However, the USGS Geographic Names Information System (GNIS) includes the East Bay Hills in its list of various GPS coordinates for the Diablo Range.

[citation needed] The Diablo Range is largely unpopulated outside of the San Francisco Bay Area.

Major nearby communities include, Antioch, Pittsburg, Concord, Walnut Creek, Alamo, Danville, San Ramon, Pleasanton, Livermore, Fremont, Milpitas, San Jose, Morgan Hill, and Gilroy and the Central Valley city of Tracy.

South of Pacheco Pass, the only major nearby communities (those with a population over 15,000) are Los Banos, and Hollister.

Towns west of the range south of Gilroy include: Salinas, King City, and Paso Robles.

Areas above 2,500 feet (762 m) get light to moderate snow in the winter, especially at the highest point, the 5,241 ft (1,597 m) San Benito Mountain in the remote southeastern section of the range.

Mercury contamination near the southern end of the range is an ongoing problem, due to the New Idria quicksilver mines, which stopped production in the 1970s.

It is covered mostly by chaparral and California oak woodland communities, with stands of closed-cone pine forests appearing above 4,000 feet (1,219 m).

Blooming in spring are such plants as Viola pedunculata, Dodecatheon pulchellum, Fritillaria liliacea, and Ribes malvaceum, which can be viewed in the Blue Oak Ranch Reserve.

Golden eagle nesting sites are found[11] in the Diablo Range, reaching their highest density in southern Alameda County.

[12][13][14] The Bay checkerspot butterfly, a federally listed threatened species, has habitat in the Range, especially at Mount Diablo.

[15] The northern Pacific rattlesnake is thriving, as are many ground squirrels, hares, and various species of native and nonnative rodents.

nannodes) were restored to Mount Hamilton between 1978–1981 and are slowly recovering in several small herds in Santa Clara and Alameda Counties.