Storke Wetland

Site at a Glance

  •  

 

Date initiated

 

1991

 

Size

 

37 acres

 

  • Habitat types
  •  
  • Palustrine Emergent Wetland, Salt Marsh Palustrine Scrub Wetland, Coyote Brush Scrub, Blue Gum Eucalyptus, Non-native Annual Grassland
  •  

Special status species

 

  • Accipiter cooperi (Cooper's Hawk)
  • Elanus leucurus (White-tailed Kite)
  • Centromadia panyi ssp. australis (Southern tarplant)
  • Lonicera subspicata ssp. subspicata (Santa Barbara honeysuckle)
  •  

Interpretive signs

Storke Wetland, historically the southwestern extension of Goleta Slough, has been cut off by berms, drainage ditches and tide gates. At an elevation of just 0.5 to 3.2 ft above mean sea level (MSL), the wetlands could still be contiguous with the Slough if the tide gates were opened. The 1981 Long Range Development Plan (LRDP) recognized the value of these palustrine salt marsh wetlands and by the 1991 LRDP these areas were formally designated as Ecologically Sensitive Habitat Areas (ESHA) and open space. Raptors hunt and waterfowl take refuge in these brackish waters. Restoration activities have focused on planting oaks in the upland areas and topographic alterations to create more permanently flooded or tidally inundated wetlands.

West Storke Wetland Enhancement Project

Before Restoration (2007): Fill removed from West Storke wetland with funding from the Wetland Recovery Project.

 

After Restoration: Native wetland vegetation reestablished under better hydrologic regime.