Wild animals in South Orange County are at risk. Limited space within the South Coast Wilderness threatens inbreeding — lacking genetic diversity can spread disease among populations of coyotes and bobcats. Although 22,000 acres of open space were established in the ‘90s to protect local habitats and ecosystems in South County, it’s not enough for many species. Environmentalists and biologists have spent decades imagining a wildlife corridor passage stretching from the Santa Ana Mountains to the South Coast Wilderness to give animals more space to migrate, maintain healthy populations and escape danger. <MORE>