ANIMALS MAY TRY SUBURBIA WILDLIFE TRYING TO SURVIVE LOSS OF THEIR HABITAT.

Byline: Nicholas Grudin Staff Writer

SANTA CLARITA - In the blackened Santa Susana canyons, there's a smell of death in the air. Charred deer carcasses litter the ground and animal life appears to have deserted the once lush surroundings.

But that was to be expected, according to the wildlife experts assessing damage caused by the last month's wildfires that ravaged hundreds of thousands of acres throughout Southern California.

What may come as a surprise is that many animals that survived the fire could soon be coming into residential neighborhoods.

``The numbers are pretty staggering. Easily, hundreds of bobcat habitats were wiped out. Fox territories were wiped out. Many hundreds of coyote territories were wiped out,'' said Paul Edelman, of Natural Resources and Planning for the Santa Monica Mountains Conservancy.

With the substantial loss of habitat, and the increased overlap of development onto nature, animals have been forced into urban areas in order to survive, according to Ray Sauvajot, chief of planning science and resource management for the National Parks Service in the Santa Monica Mountains.

``The main concerns with fires like this, from a wildlife perspective, is the combination of the size of the fire and the urban interface in the areas that were burned,'' Sauvajot said. ``Animals will move into urban areas.''

While most animals are well prepared to adjust to the damage caused by wildfires, the canyons near Santa Clarita pose new problems because of the scope of the damage.

Animals usually follow their noses away from smoke and into other habitats, where they quickly find refuge and sustenance.

But in this case, because so many acres were burned, a chain reaction is taking place that could push more wildlife into the city.

Because so much plant life was destroyed, rabbits, rodents and other herbivores that survived the fires are seeking food where they can find it, often closer to the homes and cars that might usually keep them at bay.

They are also kept off the vast, ash-covered plains by hawks and other birds, which in the absence of brush find easy access to small mammals.

Therefore, following the dictates of the food chain, larger beasts such as foxes and bobcats are also venturing into the city.

``Particularly in a situation where a whole flank of the (south) range burned, and then the whole flank on the north side in Santa Clarita burned, there is so little refuge left,'' said Edelman.

This is all compounded by the fact the region's continued development has disrupted normal habitat channels that could provide animals with a clear path to safety and good health.

``In the natural system, we wouldn't expect wildfires to have a long-term impact on wildlife,'' Sauvajot said. ``But when you throw on top of that a network of roads and developments, then the (animals') options become a lot more limited.''

Nonetheless, very little permanent damage to regional wildlife is expected, according to Edelman.

The only endangered species that Edelman expects to be affected by the fires is the California gnatcatcher, a bird that has caused developers in San Diego fits because its sensitive habitats cannot be disturbed.

According to Edelman, gnatcatchers that are increasing their population in the Moorpark area may have been headed toward Santa Clarita as well, but this fire could hold them off.

``Developers in the Santa Susanas might breath a sigh of relief that the gnatcatcher populations will be significantly set back,'' Edelman said.

The San Fernando Valley spineflower and the Southwestern arroyo toad, both of which have been the subject of protests against the proposed 21,000-home Newhall Ranch project, are expected to have been relatively unaffected by the fires.

And with rains expected this weekend, which will bring new sprouts and shrubs within weeks, the damage could begin to heal sooner rather than later.

`` It's just a matter of how quickly the scab heals, from the outside in,'' Edelman said.

Nicholas Grudin, [phone]

nicholas.grudin(at)dailynews.com

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Photo:

(ran in SAC edition only) Firefighters were able to save the nature center in Towsley Canyon during October's wildfires.

David R. Crane/Staff Photographer