Happy Holidays to You and Thank You for Supporting the LCWLT

Happy Holidays to You and Thank You for Supporting the LCWLT


Dear Friend of Los Cerritos Wetlands,


We thank you and ask that you continue to support the Los Cerritos Wetlands Land Trust. Why support the Los Cerritos Wetlands Land Trust this holiday season?


Our commitment to the defense of our local coastal wetlands. The Los Cerritos Wetlands Land Trust works every day to protect and preserve this vulnerable plot of urban nature, a remnant of a once-vast ecosystem. We have and will continue to defend Los Cerritos Wetlands from harmful development and encroachment.


Slowly and surely, our wetlands are being brought back to life. We are deeply involved in the ambitious habitat restoration program to create and rehabilitate invaluable acreage of tidal salt marsh.


We are committed to continuing our nature walks into 2023 and keeping them accessible to all. Over the years, thanks to our free-of-charge monthly nature walks, (which we have been hosting for over ten years!) the public has directly experienced and learned about our fragile local wetlands.


We help future generations develop an appreciation for the natural world. Los Cerritos Wetlands serves as an outdoor classroom for students throughout Long Beach. We are proud that we have helped a generation of kids feel connected to nature through our hands-on ecological education programs. 


We can’t do it without you!
The success of our efforts to explore, restore, and defend our local wetlands is owed to members and supporters like you. We’re so grateful for the partnership of our members for allowing us to persevere.


Help us move forward into 2023 by renewing your membership or becoming a member today. Your tax-deductible gift, at whichever level is comfortable for you, makes a huge difference in our ability to run successful advocacy, outreach, and education programs.


We hope you will celebrate the wetlands with us this year, and choose to support the Los Cerritos Wetlands Land Trust. Please join us in our commitment to explore, restore, and defend our local wetlands today! 


Wishing you a happy and safe holiday season, 


Elizabeth Lambe,
Executive Director 
and all of us at the Los Cerritos Wetlands Land Trust


P.S. If you don’t already, I urge you to follow us on Facebook and on Instagram. And share our posts when you can! Not only do we hope that more and more people will know about and understand the value of wetlands, but our social media growth shows decision-makers that Los Cerritos Wetlands matter to the community. By following us you will be the first to know about breaking news regarding Los Cerritos Wetlands.
Our First Walk of the New Year is on January 7th

Our First Walk of the New Year is on January 7th

Join us to trek for Sea Turtles in the San Gabrial River on Saturday, January 7th. Not only will you observe sea turtles but also interesting wildlife like egrets and perhaps a great blue heron or two.Environmental educators from Tidal Influence will lead attendees on a wonderful walk along the levy of the San Gabriel River, which bisects Los Cerritos Wetlands. Attendees will walk through Los Cerritos Wetlands to a spot along the San Gabriel River where the sea turtles love to hang out.For part of our tour, we will view and discuss the Zedler marsh ecosystem while keeping an eye out for local wildlife. Much of our walk will take us through the Signal Hill Petroleum oil operations, where walk attendees will learn about the history of oil extraction and its impact on the wetlands.We will stroll past Calloway marsh, take the PCH bridge over to the western levee, and walk past both privately and publicly owned wetlands on our way back to our meeting spot.

WHAT: Turtle Trek at Los Cerritos Wetlands.

WHEN: Saturday, January 7th, 2022, at 8:00 AM sharp!

The parking lot gate will open at 7:45 am and close at 8:10 am. No latecomers can be admitted for the tour, and all participants must stay for the entire tour, which will end by 10:00 am. Kids are welcome, but they must be closely supervised and able to walk for 2 hours without needing to turn back. Closed-toe shoes are required!

WHERE: Meet in the driveway/parking area at the corner of 1st Street and PCH in Seal Beach. Please wear close-toed shoes, and kids under 16 must be accompanied by an adult.RSVP via our Eventbrite link or send us an email.


Also on January 7th, from 10:30 AM-12:30 PM, you are invited to join community-based wetlands restoration. Los Cerritos Wetlands are on their way to being restored and made more attractive because of hard-working folks who volunteer their time to remove invasive plants and other weeds and plant in their place “habitat friendly” native plants. It’s fun; it’s fulfilling and it requires no special skills or experience–just enthusiasm and a willingness to learn. Your contribution of time and effort is vital to the success of the restoration and would be greatly appreciated!For more information or to RSVP email iwanttohelp@tidalinfluence.com.

Remembering a special person


I was very sad to hear about the passing of Timothy Anderson, former Los Cerritos Wetlands Land Trust Executive Director. He might even have been the very first one. I never met Tim in person but I heard many interesting stories about him and, as is so common these days, got to know him through his postings on Facebook.

He was truly beloved by so many people both here in Long Beach and also in Mer Rouge, Louisiana, where he retired.

Below are how Tim’s brother Carey Anderson described Tim from a Facebook account of his memorial service.


My brother was a hoot. He loved most everyone, designed and built great and beautiful boats, and loved sailing, nature, birds, and libraries. Tim used to tell me “ libraries should be open 24 hours and have free coffee”, and requested that he be buried with his most valuable possession, his Library Card! He loved the Morehouse Parish Library, one of the librarians came and spoke at the service. Tim finished the 8th grade and took off from home seeking adventure and understanding and he never stopped learning and acquiring new skills. He could build computers, and 3D print tools he designed, use his laser printer and cutter, build a curved Oak stair rail, and designed some great boats. He built me the world’s most beautiful sailing canoe, no brag, just fact.


You gotta give a shout-out and a thank you to all who work to preserve the natural world and wild spaces of our planet and Tim Anderson was one of those people. Please send a thought and a prayer to all who loved Tim and let’s keep on working together to protect and preserve local important natural areas like Los Cerritos Wetlands.
BE SAFE Trips are Back and Sponsored by the Port of Long Beach

BE SAFE Trips are Back and Sponsored by the Port of Long Beach


The Port of Long Beach (in partnership with the Los Cerritos Wetlands Land Trust) participated in Long Beach Parks, Recreation & Marine summer programming this year by sponsoring field trips to Los Cerritos Wetlands for kids who are enrolled in summer programs at Silverado, Drake, Seaside and Admiral Kidd Park (as well as other parks in Long Beach).  
 
On these wetlands field trips kids learn about the value of protecting wetlands and the role wetlands play in a functioning ecosystem. As part of the field trip experience, attendees help plant a wetlands plant which helps restore and bring our local wetlands back to life and they participate in an educational walk through Zedler Marsh where environmental educators help kids learn about wetlands plants, and animals.  
 
Sadly, due to COVID protocols, these popular field trips were canceled for the last couple of years, but now they are back! It was great to see our youth learning firsthand why it is important to protect our local wetlands while at the same time making memories and expanding their knowledge of an important ecosystem. 
 
You can check out the Los Cerritos Wetlands for yourself by attending a free-of-charge guided nature walk that takes place on the first Saturday of the month from 8:00 AM until 10:00 AM. Hosted by the Los Cerritos Wetlands Land Trust, there are three different tours that you can sign up for, the Heron Hike, Turtle Trek, and Raptor Ramble. For more information or to rsvp email Elizabeth  
 
The Los Cerritos Wetlands is a unique resource that provides the community with an opportunity to spend quality time in nature while also serving as important coastal habitat for threatened species.