needle in a haystack. We

24:02

put cameras on that den site we didn't

24:05

get anything. Later in the afternoon

24:07

when we were setting up cameras, myself

24:09

and another biologist from the Mountain Lion Project

24:12

found the second kitten. So we had

24:15

two males that we had found it within

24:17

the first day in two completely different locations,

24:20

and then we spent several days out there

24:22

looking. We got an image of another

24:24

kitten on one of the cameras overnight

24:27

and we went back looked, we couldn't

24:29

find it, and then the next day we were able to

24:31

find it. So it was a

24:33

pretty intense adventure for an

24:35

entire week, but we were able to locate those three.

24:38

Where have the kittens ended up, Well,

24:40

they're right here at the Safari Park.

24:42

They're in the Harder hospital right now,

24:45

and maybe we'll go and have a look after

24:48

we're doing here and see if we can take

24:50

a peep at them.

24:50

It's great, really. It speaks to the collaborative work too,

24:53

you know, all of us being able to work together to help out

24:55

these three little cubs.

24:56

Absolutely, yeah, the California

24:58

Department of Fishing Wildlife, the

25:00

UC Davis Mountainin Project, and our project

25:02

all came together and everybody

25:04

put in a ton of work and we were

25:07

really lucky. But we also had a

25:09

crack team.

25:10

Working on it. It was really

25:12

cool.

25:12

Yeah, it's one of those things where it's definitely a sad

25:15

occurrence of what happened to the mother, and

25:17

obviously we would rather that she'd been able to raise her

25:19

young and they could continue on about

25:21

their business. But also, I

25:24

mean, how fortunate that it was

25:26

in a space that she was being monitored

25:28

and the team can go out and rescue those kittens. So for

25:31

forgiven the situation, what a wonderful outcome

25:33

for the kids at least.

25:34

Yeah, the retaliatory killings happen

25:37

more frequently than we'd like, and

25:40

you can imagine if she didn't have a GPS

25:42

caller on, we never would have been able to find

25:44

those kids. We wouldn't have even known they existed.

25:47

Yeah, no kidding.

25:48

Another great example why this space is so.

25:49

Important here, right, Thanks Charlie.

25:52

Well, Charlie, I want to I want to thank you, and I know Marco

25:54

really appreciates you, and Marko's been out here with you a couple of times.

25:56

This space I've been out in a few times. It's so beautiful. I

25:58

mean, I don't park, what do you think. We talked

26:01

to a lot of people who are like, I'm the luckiest person with this job,

26:03

but I'm like, well this is this is Charlie.

26:05

Yeah.

26:05

And you know what I notice, you guys, we've been sort of like whispering

26:07

this whole time that it's almost like this area demands

26:10

our respect, absolutely, you know what I mean. So out

26:12

in wild space, we're all connected to it. And you kids

26:14

out there listening right now, you guys are connected to it too,

26:16

right, Charlie. I mean this is for them also.

26:19

So it was just an incredible day. It's always

26:21

a beautiful day hit this at Faleri Park, but especially

26:23

Charlie. Kudos, give me some knuckles. This is so wonderful.

26:26

Yes, thank you Charlie.

26:27

Going out in the field with you guys.

26:28

Yeah, man, it's great.

26:29

Thank you so much, my pleasure.

26:33

Wow, what a day out

26:35

of the biodiversity Reserve with Charlie Marco.

26:38

As we wrap this up, I want to

26:40

let our audience know that we are back

26:42

in the studio and even though we are. I

26:45

can't help but feel the

26:47

wonder of our time out there with

26:49

Charlie.

26:50

Oh, I know, Rick, I completely agree.

26:53

You know. My only regret as we didn't

26:55

have more time to hear more of his amazing

26:57

stories. I mean, there's just there's so many

26:59

different things we could talk about when it comes to

27:01

habitat like that.

27:02

Oh exactly.

27:04

I know exactly how you feel, and I

27:06

mean I am glad that we're able to touch the surface

27:08

of so many different things going on out there, which is one

27:10

way to share with our audience all that

27:13

is happening out in nature. But you're

27:15

right, I would love to go out there again and

27:17

do more in depth stories on the diversity

27:19

of well just even all the reptiles he mentioned, or

27:21

yes, Marco, even the birds.

27:25

Yes, definitely the birds.

27:27

And honestly, it sounds to me like we just

27:29

start scheduling things for season three of Amazing

27:31

My Life so we can include more details

27:33

of some of these awesome stories.

27:35

Yeah, I completely agree, my friend, and I hope

27:37

we can do a follow up story about those cougar

27:40

cubs or puma cubs as Charlie called them.

27:42

Well, you know, it's been about a week

27:44

since we're out there with Charlie, So I do

27:46

have a little update about them, if

27:48

you think our audience would like to know.

27:50

Uh yeah, I mean, if nothing else,

27:52

I want to.

27:53

Know right well,

27:55

the last time I was able to check in in all three of

27:57

them, they are doing very well, growing

28:00

at an appropriate and healthy rate. In

28:02

fact, the wildlife care specialist

28:04

told me they become very comfortable

28:07

and quite adventurous.

28:09

Oh man, it's so good to hear that they're doing well

28:11

and have settled into being under our care after.

28:13

Losing their mother.

28:14

It's kind of sad, but it's also nice to know her legacy

28:17

will live on through her offspring, but even

28:19

better to hear that they are thriving and doing

28:21

so well.

28:22

Yeah.

28:23

Totally, I mean, it really really is. And what

28:25

a great way to wrap up season two.

28:27

I mean we've talked about all the San Diego Zoo,

28:30

wild left allions, conservation hubs

28:32

all over the world, and interviewed

28:34

conservationists, wildlife care specialists,

28:37

technology experts that work for wildlife,

28:39

and so much more.

28:41

And then here we are, right here, we are, right

28:43

in our own backyard, wrapping things up with a

28:45

story that, like Charlie said,

28:48

could easily be compared to a leopard

28:50

in India, or a lion in Africa, or a

28:52

jaguar in South America. These

28:54

cubs are a great reminder for

28:56

all of us that we share this world

28:59

with all wild life and we must keep

29:01

doing what we can to find a balance

29:03

for all of us.

29:05

Yeah, absolutely right, well said

29:07

im Eagle.

29:07

Well said no, thank you, sir, thank you.

29:09

And you know, we're starting to wrap this up, of course, going to close

29:11

out this episode, but before we do, I just kind of I'm

29:13

feeling a little nostalgic.

29:15

You know, we are at the last episode of season two.

29:17

We've had a great time this year, but I

29:19

want to ask you, Marco, do you have a particular

29:21

or favorite episode that sticks out from this season

29:24

in your mind?

29:25

Oh?

29:25

Man, it's really hard to pick just

29:27

one. And I know everyone is going to think I'm going to

29:29

pick a bird episode of the Vulture Bultzer

29:32

episode, That's what I was going to say. I

29:33

was. I totally get it, and

29:35

it's honestly not that one. Sorry, Johina, you

29:37

did an amazing job. I love the Vultures

29:40

episode, but you know, I think it's because

29:42

I was so excited to start season two with you,

29:44

Rick, and I had such an amazing time. It's

29:46

all about episode one for me for season

29:48

two, the Butterflies. All right, Yeah,

29:50

I learned so much, And you know, it's a really

29:52

cool representation of our collaboration within

29:55

the teams of the Bird Department, hor or Culture,

29:57

everyone getting together to put on something just

29:59

mag magnificent for our guests. But what about

30:02

you, man, what's your favorite?

30:03

I know I've been thinking about this because I know I was going to ask you,

30:06

and ye several come to mind. I really

30:08

enjoyed the Koala one with Gentoby

30:10

and learning about how all the work she's done

30:13

at the zoo has really helped a

30:15

lot with the Koalas and the wild. But then

30:17

I jump over to the Little Mouse That Matters

30:19

and the Pocket Mouse.

30:20

Because you had set that up so well with all these little

30:22

teasers and is along the way.

30:25

But then, honestly, I have to say I landed

30:27

on our Lion episode. I think

30:29

it was like probably two or three somewhere in the beginning. Also

30:31

because technology allowed us to talk

30:33

to and interview somebody who was all the way over

30:36

in Kenya. You could hear the wind blowing through her tent

30:38

because she's there doing the conservation

30:40

work, and I just thought, you know, when I was growing

30:42

up, the idea of being able to converse with somebody

30:45

on the other side of a planet like that real

30:47

time. It's just it was a great, great experience.

30:49

But yeah, I loved it, man, absolutely loved it.

30:52

Oh totally. Man, it's been such a great Adventurerook.

30:54

I'm just super stoked for season three too. I

30:56

just can't wait.

30:57

Yeah, me too, Me too. And as we again,

30:59

we're wrap this up.

31:00

So we usually wrap up an episode

31:02

with a little tease about the next episode, but

31:05

since this is the last episode of season

31:07

two, we'll just say be sure to subscribe

31:09

so you'll get notified when the new season starts.

31:15

Marko Lent and I'm Rich Schwartz. Thanks

31:18

for listening.

31:20

For more information about the San Diego Zoo

31:22

and San Diego Zoo Safari Park, go

31:25

to SDZWA dot org.

31:27

Amazing Wildlife is a production of iHeartRadio's

31:30

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31:36

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