The Monterey coast is a place of immense beauty, but how much do you really know about it? Photo: Ken Wolter / Shutterstock
Like many surfers living in the Monterey Bay area, I often take the beauty of my surroundings for granted. It’s easy to do. With the juxtaposition of so many unique and awe-inspiring environments seemingly around every turn – from rugged coastlines and redwood forests to riparian corridors and gigantic dune formations – it’s easy to get complacent and blasé.
When I’m out in the water, because my sole focus is on the next wave – and the next one after that – I rarely take the time to look around at my immediate environment with any degree of discernment or appreciation. Yet, every once in a while, I happen to glance up and something will catch my eye – an otter frolicking among the waves, a red-billed oystercatcher roaming the tide pools, or even simply a unique rock formation – and I will once again find myself marveling at the incredible wildlife and scenery. It’s at times like these I thank my lucky stars I had the wherewithal – or more likely good fortune – to end up along this corner of the Pacific. These are reminders that the natural beauty of the Monterey Bay is a constant. It’s there whether we take the time to recognize it or not.
Maybe we should take the time to recognize it. As the saying goes, “this is the only environment we have.” Let’s learn to love and appreciate it, and understand its complexity.
With that in mind, below I’ve prepared a sort of primer for anyone interested in the ecology of the Monterey Bay region. It focuses on the geography, geology, climate, and flora and fauna of the area, with a particular emphasis on nearshore marine environments (because we’re surfers, after all). It is necessarily general in scope; no effort is made to cover all aspects of the Bay’s environment or wildlife. Consequently, there are plenty of potentially interesting omissions, such as discussions of prevalent ocean currents, upwelling, and paleoenvironmental conditions, among others. It should also be noted that the topics discussed in the sections below are described in only the most general and superficial of senses; each section could rightfully continue for several long paragraphs. I nonetheless hope that what I’ve written conveys a sense of the place and its ecological complexity.
Finally, I conclude with a section suggesting a list of books for further reading. All of these books focus on some aspect of the ecology of the Monterey Bay area, and are highly recommended. The list is by no means complete, but will allow interested readers to delve deeper into the subject if they desire.
The Monterey Bay Region: An Ecological Overview
Monterey Bay is a large, open embayment located in Central California, approximately 50 miles (80 km) south of San Francisco. It is California’s second largest bay (after San Francisco Bay), and extends for some 45 miles (75 km) from north to south. It has traditionally been described as extending from Point Año Nuevo in the north to the Monterey Peninsula (including Carmel) in the south. Altogether, the Bay covers an area of 160 square miles and is one of the largest bays along the Pacific coast of North America.
The Monterey Bay area is characterized by a Mediterranean climate typified by mild, wet winters and warm, dry summers. Within this overall pattern, however, some contrasts exist, especially between coastal and inland contexts. Areas along the immediate coast, for example, are subject to cool marine influences and, in general, are less susceptible than inland zones to radical fluctuations in temperature. For the city of Carmel, the low in January and the high in July range from 6.3°C (43.3°F) to 19.9°C (67.8°F), respectively, though seasonal variability in temperature is not great. On average, the city of Carmel receives 63.5 cm (25 in) of rain a year, most of which falls between November and March. Winter storms cause wave action which transports sand offshore, leaving shoreline cliff edges susceptible to erosion. In the summer, less ocean turbidity carries sand back to the shoreline.
Geologically, the Monterey Bay lies within the Salinian Block, a large geologic formation that marks the broad boundary between the North American and Pacific plates. The Salinian Block is bounded on the east by the San Andreas Fault and on the west by the Sur-Nacimiento Fault. It extends for approximately 300 miles (480 km) northwestward from the Transverse Ranges north of Santa Barbara to Bodega Head north of San Francisco. The Salinian Block is made up of hard granitic rocks that crystallized between approximately 110 and 78 million years ago, during late Mesozoic times (250-60 million years ago). Older metamorphic rocks, primarily schist, gneiss, and marble, are also present in the formation and were probably deposited during Paleozoic times (540-250 million years ago). Based on the many similarities between the rocks of the Salinian Block and those of the Sierra Nevada, geologists have argued that the Salinian Block is a part of the Sierran Batholith (a batholith is a large body of igneous rock that was formed beneath the Earth’s surface). It is generally believed that the Salinian Block separated from the Sierran Batholith some 20 million years ago and, over time, was transported north by the movement of the San Andreas Fault.
Immediately offshore lies the Monterey Submarine Canyon, which begins approximately 330 feet (100 m) west of Moss Landing. It is the deepest and largest submarine canyon on the coast of North America and is composed of two primary canyons: Soquel Canyon to the north and Carmel Canyon to the south. The entire canyon extends about 45 nautical miles (82 km) offshore to the edge of the continental shelf. Canyon walls attain proportions similar to that of the Grand Canyon of the Colorado River, and plunge to depths of 11,800 feet. Numerous deep sea expeditions over the years have probed the depths of the canyon and uncovered some fascinating life forms – everything from bizarre-looking deep water fishes, sponges and gorgonians (sea fans) to animals that, oddly, are nourished by seepages of methane and sulfide.
The nutrient-rich waters of Monterey Bay support an extensive web of marine life. A varied fish population and a large and diverse population of marine mammals, including cetaceans (whales, dolphins and porpoises), pinnipeds (seals and sea lions) and fissipeds (sea otters), call the area home. The California sea otter (Enhydra lutris) is a threatened species that inhabits the nearshore waters of California, from Pismo Beach to Año Nuevo Island. Before their widespread exploitation during the 18th and 19th centuries, sea otters were abundant along a majority of the California coast. The species prefer to stay within one mile of shore, usually foraging in offshore kelp forests. Several scientific studies have established that sea otters are an important part of the marine ecosystem. By feeding on marine invertebrates (especially sea urchins that graze on kelp stalks), sea otters play a vital role in maintaining kelp forests, and the species that inhabit them. Otters help reduce the intensity of sea urchin grazing, thereby allowing kelp to develop dense populations.
There are two main coastal environments in the Monterey Bay area: Coastal strand and rocky intertidal. The coastal strand habitat features a community of sandy beaches and dune formations, the former created as a result of the transport of sediment down rivers. Vegetation in the dunes at Carmel River State Beach, for example, is composed of tidestrom’s lupine (Lupinus arboreus), a rare plant, as well as coastal sagewort (Artemesia pycnocephala), common and yellow sand verbena (Abronia latifolia), mock heather (Ericameria ericoides), coast buckwheat (Eriogonum latifolium), and California sage (Artemisia californica), among other plants. Burrowing animals are the predominant mammals of the dune habitat due to the harsh environmental conditions that result from shifting sands, salt accumulation and wave action. Segmented (Glycera spp., Arenicola spp.) and polychaete worms, bivalve mollusks and crustaceans (western sand crab [Emerita analoga]) are the most common invertebrates of this habitat, as well as sand dollars and gastropod mollusks. Black legless lizards (Aniella pulchra nigra) are a special status species also present in the dune habitat.
Rocky intertidal habitat is equally common in the Monterey Bay area, and is especially prevalent along the Monterey Peninsula and at Point Lobos. Invertebrates common to this habitat include California mussel (Mytilus californianus), barnacles (Balanus sp.), chitons (Polyplacophora), anemones (Anthopleura elegantissima), and various species of abalone (Haliotis sp.). Mobile invertebrates include crabs (Pagurus hirsutiusculus), littorine snails (Littorina sp.), Black Turban snails (Tegula funebralis), limpets (Acmaea spp.), sea stars (Asteroidea spp.), and purple sea urchins (Strongylocentrotus purpuratus). Fish of the intertidal zone include, among numerous others, striped surfperch (Embiotoca lateralis), tidepool sculpin (Oligocottus maculosus), tidepool snailfish (Liparis florae) and cabezon (Scorpaenichthys marmoratus). Sea mammals are also common to the rocky coast. The most common are California sea lion (Zalophus californianus), harbor seal (Phoca vitulina), and sea otter. There is evidence that northern fur seal (Callorhinus ursinus), the bones of which have been found in prehistoric Native American middens, also occupied the region in times past.
Especially prevalent along nearshore sections of the Monterey Bay are extensive kelp forests. These are so extensive and harbor such an array of life forms that some biologists have been inclined to classify these as habitats comparable to the coastal strand and rocky intertidal. The large kelp (Macrocystis spp.) common to the Monterey Bay is actually a form of brown algae, albeit of a considerable size. Under ideal conditions, the kelp stalks are capable of growing to 100 feet in height and, amazingly, can grow up to nearly two feet a day. Within the confines of these massive stalks and swaying fronds are a myriad of fishes, such as sheephead (Semicossyphus pulcher), basses and groupers (Serranidae), scorpionfishes (Scorpaena guttata), wrasses (Labridae), rockfishes (Sebastes spp.), and countless others. Sea urchins and kelp crabs (Pugettia producta) also inhabit these forests in large numbers. Small schooling fishes, such as herring and sardines, were once abundant in the bay, but their numbers have been greatly reduced as a result of commercial overfishing.
Terrestrial plants common to the Monterey Bay region include California tule (Schoenoplectus acutus), cat-tail (Typha angustifolia), mule fat (Baccharis salicifolia) and sedges (Cyperus spp.). Animals common to this habitat include various species of frogs, lizards, snakes, and insects. Mammals include black-tailed deer (Odocoileus hemionus), raccoon (Procyon lotor), striped skunk (Mephitis mephitis), bobcat (Lynx rufus), and numerous species of rodents, including California ground squirrel (Spermophilus beecheyi) and pocket gopher (Thomomys bottae). During past times, grizzly bears (Ursus arctos horribilis), mountain lions (Felis concolor), pronghorn antelope (Antilocapra Americana), grey wolves (Canis lupus), and tule elk (Cervus canadensis nannodes) were plentiful in the area, though today these species have either been wholly extirpated from the state or reduced greatly in number.
Finally, a large number of seabirds are common to the Monterey Bay region. In fact, ornithologists have argued that there are nearly 100 species of birds that call the area home. These can be separated into breeding and migratory birds, and their numbers vary by the season. Breeding species include, among others, cormorants (Phalacrocorax spp.), Brown pelican (Pelecanus occidentalis) (before 1959), Western gull (Larus occidentalis), pigeon guillemots (Cepphus columba) and Forster’s tern (Sterna forsteri). Some common seasonal visitors include loon (Gaviidae), grebe (Podicipedidae), tern (Sterna spp.), marbled murrelet (Brachyrampus marmoratus), sooty shearwater (Puffinus griseus), Cassin’s auklet (Ptychoramphus aleuticus), and common murre (Uria aalgae). Several species of threatened or endangered species of bird can also be found in the region, including the snowy plover (Charadrius nivosus), short-tailed albatross (Diomedea albatrus), and California least tern (Sterna antillarum browni). This incredibly diverse array of bird life has largely been attributed to the abundant food resulting from the region’s pattern of coastal upwelling.
All in all, the Monterey Bay area is a dynamic region that harbors an incredible variety of life. There are few places in the world like it. It is, in my mind, one of the world’s great treasures, a beautiful region that, despite having undergone radical changes since urbanization, is nonetheless still a place of wild and awe-inspiring landscapes, a place that can easily grab hold of one’s imagination and never let go. Mythologist Joseph Campbell once described the area as an “Earthly Paradise.” Hyperbole aside, his description has been echoed by various writers, travelers, and visitors. Robert Louis Stevenson, who visited the region in the late 1800s, characterized it as “the greatest meeting of land and sea in the world.” Stevenson went on to describe, in his essay “The Old Pacific Capital,” the haunting quality of the ever-present sea in the lives of the region’s inhabitants. It seems fitting to conclude this essay with his quotation.
“But the sound of the sea still follows you as you advance, like that of wind among the trees, only harsher and stranger to the ear; and when at length you gain the summit, out breaks on every hand and with freshened vigour that same unending, distant, whispering rumble of the ocean; for now you are on the top of Monterey peninsula, and the noise no longer only mounts to you from behind along the beach towards Santa Cruz, but from your right also, round by Chinatown and Pinos lighthouse, and from down before you to the mouth of the Carmello river. The whole woodland is begirt with thundering surges.”
Books for further reading:
1. Monterey Bay Area: Natural History and Cultural Imprints – by Burton L. Gordon (1996)
2. The Death and Life of Monterey Bay: A Story of Revival – by Stephen R. Palumbi (2011)
3. A Natural History of the Monterey Bay National Marine Sanctuary – by Michael A. Rigsby (1999)
4. Between Pacific Tides – by Edward Ricketts (various editions)
5. The Old and New Pacific Capitals – by Robert Louis Stevenson (1880)
6. A Natural History of California – by Allan A. Schoenherr (This last book is not specifically about the Monterey Bay region but is an excellent overview of the entire state of California, and worth reading.)
