A CalMatters report examines how federal staffing shortages at the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, deepened during President Trump's second term, have left national wildlife refuges understaffed and undermanaged. At the San Joaquin River National Wildlife Refuge west of Modesto, the Vierra Wetlands went nearly dry because too few employees remained to flood the levees, and dozens of migratory bird species failed to appear. With 35 refuges in California affected, the piece raises questions about the future of public lands and Pacific Flyway habitat statewide.
Read the full story: Where did the birds go? Once-abundant wetlands are drying up after federal staff cutbacks — Sonoma Valley Sun, Aug 16.
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