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The hills and valleys in Wildcat Canyon are marked
by squatters' struggles and water wars. There are other scars as
well. Old and fresh landslides and slumps are numerous. Springs and
ponds are common. Small earthquake faults leave their traces.
The soils are mostly clay with some bands of gravel and rock. On
east-facing slopes grow large coast live oaks, bay laurels and a
scattering of bigleaf maples and madrones. North-facing hillsides
support some beautiful, nearly pure stands of bay laurel fringed with
coast live oak. Moist chapparal of coyote brush, poison oak,
elderberry, snowberry, bracken fern and blackberry grow in thickets high
on the north-facing slopes.
In the gorge of bedrock-cutting
Wildcat Creek grows a riparian forest of alder, willow, creek dogwood and
bay laurel. The forest extends the length of Wildcat Creek and part
way up the tributaries. The west-and south facing canyon slopes are
covered with introduced annual grasses. A few stands of native bunch
grasses persist. There are many native wildflower species vying for
growing room with such introduced plants as poison hemlock, mustard,
radish and an advancing army of cardoon thistle.
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