The Motte Rimrock Reserve, a unit of the University of California Natural Reserve System affiliated with the

University of California, Riverside The University of California, Riverside (UCR or UC Riverside) is a public land-grant research university in Riverside, California. It is one of the ten campuses of the University of California system. The main campus sits on in a suburban distr ...

, is an ecological reserve and biological field station located on a small

plateau In geology and physical geography, a plateau (; ; ), also called a high plain or a tableland, is an area of a highland consisting of flat terrain that is raised sharply above the surrounding area on at least one side. Often one or more sides ...

overlooking the Perris Valley in west-central

Riverside County Riverside County is a county located in the southern portion of the U.S. state of California. As of the 2020 census, the population was 2,418,185, making it the fourth-most populous county in California and the 10th-most populous in the Uni ...

California California is a state in the Western United States, located along the Pacific Coast. With nearly 39.2million residents across a total area of approximately , it is the most populous U.S. state and the 3rd largest by area. It is also the m ...

, United States.

Location

The reserve is located on at an elevation of ASL, northwest of the city of Perris. Much of the land of the Motte Rimrock Reserve was donated to the University of California in 1976 by Charles and Ottie Motte. Numerous parcels have been added since.

Ecology

The Motte Rimrock Reserve contains large areas of open

grassland A grassland is an area where the vegetation is dominated by grasses ( Poaceae). However, sedge ( Cyperaceae) and rush ( Juncaceae) can also be found along with variable proportions of legumes, like clover, and other herbs. Grasslands occur na ...

coastal sage scrub Coastal sage scrub, also known as coastal scrub, CSS, or soft chaparral, is a low scrubland plant community of the California coastal sage and chaparral subecoregion, found in coastal California and northwestern coastal Baja California. It is ...

, willow riparian woodland, and rocky outcrops that support a diversity of plant and animal species. The reserve harbors a mixture of both coastal and inland species and owes its diversity to its location equidistant between the

Pacific Ocean The Pacific Ocean is the largest and deepest of Earth's five oceanic divisions. It extends from the Arctic Ocean in the north to the Southern Ocean (or, depending on definition, to Antarctica) in the south, and is bounded by the contin ...

and the

Mojave Desert The Mojave Desert ( ; mov, Hayikwiir Mat'aar; es, Desierto de Mojave) is a desert in the rain shadow of the Sierra Nevada mountains in the Southwestern United States. It is named for the indigenous Mojave people. It is located primarily ...

. The reserve also possesses a rich cultural history including some recognized archeological sites. Current on-going research projects include studies on the population dynamics of small

mammals Mammals () are a group of vertebrate animals constituting the class Mammalia (), characterized by the presence of mammary glands which in females produce milk for feeding (nursing) their young, a neocortex (a region of the brain), fur o ...

, ant behavior, plant-insect interactions, and habitat restoration.

Wildlife

As the surrounding area experiences rapid

urbanization Urbanization (or urbanisation) refers to the population shift from rural to urban areas, the corresponding decrease in the proportion of people living in rural areas, and the ways in which societies adapt to this change. It is predominantly t ...

, the

reserve Reserve or reserves may refer to: Places * Reserve, Kansas, a US city * Reserve, Louisiana, a census-designated place in St. John the Baptist Parish * Reserve, Montana, a census-designated place in Sheridan County * Reserve, New Mexico, a US vi ...

serves to protect a number of species threatened or endangered by development and habitat loss including Stephens' kangaroo rat, the

California gnatcatcher The California gnatcatcher (''Polioptila californica'') is a small long insectivorous bird which frequents dense coastal sage scrub growth. This species was recently split from the similar black-tailed gnatcatcher of the Sonoran and Chihuahuan ...

, orange-throated whiptail, and

Bell's Sparrow Bell's sparrow (''Artemisiospiza belli'') is a medium-sized sparrow of the western United States and northwestern Mexico. It used to be placed in the genus ''Amphispiza'', but recent evidence suggested it be placed in its own genus. Four populat ...

, as well as several diminishing plant communities such as riversidean sage scrub. The reserve is an active participant in the Riverside County Habitat Conservation Agency (RCHCA) a joint powers authority created to protect and preserve the Stephens' kangaroo rat. The director of the reserve is Kenneth J. Halama, PhD, an ecologist and conservation biologist.

References

{{Protected Areas of California, UCNRS University of California Natural Reserve System Protected areas of Riverside County, California Perris, California University of California, Riverside Protected areas established in 1976 1976 establishments in California

Location

Ecology

Wildlife

See also

References