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We examined differences in riparian and aquatic environments within the three dominant vegetation patch types of the Mattole River watershed, a 789‐km² mixed conifer‐deciduous (hardwood) forest and grassland‐dominated landscape in northwestern California, USA. Riparian and aquatic environments, and particularly microclimates therein, influence the distributions of many vertebrate species, particularly the physiologically‐restricted ectotherms – reptiles and amphibians (herpetofauna), and fishes. In addition to being a significant portion of the native biodiversity of a landscape, the presence and relative numbers of these more tractable small vertebrates can serve as useful metrics of its “ecological health.” Our primary objective was to determine the range of available riparian and aquatic microclimatic regimes, and discern how these regimes relate to the dominant vegetations that comprise the landscape …