Rivers & Lands Conservancy

05/27/2026

There are still spots left to volunteer with us this Saturday, May 30th from 9am-12pm to support our ongoing habitat restoration work at one of our unique Delhi sand dunes conservation properties located in the City of Fontana! This important open space area was conserved to protect habitat for the federally endangered Delhi Sands flower-loving fly and the federally threatened California gnatcatcher. To help the landscape transition from the invasion of non-native plant species, participating volunteers will assist with hand watering and w**ding California native planting sites established last fall by local college students and community members. 🌻

Participation in the event requires walking approximately 1-2 miles over uneven, dirt terrain. Participants will carry buckets of water and use a variety of hand tools (such as trowels and hula hoes) to complete the activities described above. All necessary supplies will be provided.

Volunteers must register ahead of time. For more event details and to register, click the link below. Questions? Reach out to Angie at [email protected]. Space is limited, so save your spot today!

Your efforts will help support our goal to provide much-needed food and shelter for the unique wildlife that calls the area home. Thank you for helping us achieve that goal!🪰🌾

https://riversandlands.org/event/habitat-restoration-volunteer-event-3/

05/22/2026

📝🌿 Field Notes Friday

On May 1st, Rivers & Lands Conservancy Land Steward Denis spent the morning monitoring our "Santa Ana River Trunk Sewer" conservation easement; a 1.8-acre protected site tucked within the Santa Ana River floodplain within the City of Riverside. Established in 2015, this conservation area helps offset impacts to riparian habitat caused by the Santa Ana River Trunk Sewer Replacement Project and continues to provide valuable refuge for native plants and wildlife. 🌾💧

Positioned along the Santa Ana River Trail, the property supports a thriving mix of riparian scrub and forest habitat. Mature cottonwoods and willows tower over native vegetation including goldenbush, arrow w**d, creeping wild rye, chia, and blue elderberry.

During Denis' monitoring efforts, the site was especially lively with birdsong. Denis documented an impressive variety of species including yellow-breasted chat, Bell’s vireo, western tanager, common yellowthroat, black-headed grosbeak, Anna’s hummingbird, and many more. 🐦🎶

Even small protected spaces like this conservation easement play an important role in supporting biodiversity along the Santa Ana River corridor.

05/21/2026

🐝 Native Species of the Week

Globe Mallow Bee (Diadasia diminuta)

~ Tiny but mighty, the globe mallow bee plays a critical role as a pollinator in arid grasslands and desert habitats across the southwestern U.S. Measuring only about 7–9 mm long (which is only a smidge bigger than a grain of rice!), these fuzzy little bees are extra adapted for collecting pollen thanks to dense hairs that help them gather and transport pollen from flower to flower and back to their nests.🌼

~ Globe mallow bees are specialist pollinators, meaning they have a very close relationship with certain native plants, especially globe mallows in the genus Sphaeralcea. While many bees visit all kinds of flowers, this species prefers sticking to their favorite blooms, making them incredibly important for helping native globe mallow plants reproduce and supporting healthy habitats that countless other species rely on for food and shelter.

~ Rather than living in hives like honeybees, globe mallow bees are solitary and ground-nesting. Each female builds and provisions her own underground burrow, often choosing partially compacted soil along trails, roadsides, or open sandy areas where digging is easier. Using pollen and nectar collected from flowers, they create little food loaves for their developing larvae inside the underground chambers. Each baby bee gets its own carefully stocked nursery before the entrance is sealed up.

~ One of the coolest things about globe mallow bees is the tiny “chimneys” or turrets they build around the entrances of their nests. Scientists are still unsure exactly why they make them, but theories suggest the structures may help prevent flooding, protect against predators, or help the bees locate their nest entrances more easily.

~ Did you know globe mallow bees are sometimes spotted napping inside flowers? After a long day of pollinating, these tiny bees may curl up right inside a bloom for the night as nature’s smallest sleepover guest. 🌸😴

05/21/2026

Did you know the Delhi sand dunes were formed over thousands of years by Santa Ana winds lifting and depositing fine sand into select areas of Riverside and San Bernardino? Today, only a fraction of this rare and unique habitat remains. To help protect what's left, Rivers & Lands Conservancy is actively working to conserve and restore the dunes with help from the community!

Last week, 17 awesome volunteers joined Rivers & Lands Conservancy staff at our "Boruchin Preserve", located in the City of Colton. Volunteers assisted with installing over 2,000 wooden shims, watering planting sites, and transplanting cholla cacti to help increase sand collection and stabilize the dunes.

Thanks to the amazing community members who got their hands dirty to help restore habitat for all the plants and wildlife that call the rare Delhi sand dunes home! 🌵🪰

05/20/2026

Big thanks to Earthwise Hauling for supporting Rivers & Lands Conservancy as a corporate sponsor! 🎉🌱

This year, Earthwise Hauling’s logo will be featured on our volunteer t-shirts, worn by the dedicated volunteers who support restoration projects, native habitat care, and community events throughout the year. 👕💚

Want your business to get involved too? Corporate sponsorships are a great way to support conservation efforts while showing your commitment to the community and the environment.

Together, we can make an even bigger impact!

05/20/2026

🌳🪲 Did you catch our most recent feature in the SoCal Newspaper dailies about the growing threat facing Southern California’s oak woodlands? If not, be sure to check out “Goldspotted oak borer beetle is threatening oak trees across Southern California,” written by our very own land steward, Amy Tims.

The article highlights the serious impact the invasive goldspotted oak borer is having on native oak trees throughout the region. These tiny beetles may be small, but the damage they leave behind can be devastating. By burrowing beneath the bark, they disrupt the tree’s ability to transport water and nutrients, leading to widespread oak decline and mortality across Southern California landscapes.

Oak trees are more than just beautiful parts of our scenery. They provide food, shelter, shade, and essential habitat for countless wildlife species while helping support healthy ecosystems and local communities alike.

The good news? Awareness and early action can make a difference. Tap the link below to read the full article and learn how we can all help protect the oaks that make California’s wild spaces so special. 🌿💚

Treating heavily infested oaks is important, writes Amy Tims, a land steward with Rivers & Lands Conservancy.

05/19/2026

VOLUNTEERS NEEDED! 💪 Join Rivers & Lands Conservancy staff this Saturday, May 23rd to help water and care for the young oak seedlings planted at our Cienega Canyon Preserve, located in the City of Calimesa! 🌱

Did you know oaks are among the most important plants for local wildlife? Unfortunately, however, oak trees at Cienega Canyon Preserve face many challenges, including drought, pests, and disease. To meet these challenges, we’re working with local community partners, students, and volunteers to restore oak woodland habitat for the many types of animals that call Cienega Canyon Preserve home.

Participating volunteers will assist with hand watering, mulching, and w**ding oak planting sites. The event requires hand carrying water jugs, using hand tools such as shovels, and walking approximately 2-3 miles over uneven, dirt terrain for the duration of the event.

Volunteers must register ahead of time. For more event details and to register, click the link below. Questions? Reach out to Angie at [email protected]. Space is limited, so save your spot today!

https://forms.gle/hGHvc5yhEcxBL5sb8

Many thanks to our project funders at Inland Empire Resource Conservation District for supporting our efforts to restore oak woodland habitat at Cienega Canyon Preserve. 🌳🦉

05/16/2026

📝 Field Notes Friday

On April 21st, Rivers & Lands Conservancy staff Angie, Amy, and Michael spent the morning getting their hands dirty at one of our Delhi sand dune conservation sites in Fontana. The goal was to care for recently planted California natives as part of our ongoing habitat restoration efforts! 🌱

The team focused on watering and reinforcing planting site berms; these small but mighty soil structures help capture and hold water, giving young plants a better chance of survival while getting established. Along the way, staff also collected seeds for future restoration work and to share with the community at future events to help bring a little piece of native habitat into backyard gardens. 🌻

This restoration work supports the endangered coastal California gnatcatcher along with the many other plants and animals that call the rare Delhi sand dunes home. 🪰🐦🌾 Every early morning in the field, shovel full of dirt, and bucket of water helps restore habitat and protect one of the region’s most unique ecosystems for generations to come.

05/15/2026

🌴 Native Species of the Week!

California Fan Palm (Washingtonia filifera)

~ Meet the California fan palm, the only palm native to California and the largest native palm in North America! While palm trees may make you think of beaches and vacations, this species actually calls the desert home. These towering palms grow naturally in desert oases where underground water reaches the surface, creating lush pockets of life surrounded by dry desert landscapes. 🌴

~ California fan palms can grow an impressive 40–60 feet tall, with huge fan-shaped leaves stretching several feet wide. If you look closely, you’ll notice curly white fibers along the leaf edges, which inspired the species name filifera, meaning “thread-bearing.” Older leaves often stay attached to the trunk, creating the palm’s iconic shaggy “skirt” look. 🌾

~ These palms are much more than just pretty scenery. Desert oases created by California fan palms provide critical habitat for wildlife by offering shade, moisture, food, and shelter in extreme desert conditions. Birds, bats, insects, and other animals rely on these oasis ecosystems to survive. 🦇🐦

~ The palms also produce small black fruits that feed wildlife. Their long stalks of creamy white flowers attract pollinators like bees and other beneficial insects, turning these oasis groves into surprisingly busy hubs of activity. 🐝

~ California fan palms are built for survival. They can handle intense desert heat, drought, and even occasional freezing temperatures once established. And that famous “skirt” of dead leaves? It’s not just decorative. It creates hiding spots and nesting habitat for wildlife trying to escape predators and the harsh desert sun. ☀️

Tall, resilient, and full of life, the California fan palm is one of the desert’s most iconic native species and proof that even the driest landscapes can support thriving ecosystems. 🌴

05/14/2026

With the end of the school year quickly approaching, we’re happy to share that we just accomplished the 11th season of our Acorns to Oaks environmental education program! 🌱

Launched in 2015, Acorns to Oaks engages students in a combination of in-class presentations and hands-on field trips to our Cienega Canyon Preserve, centered on oak ecology and oak restoration. This year, we reached over 650 local elementary, middle, and high school students from Banning High School, Summerwind Trails School, Palm Middle School, North High School and students participating in Riverside Unified School District’s “Ignite Her Mind” STEM Symposium.

Thanks to the Acorns to Oaks program, these students had an opportunity to play a key role in Rivers & Lands Conservancy’s annual oak restoration efforts. Over the course of the year, they assisted with collecting acorns, assessing acorn health, germinating acorns, planting oak seedlings, and watering oak planting sites. Participating students also experienced many nature-based “firsts” such as hiking, meeting live wildlife, nature journaling, and more! 🌳🦉

The Acorns to Oaks 2025-2026 program was made possible thanks to support from our generous grantors at Inland Empire Resource Conservation District, Edison International Foundation, the REI Cooperative Action Fund, and Yuhaaviatam of San Manuel Nation. 💚

05/13/2026

There is a side-blotched lizard sunning itself on a rock right now in coastal sage scrub. A hummingbird is sipping nectar from a patch of sage. A desert cottontail is pausing beneath a coast live oak while her kits forage for the first time.
These places belong to them. And for more than 35 years, Rivers & Lands Conservancy has been making sure they always will.
For just $10 a month, you can be part of that. 🌿
riversandlands.org/membership