Channel Islands National Park

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Channel Islands National Park
IUCN Category II (National Park)

Location:	California, USA
Nearest city:	Santa Barbara, CA
Coordinates:	34°0′30″N, 119°25′0″W
Area:	249,353.77 acres (70,518.62 federal) 1,009.10 km²
Established:	March 5, 1980
Visitation:	537,716 (in 2004)
Governing body:	National Park Service

Channel Islands National Park is a national park that consists of five of the eight Channel Islands off the coast of the U.S. state of California, in the Pacific Ocean. The islands within the park extend along the southern California coast from Point Conception near Santa Barbara to just north of Los Angeles. Park headquarters and the Robert J. Lagomarsino visitor center are located in the city of Ventura.

Channel Islands National Park is home to a wide variety of nationally and internationally significant natural and cultural resources. It was designated a U.S. National Monument on April 26, 1938 and a National Biosphere Reserve in 1976. It was promoted to a National Park on March 5, 1980.

Over 2,000 species of plants and animals can be found within the park. However only four mammals are endemic to the islands, one of which is the deer mouse (Peromyscus maniculatus) which is known to carry the sin nombre hantavirus. Other animals in the park include Island Scrub Jays, harbor seals, sea lions, island fox, spotted skunk, island night lizard, barn owls, American kestrels, horned larks and meadowlarks and California brown pelican. One hundred and forty-five of these species are unique to the islands and found nowhere else in the world. Marine life ranges from microscopic plankton to the endangered blue whale, the largest animal to live on earth. Archeological and cultural resources span a period of more than 10,000 years.

The park consists of 390 mi² (1010 km²), half of which are under the ocean, and include the islands of:

San Miguel 9,325 acres (38 km²)
Santa Rosa 52,794 acres (214 km²)
Anacapa 699 acres (2.8 km²)
Santa Barbara 639 acres (2.6 km²)
Santa Cruz 60,645 acres (245 km²) 76% owned by the Nature Conservancy, 24% by the National Park Service

Even though the islands seem tantalizingly close to densely populated southern California, their isolation has left them relatively undeveloped.

1 Visitation
2 Gallery
3 Reference
4 External links

[edit] Visitation

Annual visitation to the park's mainland visitor center is 300,000. Visitation to the islands and waters is low, with about 30,000 visitors traveling to the islands, and another 60,000 who go only into park waters. Although most visitation occurs in the summer, migrating gray whales and spectacular wildflower displays attract visitors in the winter and spring. Autumn is an excellent time to travel to the park, as well as for diving, as the days are usually sunny, with minimal winds and clear ocean water.