The wildlife of the

Channel Islands of California The Channel Islands () are an eight-island archipelago located within the Southern California Bight in the Pacific Ocean, off the coast of California. The four Northern Channel Islands are part of the Transverse Ranges geologic province, ...

is wide and diverse, including many

endemic Endemism is the state of a species being found in a single defined geographic location, such as an island, state, nation, country or other defined zone; organisms that are indigenous to a place are not endemic to it if they are also found else ...

species. While the land wildlife is slightly limited, there being only one large, naturally predatory, and native mammal, the small

island fox The island fox (''Urocyon littoralis'') is a small fox that is endemic to six of the eight Channel Islands of California. There are six subspecies, each unique to the island it lives on, reflecting its evolutionary history. They are generally d ...

, marine life can include anything from

kelp Kelps are large brown algae seaweeds that make up the order Laminariales. There are about 30 different genera. Despite its appearance, kelp is not a plant - it is a heterokont, a completely unrelated group of organisms. Kelp grows in "underwa ...

forests to

great white sharks The great white shark (''Carcharodon carcharias''), also known as the white shark, white pointer, or simply great white, is a species of large Lamniformes, mackerel shark which can be found in the coastal surface waters of all the major ocean ...

Flora

Flora on the Channel Islands include endemic subspecies of pine, oak, and the island tree mallow. Santa Rosa Island holds two groves of the Torrey pine 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 ''Macrocystis pyrifera'', commonly known as giant kelp or bladder kelp, is a species of kelp (large brown algae), and one of four species in the genus ''Macrocystis''. Despite its appearance, it is not a plant; it is a heterokont. Giant kelp is ...

forests surround the islands and act as a source of nutrition and protection for other animals. Invasive species, such as the Australian blue gum tree, olive 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

wildfire A wildfire, forest fire, bushfire, wildland fire or rural fire is an unplanned, uncontrolled and unpredictable fire in an area of combustible vegetation. Depending on the type of vegetation present, a wildfire may be more specifically identi ...

s 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'') * Island tree mallow (''Lavatera assurgentiflora'') *

Island ceanothus ''Ceanothus arboreus'' is a species of perennial shrub to small tree in the family Rhamnaceae, commonly known as the feltleaf ceanothus, island ceanothus, and island mountain lilac. It is the largest member of the California lilacs (the ''Ceanot ...

(''Ceanothus arboreus'') *

Island bush-poppy 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 ...

(''Dendromecon rigida'' ssp. ''harfordii'') * Island alumroot (''

Heuchera maxima ''Heuchera maxima'' is a species of flowering plant in the saxifrage family, known by the common names island alum root, Channel Islands coral bells, and Jill of the rocks. It is endemic to the four northern Channel Islands of California, withi ...

'') *

Santa Barbara Island buckwheat ''Eriogonum giganteum'', with the common name St. Catherine's lace, is a species of wild buckwheat in Southern California.

(''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 ...

* Torrey pine (''Pinus torreyana'') are subspecies sole occurrence* Santa Catalina Island currant ('' Ribes viburnifolium'')

Fauna

In the waters of the Channel Islands,

sea lions Sea lions are pinnipeds characterized by external ear flaps, long foreflippers, the ability to walk on all fours, short and thick hair, and a big chest and belly. Together with the fur seals, they make up the family Otariidae, eared seals. ...

are very common. Sharks like great whites, bulls, and

tigers The tiger (''Panthera tigris'') is the largest living cat species and a member of the genus ''Panthera''. It is most recognisable for its dark vertical stripes on orange fur with a white underside. An apex predator, it primarily preys on un ...

roam the seas.

Orcas The orca or killer whale (''Orcinus orca'') is a toothed whale belonging to the oceanic dolphin family, of which it is the largest member. It is the only extant species in the genus ''Orcinus'' and is recognizable by its black-and-white pat ...

also appear near the Channel Islands. A colony of mostly

western gull The western gull (''Larus occidentalis'') is a large white-headed gull that lives on the west coast of North America. It was previously considered conspecific with the yellow-footed gull (''Larus livens'') of the Gulf of California. The western ...

s lived on

Anacapa Island Anacapa Island (Chumash: ''Anyapax'', meaning "mirage, illusion") is a small volcanic island located about off the coast of Port Hueneme, California, in Ventura County. The island is composed of a series of narrow islets long, oriented ...

. The Channel Islands and surrounding waters hold many

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 ...

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

blue whale The blue whale (''Balaenoptera musculus'') is a marine mammal and a baleen whale. Reaching a maximum confirmed length of and weighing up to , it is the largest animal known to have ever existed. The blue whale's long and slender body can ...

humpback whale The humpback whale (''Megaptera novaeangliae'') is a species of baleen whale. It is a rorqual (a member of the family Balaenopteridae) and is the only species in the genus ''Megaptera''. Adults range in length from and weigh up to . The hu ...

s, and

California sea lions The California sea lion (''Zalophus californianus'') is a coastal eared seal native to western North America. It is one of six species of sea lions. Its natural habitat ranges from southeast Alaska to central Mexico, including the Gulf of Cali ...

breed or feed close to the Channel Islands. It is unknown if critically endangered

North Pacific right whale The North Pacific right whale (''Eubalaena japonica'') is a very large, thickset baleen whale species that is extremely rare and endangered. The Northeast Pacific population, which summers in the southeastern Bering Sea and Gulf of Alaska, may ...

s, and historically abundant Steller's sea lions are present. Seabirds, including

s, bald eagles,

pigeon guillemot The pigeon guillemot (''Cepphus columba'') () is a species of bird in the auk family, Alcidae. One of three species in the genus ''Cepphus'', it is most closely related to the spectacled guillemot. There are five subspecies of the pigeon guil ...

s, 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

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 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 ...

and

island night lizard The island night lizard (''Xantusia riversiana'') is a species of night lizard native to three of the Channel Islands of California: San Nicolas Island, Santa Barbara Island, and San Clemente Island. A small number of island night lizards also ...

, live on the islands, as well as the endemic amphibian the

Channel Islands slender salamander The Channel Islands slender salamander (''Batrachoseps pacificus'') is a species of salamander in the family Plethodontidae. Distribution and habitat It is endemic to chaparral and woodlands, temperate forests, temperate shrubland, and temperat ...

. Non-native species can include feral cows, sheep, and pigs. *

Island fox The island fox (''Urocyon littoralis'') is a small fox that is endemic to six of the eight Channel Islands of California. There are six subspecies, each unique to the island it lives on, reflecting its evolutionary history. They are generally d ...

(''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 The ashy storm petrel (''Hydrobates homochroa'') is a small, scarce seabird of the storm petrel family Hydrobatidae. It breeds colonially on islands off the coasts of California and Mexico, and is one of six species of storm petrel that live a ...

(''Oceanodroma homochroa'') *

Island fence lizard 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 ...

(''Sceloporus occidentalis becki'') *

Island night lizard The island night lizard (''Xantusia riversiana'') is a species of night lizard native to three of the Channel Islands of California: San Nicolas Island, Santa Barbara Island, and San Clemente Island. A small number of island night lizards also ...

(''Xantusia riversiana'') *

Deer mouse ''Peromyscus'' is a genus of rodents. They are commonly referred to as deer mice or deermice, not to be confused with the chevrotain or "mouse deer". They are New World mice only distantly related to the common house and laboratory mouse, ''Mu ...

(''Batrachoseps pacificus'') * Santa Cruz sheep * San Clemente Island goat * Catalina Island buffalo herd * San Clemente

Bewick's wren The Bewick's wren (''Thryomanes bewickii'') is a wren native to North America. It is the only species placed in the genus ''Thryomanes''. At about long, it is grey-brown above, white below, with a long white eyebrow. While similar in appearan ...

(''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 an ...

''), 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 An apex predator, also known as a top predator, is a predator at the top of a food chain, without natural predators of its own. Apex predators are usually defined in terms of trophic dynamics, meaning that they occupy the highest trophic lev ...

), eagles, and foxes. The island fox eats

fruit In botany, a fruit is the seed-bearing structure in flowering plants that is formed from the ovary after flowering. Fruits are the means by which flowering plants (also known as angiosperms) disseminate their seeds. Edible fruits in particu ...

insect Insects (from Latin ') are pancrustacean hexapod invertebrates of the class Insecta. They are the largest group within the arthropod phylum. Insects have a chitinous exoskeleton, a three-part body ( head, thorax and abdomen), three ...

bird Birds are a group of warm-blooded vertebrates constituting the class Aves (), characterised by feathers, toothless beaked jaws, the laying of hard-shelled eggs, a high metabolic rate, a four-chambered heart, and a strong yet lightweig ...

eggs Humans and human ancestors have scavenged and eaten animal eggs for millions of years. Humans in Southeast Asia had domesticated chickens and harvested their eggs for food by 1,500 BCE. The most widely consumed eggs are those of fowl, especial ...

, crabs, lizards, and small mammals, 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 reindee ...

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 Santa Cruz Island ( Spanish: ''Isla Santa Cruz'', Chumash: ''Limuw'') is located off the southwestern coast of Ventura, California, United States. It is the largest island in California and largest of the eight islands in the Channel Islands ...

and Santa Rosa Island. It used to be confirmed to exist on a third island,

San Miguel Island San Miguel Island (Chumash: ''Tuqan'') is the westernmost of California's Channel Islands, located across the Santa Barbara Channel in the Pacific Ocean, within Santa Barbara County, California. San Miguel is the sixth-largest of the eight Ch ...

, 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 The Channel Islands ( nrf, Îles d'la Manche; french: îles Anglo-Normandes or ''îles de la Manche'') are an archipelago in the English Channel, off the French coast of Normandy. They include two Crown Dependencies: the Bailiwick of Jersey, ...

Channel wildlife

Articles containing video clips Biota of archipelagoes