Quick Facts Scientific classification, Trinomial name ...

Coastal California gnatcatcher
Scientific classification
Domain:	Eukaryota
Kingdom:	Animalia
Phylum:	Chordata
Class:	Aves
Order:	Passeriformes
Family:	Polioptilidae
Genus:	Polioptila
Species:	P. californica
Subspecies:	P. c. californica
Trinomial name
Polioptila californica californica Brewster, 1881

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The coastal California gnatcatcher (Polioptila californica californica) is a small non-migratory songbird. The coastal California gnatcatcher is the northernmost subspecies of the California gnatcatcher. It lives in and around coastal sage scrub.^[1] This songbird has black, gray, and white feathers, and eats mainly insects. It often lives alone but joins with other birds in winter groups. Its call sounds like a kitten meowing, a rising and falling zeeeeer, zeeeeer.

The coastal California gnatcatcher is a small songbird that measures 4.5 inches (11 cm) and weighs up to .2 ounces (6 grams).^[2] It has dark grey feathers on its back, and light gray and white feathers on its chest. The wings are brownish, and the long tail is mostly black with a few white outer feathers. Gnatcatchers have a thin, small bill and white eye rings.^[3][4] Male gnatcatchers develop a black cap during the summer that is not present in the winter months.^[2][3]

The diet of the coastal California gnatcatcher includes mostly insects. Some insects include ants, flies, moths, true bugs, beetles, caterpillars, and spiders.^[5]

The coastal California gnatcatcher was listed as a threatened species in 1993. The population was estimated to be no more than 1,000 to 1,500 pairs in the United States. It has since grown thanks to protections from the ESA and conservation efforts.

In 2010 the U.S. population estimate for the Gnatcatcher was 1,324 pairs within an 111,006-acres region. There was no specific estimate for Baja California, Mexico.^[1]

While the International Union for Conservation of Nature considers the coastal California gnatcatcher a least-concern species,^[7] the coastal California gnatcatcher was petitioned to be listed as a threatened species as defined by the Endangered Species Act of 1973 (ESA). The petitions stated that the gnatcatcher's population size was very low and the critical habitat had shrunk greatly. The petitions also stated that the critical habitat had also broken into pieces due to human activities. The broken up habitat caused the Gnatcatcher to be even more at risk of destruction. It is likely that the death of many Gnatcatchers in the United States also affected the population of Gnatcatchers in Mexico. Finally, the petitions claimed that existing regulations and protections were not good enough. They stated that more strict management and rules were needed to protect the Gnatcatcher and its habitat. The final listing date for the original classification was March 20, 1993.^[1]

On December 19, 2007, the gnatcatcher's critical habitat was reduced.^[2] In 2010, there was a five-year review done by an office of the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service in Carlsbad, California.^[2] Attempts were made to delist this species in 2014–15. The initial petition was approved, but a later review concluded that delisting was unwarranted.^[8][9] This species has never been delisted.

The main danger to survival of the coastal California gnatcatcher is human activity. The coastal sage scrub once covered about 2.5 million acres of California. (Barbour and Major 1988). Recent studies show that up to 90% of the Gnatcatcher habitat has been destroyed as a result of urban and agricultural development.^[1] Continued human expansion into coastal sage scrub, will negatively affect the remaining habitat.

The main natural impact is wildfires that destroy coastal sage scrub, shrinking the gnatcatcher's habitat.^[6]

There are some state laws and policies that affect the coastal California gnatcatcher: California Environmental Quality Act (CEQA), The Natural Community Conservation Planning (NCCP) Act, and Regulatory Mechanisms in Mexico.^[4]

There have been some unsuccessful efforts to remove the gnatcatcher from the Endangered Species Act to reduce its protections. In the summer of 2016, a 12-month federal investigation was done in response to a petition to delist the gnatcatcher. The results of the investigation showed that the gnatcatcher should not be removed from the ESA. The investigation involved a status review of the species. And unexpectedly, more than 39,000 letters were submitted. These were mostly by those against the delisting of the gnatcatcher.^[4]

On July 3, 2019, a federal court threw out a lawsuit trying to remove the gnatcatcher from the ESA. Thus continuing to make sure the Gnatcatcher is protected. This came after years of attempts by industry developers to remove the gnatcatcher from the ESA.^[10] The status of the Gnatcatcher as a protected species has been under attack from those who want to take advantage of their habitat. However the government has been able to defend these attacks and keep protections for the gnatcatcher.