The water banking activities of the Kern Water Bank are re-establishing a thriving intermittent wetland habitat along the recharge basins—where marsh-like environments are established during recharge periods and create ideal habitat for waterfowl, shorebirds, raptors, and other native and migrating birds.

Willows, cottonwoods, sedges and other wetland vegetation have re-emerged along the edges of the recharge basins and earthen canals. These protected areas provide critical nesting and foraging habitat for more than 89 species of waterfowl and other birds, including Caspian terns, the white-faced ibis, double-crested cormorants, white pelicans, and tri-colored blackbirds. Of these species, many have reproduced—the sign of a flourishing and healthy future population.