Visitors Asked To Respect UC Davis Arboretum After Some Put Wildlife At Risk

DAVIS (CBS13) — The Putah Creek swimming hole on the UC Davis campus is in danger of shutting down after an influx of misbehaved visitors is putting wildlife at risk.

UC Davis says they've seen major damage to the preserve including erosion, destroyed experiments, and wildlife killings. According to Andrew Fulks with US Davis, the worst of which was six baby ducklings killed by a group of teenagers.

"We want to preserve this for future generations," Fulks said.

Fulks invites visitors to come to the UC Davis Arboretum and Public Garden but asks that they respect the area. Partying on the banks and nailing makeshift diving boards into trees are definitely not on the list of things you can do.

It's important for swimmers to remember the area is a wildlife preserve.

"A number of experiments running along the length of this focusing on the natural area," Fulks said.

UC Davis is working to preserve the area for both wildlife and visitors, but if the damage gets worse, they may have to shut swimming areas down.