8080 N. Palm Avenue, Suite 205 Fresno, CA 93711 Ph: 559.476.3160 harveyecology.com
January 31, 2023
Peter F. Ziblatt
Principal Attorney
Pelosi Ziblatt Law Group
244 Kearny Street, 9th Floor
San Francisco, CA, 94108
Subject: Maracor Development Conditional Use Permit No. 2022-23: Red Fox Assessment
Dear Mr. Ziblatt,
Maracor Development plans to establish a 292 -unit multi- family residential development on 10.8 acres in Visalia, California. The project site is located on the southwest corner of East K Avenue and South Ben Maddox Way (APNs: 126 -750-050 & 126-750-051), within a densely urbanized area at an elevation of approximately 325 feet (Exhibit 1). A Notice of Exemption (No. 2022 -51) was prepared in accordance with State California Environmental Quality Act (CEQA) Guidelines Section 15183 (Public Resources Code §21083.3) for the conditional use permit (No. 2022-23) that was approved on January 9, 2023. On January 18, 2023, Mike Smith of Visalia, California submitted a letter of appeal to Mayor Poochigian and the Visalia City Council Members.
The appeal letter expressed that the notice of exemption for the environmental review did not disclose the “presence of a native Red Fox”, and described that a categorical exemption cannot be used for an activity that will have a significant effect on the environment due to unusual circumstances “like an endangered species”.
The purpose of this assessment is to review the observation of the red fox reported in the January 18, 20 23 appeal letter and provide a determination as to the specific species of red fox observed . Three species of red fox are recognized in California; the non-native red fox (Vulpes vulpes; Lewis et al. 1999), Sacramento Valley red fox (Vulpes vulpes ssp. nov.; Sacks et al. 2010), and the federally endangered (Sierra Nevada Distinct Population Segment only) and state threatened Sierra Nevada red fox (Vulpes vulpes necator; California Department of Fish and Wildlife 2000, U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service 2018).
Non-native red foxes have been reported in California since the late 1800s and are thought to have been introduced into California by escaping from fur farms and fox hunters, and through intentional releases by advocates of the species interested in recrea tion and profit (California Department of Fish and Game 1994, Lewis et al. 1999). Nonnative red foxes now occur throughout lowland areas of California including the Sacramento and San Joaquin valleys, San Francisco Bay -Delta area, and central and the southern California Coast ranges and Coastal Plains (Exhibit 2). They are highly adaptable and thus capable of residing in valley upland and riparian habitats, farmlands, semi-desert, wetlands, and urban areas. Non-native red fox predation on endangered species such as the federally endangered and state threatened San Joaquin kit fox (Vulpes macrotis mutica) in the San Joaquin Valley is an important issue (California Department of Fish and Game 1994, Ralls et al. 1995, Clark et al. 2005, Cypher et al. 2001). Consequently, the California Department of Fish and Wildlife manages non-native red fox, primarily through habitat management efforts and at times through fox control programs where the species poses a significant threat to native wildlife (California Department of Fish and Game 1994).
Based on genetic samples, the range of the native Sacramento Valley red fox is described as spanning the Sacramento Valley from the City of Cottonwood south to the Delta on the west side of the Sacramento River, 2 H. T
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and from the City of Chico south to Sacramento on the east of the Sacramento River (Sacks et al. 2010) (Exhibit 3). Sacramento Valley red fox den sites were disproportionately associated with grasslands . In contrast to nonnative red foxes, Sacramento Valley red fox den sites were not found in wetlands or heavily urbanized areas.
Sacks et al. (2010) reported that all red foxes south of the American River and Delta, and west of the Sacramento Valley in Sonoma County were found to be non -native red foxes . The southern range boundary of the Sacramento Valley red fox is approximately 200 miles north of the Maracor Development in Visalia.
The Sierra Nevada red fox is a subspecies of red fox living at high elevations in the Sierra Nevada M ountains of California and the Cascades Mountains of California (Exhibits 2 and 4) and Oregon. This subspecies of fox was thought to no longer exist in the Sierra Nevada until a small population was discovered at Sonora Pass in 2010. Currently, the Sierra Nevada distinct population segment of the Sierra Nevada red fox is listed as endangered under the federal Endangered Species Act (FESA 1973, 16 U.S.C. ch. 35 § 1531 et seq.) and as threatened under the state Endangered Species Act (CESA, 14 C. C.R. 670.5). While Sierra Nevada red fox in Oregon have been observed slightly above 4,000 feet in elevation, observations in the Sierra Nevada Mountains occur at higher elevations, typically between 7,000 and 12,000 feet, with a 2011 sighting in Round Val ley in Inyo County occurring at 4,921 feet (California Department of Fish and Wildlife 2000, U. S. Fish and Wildlife Service 2018). The species typically occupies subalpine habitat characterized by a mosaic of high-elevation meadows, rocky areas, scrub vegetation, and woodlands (largely mountain hemlock ( Tsuga mertensiana ), whitebark pine (Pinus albicaulus), and lodgepole pine (Pinus contorta). Until the spring and summer of 2022, the range of the Sierra Nevada distinct population segment within the Sierra Nevada was thought to be primarily be comprised of the Sonora Pass population (Exhibit 4)( U. S. Fish and Wildlife Service. 2018) ; however, the California Department of Fish and Wildlife reported four observations of Sierra Nevada red fox between 11,400 and 12,000 feet near Taboose Pass (Exhibit 5), on the eastern boundary of Sequoia and Kings Canyon National Park (https://wildlife.ca.gov/News/sierra-nevada-red-fox-detected-in-the-southern-sierra-nevada). These observations extended the known, occupied range of the species more than 100 miles south of the Sonora Pass population; however, these observations are more than 60 miles northeast of the Maracor Development at an elevational difference of more than 11,000 feet (Exhibit 5). CDFW has not published Sierra Nevada red fox survey and monitoring protocols and guidelines ( https://wildlife.ca.gov/Conservation/ Survey-Protocols#377281285-mammals). Focused surveys for the species are restricted to subalpine habitats (the Maracor Development is not within, and is distant from, subalpine habitat), typically conducted by researchers or agency personnel, and closely coordinated with the U.S. Fish and Wild life Service or the California Department of Fish and Wildlife.
In conclusion, b ased upon the ranges and habitat preferences of the t hree red fox species in California, our determination is that the red fox observed within the urbanized area of the Maracor Development parcel in Visalia is a non-native red fox. The location of the Maracor Development is within the range of the non-native red fox (Exhibits 2 and 5) and consistent with habitats occupied by the species. In contrast, the location of the Maracor Development is outside of the range of the Sacramento Valley red fox (Exhibit 3) and Sierra Nevada red fox (Exhibit 5), and does not possess the habitat conditions utilized by Sacramento Valley red fox or Sierra Nevada red fox.
Please feel welcome to contact me if you have any questions regarding our assessment and determination.
Sincerely,
Brian B. Boroski, Ph.D.
Certified Wildlife Biologist
Vice President
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Literature Cited
California Department of Fish and Game. 1994. The Red Fox: Managing Non-native Species in California. https://nrm.dfg.ca.gov/FileHandler.ashx?DocumentID=22712# California Department of Fish and Wildlife. 2000. Red Fox. California Wildlife Habitat Relationships System, California Department of Fish and Wildlife California Interagency Wildlife Task Force. https://nrm.dfg.ca.gov/FileHandler.ashx?DocumentID=2563&inline Clark Jr., H. O., G. D. Warrick, B. L. Cypher, P. A. Kelly, D. F. Williams, and D. E. Grubbs. 2005.
Competitive interactions between endangered kit foxes and nonnative red foxes. West. N. Am. Nat. 2005, 65, 153–163.
Cypher, B. L., H. O. Clark Jr., P. A. Kelly, C. Van Horn, G. W. Warrick, and D. F. Williams. 2001.
Interspecific interactions among mammalian predators: Implications for the conservation of endangered San Joaquin kit foxes. End. Species Update 2001, 18, 171–174.
Lewis, J. C., K. L. Sallee, and R. T. Golightly, Jr. 1999. Introduction and range expansion of nonnative red foxes (Vulpes vulpes) in California. American Midland Naturalist 142:372-381.
Ralls, K. and P. J. White. 1995. Predation on San Joaquin kit foxes by larger canids. J. Mammal. 1995, 76, 723–729.
Sacks B. N., H. U. Wittmer, and M. J. Statham. 2010. The Native Sacramento Valley red fox. Report to the California Department of Fish and Game, May 30, 2010, 49pp U. S. Fish and Wildlife Service. 2018. Species Status Assessment Report for the Sierra Nevada Distinct Population Segment of the Sierra Nevada Red Fox. Sacramento, CA U. S. Fish and Wildlife Service. 2021. Final Rule: Endangered and Threatened Wildlife and Plants; Endangered Species Status for the Sierra Nevada Distinct Population Segment of the Sierra Nevada Red Fox. Federal Register Vol. 86, No. 164. pp 41743-41757
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Exhibit 1. Location of the Maracor Development (White Polygon) on the Southwest Corner of East K Avenue and South Ben Maddox Way in Visalia, California (Google Earth 2023)
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Exhibit 2. Range of the Non-native (Introduced) and Sierra Nevada Red Fox in California (https://nrm.dfg.ca.gov/FileHandler.ashx?DocumentID=83981&inline
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Exhibit 3. Estimated Range of the Sacramento Valley Red Fox (From page 38 of Sacks et al. 2010).
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Exhibit 4. Sonora Pass Population of the Sierra Nevada Red Fox (From page 10 of U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service 2018).
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Exhibit 5 Location of the Maracor Development Parcel in Visalia Relative to the Published Ranges of the Sierra Nevada Red Fox and Non-native Red Fox.