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Map Satellite Two reserves (see Heisler Park Ecological Reserve and Laguna Beach Marine Life Refuge) lie within this area which extends further to sea to the 35-meter (120-foot) contour than do the reserves and which includes a portion of the coast not in the reserves. The coast is primarily rocky but there are some sandy coves. There are a number of tidepools. The irregular and heterogeneous bottom supports a wide variety of plant and animal communities. In places, the vertical relief is quite sharp and provides pinnacles, gullies, cliffs, and boulder piles. At about the 15-meter (50-foot) contour, the rocky nearshore breaks into a sandy bottom. A number of algae are found in the intertidal area and to sea, among the more prominent being Egregia laevigata, Eisenia arborea, Dictyota flabellata, Rhodymenia pacifica, and the tidepool coral, Corallina chilensis. Towards the easterly end of the area is a small stand of the giant kelp, Macrocystis pyrifera, a remnant of the much larger bed that existed before the warm-water period of 1957 expanding. Several hundred meters offshore are various rocks which rise above the sea level and provide a roosting site for cormorants, pelicans and seagulls and an occasional sea lion. There is a great abundance of fish and marine invertebrates in the area. Integrity: Swimming is permitted but portions of the area are entirely closed to the taking of any organism. A small discharge from a nearby sewer outfall does not seem to affect the water quality of the area. Use: Research, educational, observational, appropriate recreational. October 1975
Inventory of California Natural Areas
Revision © 2009 Steven Louis Hartman
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