Bioimages home      (click on an image to enlarge)
view this page in its intended navigation context

California coastal sage and chaparral (WWF ecoregion NA1201)

Canyon on Santa Rosa Island, California
Canyon on Santa Rosa Island, California (c) 2005 Natasha Sherman


Source of bioregions data: Olson, D. M. and E. Dinerstein. The Global 200: Priority ecoregions for global conservation. (PDF file) Annals of the Missouri Botanical Garden 89:125-126.

Distinctiveness (1=highest,4=lowest): 1 (globally outstanding)
This ecoregion includes diverse and globally rare habitat types.  A large number of endemic species of plants and animals are present.  Habitats include chaparral, oak woodlands and conifer woodlands.  The ecoregion has over 150 species of butterflies and the highest species richness of native bees.*

Conservation Status (1=most endangered, 5=most intact): 1 (critical)
Only 15% of the coastal sage scrub remains and most oak savannas have been destroyed.  The habitats are extremely fragmented due to intensive development.  Invasion of alien species, fire supression, grazing, and smog are threats.*

 

Some views from the ecoregion

San Diego County, California


Santa Margarita Ecological Preserve, conifer community along Hwy. 79   (c) 2005 Natasha Sherman  hires  hires

Santa Cruz Island, Channel Islands, California


(l-r) central valley, Cherry Canyon, coastal canyon, buckwheat along Navy Rd., view toward harbor    (c) 2005 Natasha Sherman  hires  hires  hires  hires  hires

Santa Rosa Island, Channel Islands, California


(l-r) Carrington Point, elephant seals on China Beach, island interior, oak, coastal dunes, canyon, distant view of Torrey pines    (c) 2005 Natasha Sherman  hires  hires  hires  hires  hires  hires  hires

Coastal dune vegetation, Oxnard beach, Ventura Co., California

Coastal dune vegetation, Oxnard beach, Ventura Co., California Coastal dune vegetation, Oxnard beach, Ventura Co., California Coastal dune vegetation, Oxnard beach, Ventura Co., California Coastal dune vegetation, Oxnard beach, Ventura Co., California
 (c) 2005 Daniel P. Duran   hires   hires   hires   hires
 

* Ricketts, T.H., E. Dinerstein, D.M. Olson, C.J. Loucks, et al.  (1999) Terrestrial Ecoregions of North America: A Conservation Assessment.  World Wildlife Fund - United States and Canada.  Island Press, Washington, D.C. pp. 337-340.

Terms of use