Editing Stanislaus County, California (section)

==Geography==
According to the [[U.S. Census Bureau]], the county has a total area of {{convert|1515|sqmi}}, of which {{convert|20|sqmi}} (1.3%) are covered by water.<ref name="GR1">{{cite web|url=https://www.census.gov/geographies/reference-files/time-series/geo/gazetteer-files.html|publisher=[[United States Census Bureau]]|access-date=April 23, 2011|date=February 12, 2011|title=US Gazetteer files: 2010, 2000, and 1990}}</ref>

Stanislaus County has historically been divided socially and economically by the north-flowing San Joaquin River, which provided a natural barrier to trade and travel for much of the county's history. Isolated from the main rail corridors through the county and the [[irrigation]] projects that generated much of the region's economic prosperity, the part of Stanislaus County west of the river (known to locals as the "West Side" of the county) has largely remained rural and economically dependent on agricultural activities. Because of its proximity to [[Interstate 5 (California)|Interstate 5]] and the [[California Aqueduct]], some towns within this area, including [[Patterson, California|Patterson]] and [[Newman, California|Newman]], have experienced tremendous growth and are being transformed into [[Commuter town|bedroom communities]] for [[Commuting|commuters]] from the nearby San Francisco Bay Area, while others (including [[Westley, California|Westley]] and [[Crows Landing, California|Crows Landing]]) have been almost entirely overlooked by development and remain tiny farming communities.

===Flora and fauna===
A number or rare and [[endangered species]] are found in Stanislaus County. The beaked clarkia, (''[[Clarkia rostrata]]''), is listed as a candidate for the federal endangered species list. It has only been found in [[blue oak]]-[[gray pine]] associations in the [[foothills]] of the [[Sierra Nevada (U.S.)|Sierra Nevada]], a [[habitat]] that occurs at moderately high elevations. Colusa grass, (''[[Neostapfsia]] colusana'') is listed as endangered by the state. It is restricted to [[vernal pool]]s.<ref>John Torrey, Paul Awosika et al., ''Expanded initial study, Boulder Creek subdivision, Stanislaus County'', Earth Metrics, Report 7999: California State Clearinghouse, Sacramento, November 1989.</ref>

===National protected area===
* [[San Joaquin River National Wildlife Refuge]] (part)