09/14/2026
Celebrate with us as we close out California Biodiversity Week 2026! This past week, September 5th – 13th, we’ve been celebrating our local biodiversity here in San Diego County 🎉🦋✨
You may have heard that California and San Diego County are global biodiversity hotspots, but what does that actually mean?
The State of California, and especially San Diego County, are rich with wildlife because of their varied geography that creates a wide range of habitats. Consider the diverse ecosystems within our County: coastal chapparal and intertidal zones near the Pacific Ocean, Colorado desert scrub to the East, and sprawling oak woodlands and pine forests in the mountains in between.
How biodiverse are we?
Among the nearly 7,000 plants that are native to California, over 2,700 are found in San Diego County! San Diego County is home to over 700 species of native bees, 23 species of bats, over 400 species of birds, and 91 terrestrial mammals! 🤯
And yet, the diversity of life globally is in jeopardy, and San Diego is no exception:
• In the last 50 years, more than 1 in 4 birds have disappeared
• 19% of butterflies in the U.S. are at risk of extinction
• 40% of North America’s freshwater fish species are imperiled or already extinct
• 35 terrestrial animal species and 45 plant species in San Diego County are at risk of extinction
The main threats to native plants and animals in our region are climate change, wildfire, and habitat loss or degradation from invasive species and suburban sprawl.
RCD San Diego works hard to protect and give back to the incredible wildlife and ecosystems in San Diego County, and you can help too! Head to our website for opportunities to volunteer to plant native habitat, learn more about the impact of invasive species, or donate to support our work!
Sources:
State of the Birds 2025
State of the Butterflies in the United States
American Fisheries Society Imperiled Aquatic Species Committee
Xerces Society for Invertebrate Conservation
