Vina Plains Preserve

California

A ground level view of the wetlands at Vina Plains. — Vina Plains Preserve Lush grasslands with seasonally occurring vernal pools and wildflowers comprise this view of the Vina Plains Preserve. © Clinton Smith

Phone: 916-449-2850
Email: california@tnc.org
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Annual grasslands and vernal pools distinguish the Vina Plains.

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Overview

Description

The Vina Plains is an excellent example of California annual grasslands and vernal pools on the upper terrace of the Sacramento Valley. The shallow soils are underlain by an impervious, rocky hardpan formed by volcanic mudflows a million or more years ago. Subsequent erosion has scoured out shallow depressions that fill with water during the rainy season. Because of the impermeable subsoil, the water remains until it is lost by evaporation late in the spring. These temporary ponds support a wide variety of plants, crustaceans, snails, flatworms and insects. During winter the ponds attract legions of waterfowl and shorebirds. Songbirds such as meadowlarks and horned larks nest in the grasslands and raptors can be viewed hunting overhead.

Access

Limited Access

Location

13 miles north of Chico, CA

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Highlights

Some of the best remaining seasonal vernal pools in California, fairy shrimp, wildflowers, songbirds such as meadowlarks and horned larks, waterfowl and shorebirds like great blue herons, tundra swans, snow geese, greater yellowlegs and others.

Size

4,600 acres

Explore our work in this region

Why TNC Selected This Site

Vina Plains is an important property for The Nature Conservancy in the Lassen Foothills area. Vernal pools at the preserve are some of the best remaining in California. Although once common in the Central Valley and other parts of the state, vernal pools have been reduced to less than 5% of their original range and are now one of California's most threatened natural communities. On a broader scale, the preserve is part of a massive unfragmented landscape where the state’s largest migratory deer herd roams. Major creeks in the region host some of the state's best remaining salmon runs.

What TNC Is Doing

We actively manage this landscape with seasonal cattle grazing and prescribed burning. Each spring The Nature Conservancy supports a prescribed burn led by Cal Fire at the preserve. These disturbances support native flora and help to keep nonnative annual grasses under control. Vina Plains offers a prime outdoor classroom for students and researchers alike. Researchers have studied the preserve’s rare species and vernal pool habitats for decades, resulting in dozens of scientific publications. The public may visit on any of several organized annual tours each spring.

Visiting Vina Plains

What to See: Plants

The preserve supports 280 species of plants, including the rare Hoover spurge and hairy orcuttia. In spring the landscape comes alive with wildflowers that ring the pools with floral necklaces of blue, white and yellow. Adobe lilies, meadowfoam, violets and goldfields are just a few of the blooms that enliven the grasslands with bright colors.

A Vina Plains Tadpole Shrimp in a sample container

What to See: Animals

Aquatic invertebrates, some of which are rare and endangered, swim silently in the vernal pools. Fairy shrimp hatch from eggs that have survived the summer drought and are stimulated by the cold winter rains that flood into the new and growing pools. Overhead, the air is alive with migratory waterfowl and shorebirds that feed on the fairy shrimp and tadpole shrimp in the pools below. From February through May, great blue herons, tundra swans, snow geese, greater yellowlegs, American widgeons and more feed in the food-rich waters.

Because Vina Plains Preserve is a working ranch, it is open to the public on a very limited basis. You can hear about upcoming events by joining our Lassen Events email list or visiting the Lassen Events page.

Explore recent iNaturalist observations from Vina Plains Preserve.