Deer-hunting season opened on Saturday, August 14, in many parts of Santa Barbara County, and hunters are reminded that the 5,900-acre Sedgwick Reserve in the Santa Ynez Valley is an off-limits, no-hunting zone. Managed by UC Santa Barbara for the University of California, the reserve is used year-round by university researchers, students, schoolchildren, and others. The potential for a serious accident from any hunting activity at the site is very high.
Violators of the Sedgwick Reserve’s ban on hunting face felony prosecution.
The California Department of Fish and Game coordinates efforts to keep poachers off the reserve in conjunction with the UCSB Police Department, the U.S. Forest Service, and the Santa Barbara County Sheriff’s Department. UCSB police officers plan to increase their patrols of the reserve throughout the hunting season to protect university facilities and personnel. The deer-hunting season continues through September 26.
The Sedgwick Reserve is one of seven natural reserves managed by UC Santa Barbara. The University of California is responsible for oversight of 36 reserves throughout the state.
– Valentine Camp in the Valentine Eastern Sierra Reserve
– Sierra Nevada Aquatic Research Laboratory (SNARL) in the Valentine Eastern Sierra Reserve
– Kenneth S. Norris Rancho Marino Reserve
– Coal Oil Point Natural Reserve
– Carpinteria Salt Marsh Reserve
For more information concerning the Segwick Reserve, contact Kate McCurdy, reserve director, or Sue Eisaguirre, education coordinator, at (805) 686-1941.
For more information about the hunting ban, contact Sgt. Matthew Bowman, UCSB Police Department, at (805) 893-4063