Jug Handle State Natural Reserve is a state park unit of

California California is a state in the Western United States, located along the Pacific Coast. With nearly 39.2million residents across a total area of approximately , it is the most populous U.S. state and the 3rd largest by area. It is also the m ...

, United States, preserving a series of

marine terrace A raised beach, coastal terrace,Pinter, N (2010): 'Coastal Terraces, Sealevel, and Active Tectonics' (educational exercise), from 2/04/2011or perched coastline is a relatively flat, horizontal or gently inclined surface of marine origin,Pira ...

s each exhibiting a different stage of ecological succession. It is located on California State Route 1 north of the village of Caspar, equidistant between the towns of Mendocino and Fort Bragg. The park was established in 1976.

Natural history

The reserve encompasses five marine terraces along the Pacific coast, cut by wave action over millennia as the sea level fluctuated and the land underwent

tectonic uplift Tectonic uplift is the geologic uplift of Earth's surface that is attributed to plate tectonics. While isostatic response is important, an increase in the mean elevation of a region can only occur in response to tectonic processes of crustal th ...

. Each terrace has been above water about 100,000 years longer than the level below it. Consequently, each terrace contains a different

plant community A plant community is a collection or association of plant species within a designated geographical unit, which forms a relatively uniform patch, distinguishable from neighboring patches of different vegetation types. The components of each plant ...

, with each level showing 100,000 years of progression through the stages of ecological succession. The lowest terrace supports

prairie Prairies are ecosystems considered part of the temperate grasslands, savannas, and shrublands biome by ecologists, based on similar temperate climates, moderate rainfall, and a composition of grasses, herbs, and shrubs, rather than trees, as the ...

, the second bears a redwood forest, and the third exhibits a unique

pygmy forest In anthropology, pygmy peoples are ethnic groups whose average height is unusually short. The term pygmyism is used to describe the phenotype of endemic short stature (as opposed to disproportionate dwarfism occurring in isolated cases in a p ...

of cypresses and pines and dwarfed shrubs of rhododendron, manzanita, and huckleberry. In 1969, the pygmy forest was designated as a National Natural Landmark by the National Park Service. The Ecological Staircase is a trail which traverses these three terraces from the coast to inland. According to the California Department of Parks and Recreation, "few places on earth display a more complete record of ecological succession." While marine terraces formed along much of the California coast,

erosion Erosion is the action of surface processes (such as water flow or wind) that removes soil, rock, or dissolved material from one location on the Earth's crust, and then transports it to another location where it is deposited. Erosion is dis ...

has rendered them indistinct except in rare places like Jug Handle State Natural Reserve. Along upper Jug Handle Creek are some sphagnum bogs containing mosses and insectivorous

sundew ''Drosera'', which is commonly known as the sundews, is one of the largest genera of carnivorous plants, with at least 194 species. 2 volumes. These members of the family Droseraceae lure, capture, and digest insects using stalked mucilaginou ...

Cultural history

The park is named after Jug Handle Creek, which runs through it; the name "Jug Handle" is also sometimes spelled as a single word, and comes from the shape of a bend in the old road across the creek. California State Route 1 now crosses the creek on a concrete open-spandrel

deck arch bridge An arch bridge is a bridge with abutments at each end shaped as a curved arch. Arch bridges work by transferring the weight of the bridge and its loads partially into a horizontal thrust restrained by the abutments at either side. A viaduct ( ...

, built in 1938. In the 1960s, the Jug Handle area was threatened with logging and

real estate development Real estate development, or property development, is a business process, encompassing activities that range from the renovation and re-lease of existing buildings to the purchase of raw land and the sale of developed land or parcels to other ...

. Conservationist John Olmsted worked extensively with pedologist Hans Jenny and local activists to preserve the farmhouse and the bluffs between 1968 and 1972, ending in a landmark lawsuit, ''Burger v. Mendocino Board of Supervisors'', involving the Pacific Holiday Lodge corporation, who had planned a motel on the bluffs overlooking the beach. The success was solidified by another case, '' Friends of Mammoth v. Board of Supervisors''. Jug Handle State Natural Reserve was one of 70 California state parks proposed for closure by July 2012, owing to the 2008–12 California budget crisis. Alden Olmsted, son of John Olmsted, spearheaded fundraising efforts, placing donation buckets at businesses throughout the region. The $9,500 raised, plus a matching donation from the California State Parks Foundation, will fund maintenance services at the reserve into 2013.

References

External links

Jug Handle State Natural Reserve
{{authority control 1976 establishments in California California State Reserves Protected areas established in 1976 Protected areas of Mendocino County, California National Natural Landmarks in California

Natural history

Cultural history

See also

References

External links