The Oceans Surrounding Santa Rosa Island, California
In today’s article, we will be delving into the Oceans Surrounding Santa Rosa Island. Santa Rosa Island is a relatively small island approximately 26 miles off the coast of Santa Barbara, South Central California. It is the second largest island in the Channel Islands Archipelago of California. The island is approximately 83.12 square miles (215.27981 square kilometers) in area.
Despite being so large, the island has a minuscule population of 2 people, making for an extremely low population density of 0.024061597690087 square miles (0.009290234880828 square kilometers). The island is well known for its beautiful hiking trails, rolling hills, deep canyons, & mesmerizing coastline. Many tidepools are located along its coastline, which are frequently explored by curious visitors. The lagoons near the island are often used as whale nurseries, & dolphin nurseries for young dolphins. Overall, the oceans surrounding Santa Rosa Island are incredibly biodiverse, housing over 100 endangered animals, & serving as a breeding ground for many more.
In addition to the dolphins who frequent the area, Sharks are also fairly common. Both adult & juvenile great white sharks can be seen off the coast of the island, frolicking around in the waters & hunting for food.
The island is also diverse in its terrestrial ecosystems, being home to many endangered plant & animal species. Torrey’s Pine, a critically endangered species of Pine Tree is known to grow on the island. This species of tree is theorized to have approximately 1,000 individual trees growing on the island. Apart from this species of tree, there are approximately 6 plants that are endemic to the island, meaning that they are not found in any other place on Earth.
In this article, we are going to discuss the salinity, tides, temperatures, marine geography, & depth of the oceans surrounding Santa Rosa Island, the most prominent marine environments of Santa Rosa Island, the marine flora & fauna of Santa Rosa Island, how ocean acidification & rising oceanic temperatures are affecting Santa Rosa Island. With that being said, let us delve into the gorgeous blue coves of Santa Rosa Island.
The salinity, tides, temperatures, marine geography, & depth of the oceans surrounding Santa Rosa Island
Unfortunately, the salinity of the oceans surrounding Santa Rosa Island has not been measured before, however, it can be assumed that it falls between the numbers of 32 parts per thousand, & 36 parts per thousand, as the seawater in this area of the Pacific Ocean generally falls between those figures. Salinity is measured in 1000-gram increments of water, & for every 1000 grams of water, a certain amount is salt. This measurement is called Parts Per Thousand, or Practical Salinity Units. There are not many known brine pools around Santa Rosa Island, nor are there many oceanic salt deposits.
The tidal charts for the areas around the isle can be found on a plethora of websites, a few of which are: https://www.tideschart.com, https://www.tide-forecast.com, https://www.usharbors.com, & https://www.tidetime.org. The tides in the area typically don’t reach over 6.94 feet (2.115312 meters) high, & don’t reach below -2.34 feet (-0.713232 meters). The oceanic temperature charts can be found on similar web pages, such as: https://www.tideschart.com, https://seatemperature.info, & https://www.surf-forecast.com. Using these charts, the average yearly oceanic temperature is approximately 59.841666666667 Fahrenheit (15.46759259259278 Celsius).
Using a wetsuit guide, swimmers should use a 7-millimeter thick full wet suit or an 8-millimeter semi-dry suit. Swimming is not a common activity around the island, as it is extremely cold & rip currents may present a danger to swimmers. For similar reasons kayaking as well as surfing is very difficult & somewhat dangerous around the island, & should only be done by those who are well experienced. The sea-caves around the island are prone to quickly filling with water at all hours of the day, & the weather as well as currents can be unpredictable.
Tourism is not very popular on the island, & is almost always done for the island’s oceanic or terrestrial ecosystems.
As the island is a part of a marine reserve, it is not very polluted. Littering is strictly forbidden around the island.
The deepest oceanic point within a 5-mile radius of Santa Rosa Island is toward the south of the island, & is approximately 1,589.9 feet (484.60152 meters) deep. Additionally, the seafloor is largely composed of compressed sand, gravel, shell, mud, & rock. There are no known large sea mounts around Santa Rosa Island, & there are no extreme oceanic drop-offs apart from near the shoreline.
Parts of the island are a part of what is known as the Channel Islands National Marine Reserve. This means that the island is highly biologically protected, & activities that damage or otherwise harm the environment are strictly prohibited & penalized accordingly.
The Most Prominent Marine Environments Of Santa Rosa Island
Ecosystem Type No. 1: Seagrass Meadows
Seagrass meadows are large patches of seagrass that oxygenate the water & provide shelter for marine organisms. These meadows are incredibly important to the oceanic ecosystem, as they provide a food source, an oxygen source, & shelter simultaneously. These areas are commonly used by fish & mollusks alike to spawn their eggs, as the seagrass provides a safe area for their hatchlings. These seagrass meadows may be composed of 1 species of seagrass, or be composed of multiple species depending on their depth. Typically, these meadows can be found from 0.25 to 190 feet (0.0762 meters to 57.912 feet) deep.
Ecosystem Type No. 2: Intertidal Zones & Tide Pools
An intertidal zone is an area of coastline that is exposed to air at low tide, & is covered with water at high tide. It is a very important location for many small marine animals, such as gastropods, crustaceans, & bivalves. Many animals will take advantage of the nutrients & microorganisms that come in with the high tide. Tide pools are a kind of rock formation located in the intertidal zone, in which water becomes trapped to form a small pool. These pools generally have species from the phyla Echinodermata & Mollusca in them.
Ecosystem Type No. 3: Sea Caves
Sea caves are a kind of rock formation that embellish the coastline of Santa Rosa Island. The sea caves around Santa Rosa Island are usually only partially filled with seawater, & instead of being completely submerged. For this reason, kayakers will occasionally attempt to go through these sea caves, despite the danger of the cave being suddenly submerged. Fauna in these caves can vary, however they are often home to eels, turtles, sponges, shrimp, bivalves, anemones, urchins, crabs, sea stars, barnacles, & fish.
The Marine Flora Of Santa Rosa Island
Santa Rosa Island is home to a variety of marine flora, such as eelgrass, giant kelp, & bullwhip kelp. Zostera marina (Eelgrass / Seawrack) is the most common species of seagrass that grows around Santa Rosa Island. This species is a true seagrass, meaning that it grows directly on the ocean floor. It is extremely recognizable as it has bright green blades. They generally have long blades that average 1 meter (3.28084 feet) long. The blade is often between 0.5 (0.19685 inches) & 1 centimeter (0.393701 inches) thick. This species of seagrass is most often found on the coast as it grows along muddy & sandy shorelines. This seagrass is also most commonly found in marshes, which is likely why it is such a popular food among wading birds. Additionally, this seagrass is extremely important to preventing erosion, & to fish spawning. When they grow, they create dense patches that will shield the coastline from harsh currents, thus preventing the currents from affecting coastal buildings & shorelines.
The Marine Fauna Of Santa Rosa Island
Santa Rosa Island has a very diverse range of marine fauna. With animals ranging from northern elephant seals to orca’s, to brittle stars, Santa Rosa Island truly has a unique marine landscape. The island is home to many fish, such as the California sheephead, giant sea bass, lingcod, & large calico bass.
Due to the migratory nature of many of the island creatures, conducting a marine animal survey is very difficult to do accurately. For this reason, we cannot provide a comprehensive list or guide of the marine animals that inhabit the area around the island.
How Oceanic Acidification & Rising Oceanic Temperatures Are Affecting Santa Rosa Island
Ocean acidification is a phenomenon in which the pH level in the ocean decreases, causing a higher level of acidity. Oceanic Acidification is caused by increased levels of carbon dioxide in the atmosphere. Atmospheric carbon dioxide levels have increased, largely because of human-caused burning of fossil fuels, & deforestation, for the past 150 years. When carbon dioxide contacts sea water, it forms carbonic acid. Carbonic acid gives off positive H+ ions, which causes increased oceanic H+ concentrations & decreased oceanic Ph. When the ocean has decreased Ph, it creates a more acidic environment, which is extremely hostile to many marine species. These conditions will eat at the shells of bivalves, stress out & eventually bleach coral, & utterly destroy seagrass patches. Although it is not clear if Ocean Acidification is currently affecting Santa Rosa Island, this phenomenon paints a very grim & uninviting future for all marine life.
Directories / Credits
Citation No. 1: “Wetsuit thickness & temperature guide”, Written By Mark Evans, & Published On April 24th, 2023, at 3:05 PM. Published By Scuba Divers Magazine. Retrieval Date: July 1st, 2024.
Citation No. 2: “South Point Marine Reserve/Federal Reserve”, Written by Unknown, & Published at an Unknown Date. Published by the California Department of Fish & Wildlife. Retrieval Date: July 1st, 2024.
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