Cuteness, Highlight of Endangered Species Conservation Faire – Chico Enterprise-Record

Vanessa Varela, left, and Julia Dressler hold Clyde, a Burmese python, at the Endangered Species Faire in Chico, California on Saturday, April 20, 2024. (Molly Myers/Enterprise-Record)

CHICO – An unlikely guest at the Endangered Species Faire captured the hearts of those in attendance on Saturday.

A baby kangaroo named Clover drew crowds and applause at an animal show presented by Gabe Kerschner, director of Placer County-based Conservation Ambassadors’ Wild Things, which cares for the animal. Not an endangered species, but not common in the US either. The kangaroo appeared at City Plaza along with several other rescued animals.

BEC organizes the Endangered Species Faire to celebrate the anniversary of the Endangered Species Act. The event included a parade of puppets of endangered species, live animals and numerous stalls offering crafts and environmental education.

In addition to all the festivities, the purpose of the event is also to educate on “how to live responsibly in the environment,” said Patrizia Hironimus, executive director of BEC.

Before bringing out Clover, the kangaroo, Kerschner made the crowd promise not to say “awww” when they saw her “because I’m tired of hearing it,” Kerschner joked.

But once Kerschner released Clover, the public couldn’t help but release a few awwwS.

The endangered species parade involved a collaboration with Sherwood Montessori, whose students spent two weeks creating papier-mâché animals, all of which are listed as endangered species.

Jeni Green’s three children – Rex, Jylian and Jeremy – all attend Sherwood Montessori. Their pupae included a hammerhead shark, a sapphire tarantula and a Vaquita, a very small dolphin-like mammal that is almost endangered.

Jeni Green has been coming to the event for eight years and said this year it seemed bigger than the last.

“It’s something people need to see,” she said.

Conservation

The Altacal Audubon Society staffed a booth highlighting the importance of ecosystems and habitats.

“All these endangered species need habitats, they need places to live,” said Jared Geiser, the group’s executive director. “Unfortunately, when we develop land, when we convert habitat to agricultural use, we take those places.”

Butte County is home to several endangered species, including the California condor and fairy shrimp.

Fairy shrimp live in vernal pools, which are depressions in the ground with a layer of impermeable soil underneath that prevent the water from being absorbed. These pools create incredibly diverse small ecosystems.

Given the importance of the habitat, Geiser said he was “thrilled” that Valleys Edge was successfully blocked. Voters have overturned the city’s approval of a proposed plan to develop 1,448 acres in southeast Chico.

“The birds will be very happy, ringtails will be happy, and the spring wildflowers that are all but extinct will be very happy too,” Geiser said.

Despite widespread environmental damage around the world, Geiser is hopeful.

“We can’t undo everything, but habitat restoration is possible,” Geiser said.

An ongoing project is the Big Chico Creek Otakim Sewi Fish Passage Collaborative. “Otakim Sewi” is the Northwestern Maidu word for Big Chico Creek. The project will remove a defunct fish ladder in Iron Canyon and create a new natural ladder for the fish to swim up.