Corcoran Lagoon
Map SatelliteAmidst a residential area, Corcoran Lagoon is one of several along this section of the coast. (See Moran Lake and Schwans Lagoon.) Much of the area is open water, the extent of which changes with the season. The salinity varies.
Ruppia maritima is the dominant plant in the non-marsh area. There is a saltwater marsh, with pickleweed, Salicornia sp., and salt grass, Distichlis spicata, the main elements. Cattails, Typha sp., and tule, Scirpus sp., are present in the freshwater marsh area.
During the migratory season a number of species of waterfowl and shorebirds may be observed here. The Western pond turtle, Clemmys marmorata, occurs here. Tidewater gobies, Eucyclogobius newberryi, and three-spined stickleback, Gasterosteus aculeatus, are found in the lagoon.
The lagoon is artificially opened to support tidal action.
Integrity: Radio towers in the middle of the lagoon, residential development on its borders and upstream, have impacted the area. Much of the bordering vegetation is exotic.
Use: Private
July 1978
Inventory of California Natural Areas
Revision © 2009 Steven Louis Hartman