Conservancy sees nonnative species as major threat to local biodiversity, while residents rally to preserve local identity
California wildlife officials moved forward last week with a plan to eradicate a mule deer herd from Santa Catalina Island: extermination.
The plan has long pitted locals from the island off the coast of Los Angeles against the Catalina Island Conservancy, an environmental non-profit that manages 88% of the island’s terrain. The conservancy sees mule deer, which are not native to the island, as a major threat to local biodiversity, water quality and fire resilience.
