Hedging our bets
AB 581, by Assemblymember Steve Bennett (D-Ventura), designates the bigberry manzanita (Arctostaphylos glauca) as the official state shrub. The bigberry manzanita, a shrub almost exclusively native to California, possesses unique abilities and traits that make it highly adaptable to wildfire-prone land, including rapid regeneration after fire exposure and fire-triggered seed germination. The plant’s extensive root system helps resist soil erosion, yet thrives in dry, nutrient-poor soils – a useful tool to prevent mud or landslides, especially in wildfire burn scars.
Snake in the grass? Serpently not.
SB 765 by Senator Roger Niello (R-Fair Oaks) establishes the giant garter snake (Thamnophis gigas) as the state snake. The population of the giant garter snake has declined by more than 90% in the last century – it was listed as threatened under the California Endangered Species Act in 1971, and the Federal Endangered Species Act in 1993. This species is endemic to California, found only in the Central Valley. |
