Project Description
Flying M Ranch
This historic working cattle ranch includes one of the largest and most intact vernal pool grassland ecosystems in the world. The property’s healthy grasslands support numerous special-status species including CA tiger salamander, vernal pool fairy shrimp, San Joaquin kit fox and succulent owl’s clover.
Location:
Eastern Merced County between the farmlands of the San Joaquin Valley and the foothills of the Sierra Nevada.
Size:
15,500 acres
Outcome:
A conservation easement with California Rangeland Trust was recorded over 846 acres during 2020. Funding was provided by the Sacramento District In-Lieu Fee Program managed by the National Fish & Wildlife Foundation. Conservation easements over 5,000 acres of the ranch were donated to The Nature Conservancy in the 1980’s and 1990’s and additional conservation easements are planned.
