Antioch Dunes National Wildlife Refuge is a sensitive

sand dune A dune is a landform composed of wind- or water-driven sand. It typically takes the form of a mound, ridge, or hill. An area with dunes is called a dune system or a dune complex. A large dune complex is called a dune field, while broad, f ...

habitat In ecology, the term habitat summarises the array of resources, physical and biotic factors that are present in an area, such as to support the survival and reproduction of a particular species. A species habitat can be seen as the physical ...

located near the city of

Antioch, California Antioch is the third-largest city in Contra Costa County, California, United States. Located in the East Bay region of the San Francisco Bay Area along the Sacramento–San Joaquin River Delta. The city's population was 115,291 at the 2020 cen ...

on the south shore of the

San Joaquin River The San Joaquin River (; es, Río San Joaquín) is the longest river of Central California. The long river starts in the high Sierra Nevada, and flows through the rich agricultural region of the northern San Joaquin Valley before reaching Suis ...

Stockton Deepwater Shipping Channel California’s Green Trade Corridor, is part of the Stockton Deepwater Shipping Channel Stockton Deepwater Shipping Channel also called the Baldwin-Stockton Deepwater Shipping Channel or Stockton Deep Water Channel is a manmade deepwater water ...

. It serves as a refuge for three

endangered species An endangered species is a species that is very likely to become extinct in the near future, either worldwide or in a particular political jurisdiction. Endangered species may be at risk due to factors such as habitat loss, poaching and inv ...

of plants and insects, and is closed to the public except for tours and events supervised by Refuge staff. The Refuge was established in 1980. It is managed by the

U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service The United States Fish and Wildlife Service (USFWS or FWS) is an agency within the United States Department of the Interior dedicated to the management of fish, wildlife, and natural habitats. The mission of the agency is "working with othe ...

Habitat restoration project

A project to restore wildlife habitat, sponsored by the Port of Stockton and implemented by the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers, began during 2013. This work involves dredging sandy spoil from the

and pumping it to the Antioch Dunes. The purpose is to spur population growth of the Lange's metalmark butterfly The process employs a hydraulic cutter-suction dredger, which pumps the sand-water mixture through a fish screen. The mixture flows through a series of berms, which separate the sand from the water, which is pumped back to the river. The sand is then distributed onshore. When the sand is in place, the project will replant it with

buckwheat Buckwheat (''Fagopyrum esculentum''), or common buckwheat, is a flowering plant in the knotweed family Polygonaceae cultivated for its grain-like seeds and as a cover crop. The name "buckwheat" is used for several other species, such as ''Fagop ...

and two endangered plants.Burgarino, Paul. ''East County Times''. "Dredging for Wildlife." October 19, 2013. Retrieved October 21, 2013.

Endangered species

The species protected at Antioch Dunes are Lange's metalmark butterfly, the

Antioch Dunes evening primrose ''Oenothera deltoides'' subsp. ''howellii'', the Antioch Dunes evening primrose, is an endangered subspecies of plant in the family Onagraceae, genus ''Oenothera'', and species ''Oenothera deltoides''. Description ''Oenothera deltoides'' subsp. ...

, and the Contra Costa

wallflower ''Erysimum'', or wallflower, is a genus of flowering plants in the cabbage family, Brassicaceae. It includes more than 150 species, both popular garden plants and many wild forms. The genus ''Cheiranthus'' is sometimes included here in whole o ...

. See the Lange's metalmark article for some background on the decline of the Antioch Dunes habitat prior to the formation of the Refuge. The number of metalmark butterflies has declined from 2,342 in 1999 to 45 in 2006. There were 78 in 2013.

Sources

Refuge profile

Refuge website

References

External links

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{{authority control National Wildlife Refuges in California San Francisco Bay Antioch, California Protected areas of Contra Costa County, California Landforms of Contra Costa County, California Dunes of California