The wildlife of the Channel Islands of California is wide and diverse, including many endemic species. While the land wildlife is slightly limited, there being only one large, naturally predatory, and native mammal, the small island fox, marine life can include anything from kelp forests to great white sharks.

Flora

Flora on the Channel Islands include endemic subspecies of pine, oak, and the

island tree mallow ''Malva assurgentiflora'', formerly classified as ''Lavatera assurgentiflora'',The ...

. Santa Rosa Island holds two groves of the

Torrey pine The Torrey pine (''Pinus torreyana'') is a rare pine species in California, United States. It is a critically endangered species growing only in coastal San Diego County, and on Santa Rosa Island, offshore from Santa Barbara in Santa Barbara ...

subspecies ''Pinus torreyana'' var. ''insularis'', which is endemic to the island. Torrey pines are the United States' rarest pine species. The islands also house many rare and endangered plants, including the island barberry, the island rushrose, and the Santa Cruz Island lace pod. Giant kelp forests surround the islands and act as a source of nutrition and protection for other animals.

Invasive species An invasive species otherwise known as an alien is an introduced organism that becomes overpopulated and harms its new environment. Although most introduced species are neutral or beneficial with respect to other species, invasive species ad ...

, such as the Australian blue gum tree,

olive The olive, botanical name ''Olea europaea'', meaning 'European olive' in Latin, is a species of small tree or shrub in the family Oleaceae, found traditionally in the Mediterranean Basin. When in shrub form, it is known as ''Olea europaea'' ...

tree, sweet fennel and

Harding grass ''Phalaris aquatica'', known by the common names bulbous canary-grass and Harding grass, is a species of grass in the genus ''Phalaris'' of the family Poaceae. Description It is an erect, waist-high, stout perennial bunch grass, with grayish to ...

threaten native species through competition for light, nutrients, and water. The Australian blue gum, for example, releases toxins in its leaf litter which prevent other species of plants from growing in the soil surrounding it. The blue gum, as well as other species including the Harding grass, are much more flammable and better adapted to wildfires than native species. Kelp forests and many species of seaweed, sea urchin, and other marine plants live on the ocean floor. * Catalina cherry (''Prunus ilicifolia'' ssp. ''lyonii'') * Catalina ironwood (''

Lyonothamnus floribundus ''Lyonothamnus'' is a monotypic genus of trees in the rose family containing the single living species ''Lyonothamnus floribundus'', which is known by the common name Catalina ironwood, and the subspecies ''L. f.'' ssp. ''aspleniifolius'' and '' ...

'') * Green liveforever (''

Dudleya hassei ''Dudleya virens'', the green liveforever or bright green dudleya, is an uncommon species of perennial, succulent plant in the family Crassulaceae, native to several coastal southern California and Baja California locations. Distribution The ...

'') * Giant coreopsis (''Coreopsis gigantea'') *

Island oak ''Quercus tomentella'', the island oak, island live oak, or Channel Island oak, is an oak in the section Quercus section Protobalanus, ''Protobalanus''. It is native to six islands: five of the Channel Islands of California and Guadalupe Island ...

(''Quercus tomentella'') *

Island tree mallow ''Malva assurgentiflora'', formerly classified as ''Lavatera assurgentiflora'',The ...

(''Lavatera assurgentiflora'') * Island ceanothus (''Ceanothus arboreus'') * Island bush-poppy (''Dendromecon rigida'' ssp. ''harfordii'') * Island alumroot ('' Heuchera maxima'') * Santa Barbara Island buckwheat (''Eriogonum giganteum'' var. ''compactum'') *

Island barberry An island (or isle) is an isolated piece of habitat that is surrounded by a dramatically different habitat, such as water. Very small islands such as emergent land features on atolls can be called islets, skerries, cays or keys. An island ...

(''Berberis pinnata'' ssp. ''insularis'') *

San Clemente Island bushmallow ''Malacothamnus clementinus'' is a rare species of flowering plant in the mallow family known by the common name San Clemente Island bushmallow. It is endemic to San Clemente Island, one of the Channel Islands of California, where it is known f ...

(''Malacothamnus clementinus'') *

Santa Cruz Island bush mallow Santa Claus, also known as Father Christmas, Saint Nicholas, Saint Nick, Kris Kringle, or simply Santa, is a legendary figure originating in Western Christian culture who is said to bring children gifts during the late evening and overnight ...

(''Malacothamnus fasciculatus'' var. ''nesioticus'') *

Santa Cruz Island ironwood Santa Claus, also known as Father Christmas, Saint Nicholas, Saint Nick, Kris Kringle, or simply Santa, is a legendary figure originating in Western Christian culture who is said to bring children gifts during the late evening and overnight ...

(very like the Catalina ironwood, ''

Lyonothamnus ''Lyonothamnus'' is a monotypic genus of trees in the rose family containing the single living species ''Lyonothamnus floribundus'', which is known by the common name Catalina ironwood, and the subspecies ''L. f.'' ssp. ''aspleniifolius'' and '' ...

'') *

Santa Cruz Island silver lotus Santa Claus, also known as Father Christmas, Saint Nicholas, Saint Nick, Kris Kringle, or simply Santa, is a legendary figure originating in Western Christian culture who is said to bring children gifts during the late evening and overnight ...

(''Pinus torreyana'') are subspecies sole occurrence* Santa Catalina Island currant (''

Ribes viburnifolium ''Ribes viburnifolium'', is an uncommon North American species in the gooseberry family. It is known by the common names Catalina currant, Santa Catalina Island currant, island gooseberry and evergreen currant. Description ''Ribes viburnifolium ...

'')

Fauna

In the waters of the Channel Islands, sea lions are very common. Sharks like great whites,

bulls Bulls may refer to: *The plural of bull, an adult male bovine *Bulls, New Zealand, a small town in the Rangitikei District Sports *Bucking bull, used in the sport of bull riding *Bulls (rugby union), a South African rugby union franchise operated ...

, and tigers roam the seas. Orcas also appear near the Channel Islands. A colony of mostly western gulls lived on Anacapa Island. The Channel Islands and surrounding waters hold many endemic species and subspecies of animals, including fauna such as the Channel Islands deer mouse, the

Channel Islands spotted skunk The island spotted skunk (''Spilogale gracilis amphialus'') is an insular endemic carnivore and a subspecies of the western spotted skunk (''Spilogale gracilis''). Little is known about their exact variations from the mainland spotted skunk and v ...

island scrub jay The island scrub jay (''Aphelocoma insularis''), also known as the island jay or Santa Cruz jay, is a bird in the genus, '' Aphelocoma'', which is endemic to Santa Cruz Island off the coast of Southern California. Of the over 500 breeding bird sp ...

San Clemente loggerhead shrike The San Clemente loggerhead shrike (''Lanius ludovicianus mearnsi'') or San Clemente Island loggerhead shrike is a subspecies of the loggerhead shrike that is endemic to San Clemente Island, California. Description The San Clemente loggerhead sh ...

, and San Clemente Bell's sparrow. Many species of large marine mammals, including Pacific

gray whale The gray whale (''Eschrichtius robustus''), also known as the grey whale,Britannica Micro.: v. IV, p. 693. gray back whale, Pacific gray whale, Korean gray whale, or California gray whale, is a baleen whale that migrates between feeding and bree ...

s, blue whales, humpback whales, and California sea lions breed or feed close to the Channel Islands. It is unknown if critically endangered North Pacific right whales, and historically abundant

Steller's sea lion The Steller sea lion (''Eumetopias jubatus''), also known as the Steller's sea lion and northern sea lion, is a near-threatened species of sea lion in the northern Pacific. It is the sole member of the genus ''Eumetopias'' and the largest of t ...

s are present. Seabirds, including western gulls,

bald eagle The bald eagle (''Haliaeetus leucocephalus'') is a bird of prey found in North America. A sea eagle, it has two known subspecies and forms a species pair with the white-tailed eagle (''Haliaeetus albicilla''), which occupies the same niche as ...

s, pigeon guillemots, and

Scripps's murrelet Scripps's murrelet (''Synthliboramphus scrippsi'') is a small seabird found in the California Current system in the Pacific Ocean. This auk breeds on islands off California and Mexico. It is threatened by predators introduced to its breeding col ...

s use the islands as well for shelter and breeding grounds. The endemic island fox is California's smallest natural canine and has rebounded from its near extinction in the late 1990s. Several endemic reptile species, including the island fence lizard and island night lizard, live on the islands, as well as the endemic amphibian the Channel Islands slender salamander . Non-native species can include feral cows, sheep, and pigs. * Island fox (''Urocyon littoralis'') * Channel Island spotted skunk (''Spilogale gracilis amphiala'') *

Island scrub jay The island scrub jay (''Aphelocoma insularis''), also known as the island jay or Santa Cruz jay, is a bird in the genus, '' Aphelocoma'', which is endemic to Santa Cruz Island off the coast of Southern California. Of the over 500 breeding bird sp ...

(''Aphelocoma insularis'') * Ashy storm-petrel (''Oceanodroma homochroa'') * Island fence lizard (''Sceloporus occidentalis becki'') * Island night lizard (''Xantusia riversiana'') * Deer mouse * Channel Islands slender salamander (''Batrachoseps pacificus'') *

Santa Cruz sheep Santa Cruz sheep are an extremely rare breed of domestic sheep that once existed as a feral population on the Santa Cruz Island of the Channel Islands of California. Small and hardy, the sheep were all killed or removed from the island to prevent ...

San Clemente Island goat The San Clemente Island goat is a type of domestic goat derived from feral goats isolated on San Clemente Island, one of the Channel Islands of California. History The long-isolated feral goats of the Channel Islands, including the San Clemente I ...

* Catalina Island buffalo herd * San Clemente Bewick's wren (''Thryomane bewickii leucophrys''), extinct 1927 * Pygmy mammoth (''

Mammuthus exilis A mammoth is any species of the extinct elephantid genus ''Mammuthus'', one of the many genera that make up the order of trunked mammals called proboscideans. The various species of mammoth were commonly equipped with long, curved tusks and, ...

''), prehistoric * Giant deer mouse (''

Peromyscus nesodytes The giant island deer mouse (''Peromyscus nesodytes'') became extinct approximately 8,000 years BP and lived during the late Pleistocene on California’s Channel Islands.Guthrie, D.A. (1993). New information on the prehistoric fauna of San Migu ...

''), prehistoric

Food chain

The lowest on the food chain are the plants. Deer mice and small vermin, like the spotted skunk, follow, along with insects, lizards, and small birds, mammals and fish. The predatory animals include sharks, orcas (an apex predator), eagles, and foxes. The island fox eats fruits, insects, birds, eggs,

crab Crabs are decapod crustaceans of the infraorder Brachyura, which typically have a very short projecting "tail" (abdomen) ( el, βραχύς , translit=brachys = short, / = tail), usually hidden entirely under the thorax. They live in all the ...

lizard Lizards are a widespread group of squamate reptiles, with over 7,000 species, ranging across all continents except Antarctica, as well as most oceanic island chains. The group is paraphyletic since it excludes the snakes and Amphisbaenia alt ...

s, and small

mammal Mammals () are a group of vertebrate animals constituting the class Mammalia (), characterized by the presence of mammary glands which in females produce milk for feeding (nursing) their young, a neocortex (a region of the brain), fur or ...

s, including

deer mice Deer or true deer are hoofed ruminant mammals forming the family Cervidae. The two main groups of deer are the Cervinae, including the muntjac, the elk (wapiti), the red deer, and the fallow deer; and the Capreolinae, including the reindeer ...

Land mammals

Native

There are only three native land mammals on the archipelago: The island deer mouse, the island spotted skunk, and the island fox.

Deer mouse

The deer mouse exists on all five islands. It can survive in conditions with a significant lack of fresh water, for example, Santa Barbara and Anacapa islands, the two Channel Islands without rivers.

Spotted skunk

The spotted skunk is only confirmed to exist on Santa Cruz Island and Santa Rosa Island. It used to be confirmed to exist on a third island, San Miguel Island, but is now presumed, but not confirmed, extirpated from there. Santa Cruz Island houses some skunks, however, Santa Rosa Island is home to over three thousand.

Island fox

The island fox is the largest native land mammal, existing on three of the five Channel Islands: Santa Cruz, Santa Rosa, and San Miguel. It does not exist on the Santa Barbara and Anacapa islands, though, due to the lack of fresh water.

References

{{reflist .Wildlife *List Channel Islands Channel wildlife Channel Islands of California Articles containing video clips Biota of archipelagoes