Cypress forest on Guadalupe Island showing signs of goat herbivory. The islets Toro and Zapato are in the far distance. All photographs courtesy of Island Conservation unless otherwise noted. THE RESTORATION OF GUADALUPE ISLAND by Bradford Keitt, Steve Junak, Luciana Luna Mendoza, and Alfonso Aguirre “Guadalupe is remarkable for ende- ing an extensive lichen flora and ing across the island in our own mism in the flora and fauna; but it is a important remnants of unique cloud of dust and exhaust, we’ve naturalist’s paradise despoiled by feral coastal scrub and island chaparral also wondered what lures us back goats, housecats, and mice. [The island] communities. year after year. Yet, just as the bar- is a Mexican national treasure in dire Guadalupe stirs a love-hate re- ren beauty of Guadalupe and the need of protection” (Moran 1996). lationship in those that have come excitement of finding rare and ex- to know its sere, rugged landscape. otic plants seduced Dr. Moran, we uadalupe Island rises like a Botanist Reid Moran, whose 40 too are captivated by the island’s Grampart from the wind- years of work on Guadalupe brought ecosystem. For that reason, we have whipped sea off the Pacific attention to its unique flora, called committed ourselves to protecting coast of the Baja California Penin- it his “very favorite island,” but he and restoring the remaining pock- sula. As the westernmost territory mused that “at too close a range it ets of its unique flora and fauna in Mexico, the 26,000 hectare is- has sometimes seemed a hot, ugly, with the hope that the island can land is a lonely outpost for a small weedy, insuperable rock pile that I eventually recover some of its origi- military garrison and a community have almost wondered, at least fleet- nal biodiversity. of about 70 fishermen and their ingly, why anyone in his right mind Thankfully, the political climate families. The island is home to over would subject himself to climbing in Mexico now exists to help this 30 plant taxa that are found no- it” (Moran 1998). dream become reality. Over the past where else in the world. It also sup- A primitive dirt road now makes decade Mexico has become a world ports several southern California traversing the island easier than it leader in the conservation of island ecosystems that are now rare or was for most of Dr. Moran’s ca- ecosystems, protecting more than 25 threatened on the continent, includ- reer, but after three hours of bounc- islands by removing damaging in- 20 FREMONTIAVOLUME 33:4, OCTOBER 2005 troduced mammals, both predators and herbivores. With these successes in hand, the Mexican environmental ministry (SEMARNAT), the Grupo de Ecología y Conservación de Islas, and Island Conservation are collabo- rating with several Mexican and US groups1 on an ambitious plan to re- store Guadalupe, one of the largest and most biologically rich islands in the country. In this article we offer a glimpse of Guadalupe Island before the in- troduction of the non-native plants and animals that have radically al- tered the island’s ecosystems, and a brief tale of what has happened to those ecosystems over the past 120 years. We describe efforts initiated Palm trees on the far north end of Guadalupe Island. This area is among the hardest in 2001 to exclude goats from some hit by goats. In May 2005 Luciana Luna Mendoza found the first recorded palm of the most sensitive areas of the seedlings on the island since goats were introduced. island, and the early, promising re- sults of those efforts. And based on pine forests blended into cypress jority of these plants are closely as- results from other islands, we look forest dominated by the endemic sociated with the islands off Cali- ahead to what might happen to Cupressus guadalupensis ssp. gua- fornia, Guadalupe is considered a Guadalupe’s vegetation and en- dalupensis. It is thought that this southern extension of the Califor- demic birds once the goat removal forest included associated shrubs nia Floristic Province. effort, which began in December like Ceanothus crassifolius and an un- Unfortunately, the island today 2004, is completed. described endemic Arctostaphylos taxon. EARLY Spreading south and downslope from these forests was an extensive DESCRIPTIONS OF coastal scrub and chaparral eco- THE ISLAND’S region, similar to the coast of south- VEGETATION ern California, yet with enough endemics to make it unique. Spe- Early descriptions of Guadalupe cies like the endemic Senecio palmeri, Island are few, but they paint a pic- a striking shrub with white foliage, ture of extensive shrublands, large Sphaeralcea palmeri, and Lotus argo- juniper forests, and impressive cy- phyllus ssp. ornithopus, plus more press, oak, pine, and palm forests. widespread species like Dichelo- The lush far-northern end of the stemma capitatum and Calystegia island was once blanketed with en- macrostegia ssp. macrostegia filled the demic pines (Pinus radiata var. landscape (all descriptions based on binata), island oaks (Quercus tomen- Moran 1996). Because the vast ma- tella), and endemic Guadalupe palms (the common southern California Top right: Senecio palmeri seedling. • landscaping tree Brahea edulis). Right: Senecio palmeri in flower, safely Shrubs at the north end included ensconced atop a cliff looking down 3,000 feet to the ocean. This species is called Ceanothus and Ribes, and endemic “white sage” by some, but belongs in the taxa such as the remarkable Hesper- groundsel genus, and is a member of the alcea palmeri. Moving southwards, sunflower family. 1 Santa Barbara Botanic Garden, The Nature Conservancy, Conservation International, Secretaria Marina, CICESE, Universidad Autonoma de Baja California, Seacology. VOLUME 33:4, OCTOBER 2005 FREMONTIA 21 eral decades, techniques have been developed to remove goats from is- lands. At present, goats have been successfully removed from more than 100 islands worldwide in ef- forts to protect biodiversity and re- store island ecosystems (Campbell et al. 2004). The results of these removals have been dramatic and positive even on the most devas- tated islands. RESTORATION EFFORTS ON GUADALUPE The first steps in the restora- tion effort on the island were to inventory existing plant species and Pine exclosure fences with Ceanothus and Calystegia inside. build a series of fences (exclosures) to exclude goats from sensitive is very different from that described have apparently gone extinct, while areas. In June 2001, Island Conser- by the handful of naturalists who numerous natives have disappeared vation, Grupo de Ecología y Con- visited it before introduced goats from the island. Many other species servación de Islas, Santa Barbara and cats caused widespread devasta- have become restricted to a few small Botanic Garden, and the Instituto tion. Between 1885 and 1905 visi- populations clinging to sheer cliffs Nacional de Ecología sent a team tors documented the destruction of and other areas inaccessible to goats. to survey the island and mark loca- the Ceanothus, Juniperus, and many This habitat destruction, combined tions for fences (Junak et al. in press). of the endemic shrub species (Moran with predation by introduced cats, A rugged group of ranchers from 1996). Over the ensuing 100 years also led to the extinction of six en- Sonora then overcame incredible the island has become largely de- demic bird species, including the logistical obstacles to transport 2 void of vegetation across extensive Guadalupe caracara, the Guadalupe km’s worth of fencing materials to areas. Several endemic plant species kinglet, and the Guadalupe storm- remote parts of the island and build petrel (Jehl and Everett 1985, Keitt 12 fenced exclosures. This was an A Ceanothus plant inside and a dead pine et al. in press). amazing feat made even more he- outside an exclosure. This is the first This kind of destruction has be- roic considering that there is no Ceanothus reported on the island in over come a familiar story played out on dock at Guadalupe, and everything 100 years. islands everywhere—introduced had to be hand loaded into small species wreaking havoc on fragile open boats to transport it from a insular ecosystems that have evolved Mexican Navy ship to the island. in the absence of terrestrial preda- Once on the island, the majority of tors and large herbivores (Coblentz the gear had to be carried by horses 1978). Goats are especially devas- to sites many miles from any road. tating and are considered “the single The main goals of this effort were most destructive herbivore” of is- to see what species grew up in the land ecosystems. Because they can absence of goat herbivory and try survive on almost no water and will to protect some critically endan- eat virtually anything, including bark gered species long enough to en- and roots, goats can kill not only able them to reproduce. grasses and shrubs, but also adult Plant response inside the ex- trees. Their ability to literally strip closures was rapid and positive. In the landscape bare eventually leads January 2002, after only one grow- to soil and substrate destruction. ing season, 47 seedlings of the en- Fortunately, over the past sev- demic pine had sprouted inside one 22 FREMONTIAVOLUME 33:4, OCTOBER 2005 of the exclosures built around nine of this Ceanothus have been discov- adult pine trees. It is estimated there ered around the southernmost pines are 220 adult pine trees on the is- on the island. land (Rogers et al. 2003), so this one We have also made exciting dis- growing season produced a greater coveries outside of the exclosures. than 20% increase in the number of In June 2001 we found Calamintha pines on the island. By June 2003, (Satureja) palmeri in small patches the number of seedlings inside two around the north end of the island.