Already Imperiled Wildlife Facing More Threats

The fire that raced through Laguna Canyon destroyed thousands of acres of wilderness and threatened the area’s wildlife, including the rare California gnatcatcher, the tiny songbird that in March was listed as a threatened species, environmentalists and park officials said Thursday.

Up to 95% of the 2,000-acre Laguna Coast Wilderness Park was destroyed in the blaze, which also scorched nearly three-quarters of the 6,600-acre Irvine Co. nature reserve. Outside the canyon, 2,400 acres of backcountry at Crystal Cove State Park and about half the 3,500-acre Caspers Wilderness Park was burned.

In Laguna Canyon, as many as 100 pairs of gnatcatchers were either wiped out or displaced by the fire, say officials of the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service. Orange County is home to about 750 pairs of the rare songbird, many of which use Laguna Canyon as a nesting ground.

“We’ve always considered fire a major threat to the gnatcatcher,” said Joel Reynolds, a lawyer for the Natural Resources Defense Council, which represents several county environmental groups. “I don’t know if the gnatcatcher can come back in this situation. When a species is this close to extinction, it’s extremely difficult.”

Sheryl Heffley, a wildlife biologist with the California Department of Fish and Game, said that many birds probably died in the blaze. “They tend to be relatively sedentary and they are site-tenacious,” she said. “They would tend to stay there and get killed with the habitat; they probably were barbecued.”

Officials of the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service and the Orange County division of harbors, beaches and parks said that they are poised to enter the affected areas to assess the damage as soon as they are deemed safe. While some of the birds may have survived, they said, the concern is that even those may have nowhere to go.

“The birds can fly,” said John Bradley, past president of Sea and Sage Audubon, “but they could fly into areas where there are other gnatcatchers (and) might be scared off. They are very territorial (and) will chase off invaders.”

Other birds and mammals, including squirrels, rats, deer, foxes and coyotes also faced peril in the flames. While the larger, more mobile species may have been able to flee, Heffley said, many smaller animals such as lizards, snakes and rodents probably perished.

Some Laguna Beach residents reported seeing a mountain lion running down from the canyon in an attempt to escape the flames Wednesday. Others spoke of seeing rabbits and deer in the vicinity of City Hall. And one witness said that he saw an owl, apparently disoriented, circle slowly over the city for about 10 minutes before disappearing into the smoke.

“Obviously there will be some very significant impacts on wildlife,” said Bob Fisher, the county’s director of harbors, beaches and parks. “It’s going to be bad. It has to be.”

Not everyone was completely pessimistic in assessing the outcome, however.

Larry Sitton, wildlife supervisor for the Southern California region of the state Department of Fish and Game, expressed the hope that some animals such as raccoons, deer, rabbits and rodents may have found shelter in moist canyon bottoms that the flames missed. If that happened, he said, the animals’ long-term survival could be aided by the sagebrush that didn’t escape the maelstrom.

“A real hot fire can kill the plant itself,” Sitton said, “but if the fire is not so hot, it’s just going to burn off the top of the plant. Then the (sagebrush) grows rapidly, birds can use it as nesting habitat and animals can use it for food.

“It grows real fast--within two or three weeks--and is extraordinarily nutritious after it grows,” he said.

And some ecologists stressed that the fire could have a beneficial effect on areas where underbrush has grown too thick. Normally, seeds and roots are stimulated by fire. “Fire is a natural part of the ecosystem. Plants depend on it,” said Larry Freilich of the Sierra Club. “But with a fire of enormous intensity, you can get incredible subsurface heat that creates an effect like a kiln, turning everything to ash.”

Said Jim Trumbly, a senior state parks resource ecologist: “Most of these areas evolved with fire, so you know nature will come through this OK. These plants and animals have been around for a long time, and they will come back. But if we had our druthers, we’d rather the fires be smaller-scale and not affect so much at one time.”

Sitton said he planned to visit the burned-out sites as soon as possible to assess the damage.

*

Times staff writers Jeffrey A. Perlman and Marla Cone contributed to this report.