Turtle Update

The LA Times has a great article and video about the recovery of the green sea turtle recovered from the San Gabriel River.

Seems like the poor thing suffered a lot of abuse before it was rescued!

University by the Sea

It's nearly time for the second annual University by the Sea!

Saturday, October 5, 10 AM to about 6 or 7.

This is a day-long event hosted by Cal State Long Beach in the downtown/east village area. Local luminaries teach classes on various subjects relating to Long Beach, including several classes of interest to environmentally minded folk.

Here are the highlights:

Session 1: 10 - 11 AM.

Breakwater 101
Breakers Building - Wedding Chapel · $5
Surfrider Foundation & 4th District Councilman Patrick O' Donnell, City of Long Beach
Come learn about the Long Beach breakwater - from past to present! Surfrider Foundation will share the breakwater's history - when and why it was built - and discuss how a breakwater configuration could help solve our local water-quality problems. 4th District Councilman Patrick O' Donnell will describe the Army Corps of Engineers Reconnaissance Study process.

Session 2: 11:30-12:30

Plants and People
Utopia Restaurant · $5
Jorge Ochoa, Horticulture Instructor, Long Beach City College
Lecture discussing the benefits of plants to human kind. How plants have shaped people's lives throughout history. To value and understand the life of plants, structure, and functions.

What it Means to be "Green"
Gotama Building Engineers · $5
Nikolas Bruno & Kacie McLamb, Engineers, Gotama Building Engineers Inc.
An academic class on sustainability and a guided tour of a sustainable building.

Session 3: 1-2 PM

Pollution in our Seas - What Happens to the Fish?
Lafayette Building - Tuna Room · $5
Kevin M. Kelley, Professor/Lab Director, CSULB Department of Biological Studies
Powerpoint-based lecture with props for a close-up interactive discussion on how pollution and contaminants impact wildlife in the marine and coastal environment.

Sustaining Your Backyard Garden
East Village Community Garden · $5
Staff, Long Beach Organic
A three-part lecture and Q&A on sustainable living in your backyard: (1) The Apple Guild, (2) Composting, (3) Making the Yard a Wildlife Habitat

What it Means to be "Green"
Gotama Building Engineers · $5
Nikolas Bruno & Kacie McLamb, Engineers, Gotama Building Engineers Inc.
An academic class on sustainability and a guided tour of a sustainable building.

Session 4: 2:30 - 3:30

Green Shopping Guide
Breakers Building - Wedding Chapel · $5
Russ Parsons, Author, "How to Pick a Peach"
Learn the basics of "eat local: eat seasonal" and how shopping at local farmer's markets can lead to better quality, better taste and better value.

Los Angeles River: History, Present & Future
Lafayette Building - Dome Room · $5
Alicia Katano, Education Coordinator, Friends of the L.A. River (FoLAR)
Impacts of urban run-off on river habitat and revitilization projects explored by the front-line fighters for a better L.A. River.

What it Means to be "Green"
Gotama Building Engineers · $5
Nikolas Bruno & Kacie McLamb, Engineers, Gotama Building Engineers Inc.
An academic class on sustainability and a guided tour of a sustainable building.

Session 5: 4-5

Beyond Xeriscape
Utopia Restaurant · $5
Kathleen Thomas, Designer/Horticulturist, CSULB Extension Services
A practical guide to having plants in your life - no matter what color thumb you have. Learn how to create a sustainable, low water use, organic garden, that is simple to care for and looks great!

Session 6: 5:30 - 6:30

Califlora: The Importance of Promoting Native Landscaps in Urban Areas
Utopia Restaurant · $5
Eric Zahn, Plant Ecologist, CSULB
Will demonstrate what native plants are for use in urban gardens and the services they provide. Will do demo on how to care for native plants.

Los Cerritos Channel

As you may know, green sea turtles were recently sighted swimming up the San Gabriel River. They were seen in the area of the Cerritos Channel, an arm of the San Gabriel River estuary. So of course I had to check it out! Sadly, no turtles were seen during my brief visit, but I thought I'd write it up on this blog, because this unlikely area was full of quite a few surprises.


View Larger Map

There is a small park along Cerritos Channel called Channel View Park.


The park is a highly manicured strip of lawn with a bike/pedestrian path, separated from the channel by an ugly chainlink fence. Opportunities to commune with nature here are limited, although if the scenery is appealing in that post-apocolyptic way that comes so easily in southern California:



The huge stacks of a powerplant dominate the landscape. The plant takes in water from the river to cool the engines, and returns heated effluent to the San Gabriel river. Both the intake and effluent have deleterious impacts on the marine environment, and these impacts are closely monitored by a number of agencies. The most severe impacts are the death of marine organisms on intake screens, and the alteration of the thermal regime of the river.

As I mentioned, the park itself doesn't offer much access to nature, though you can see quite a bit from the bridges over the channel on Loynes Drive and Studebaker.

Birdlife was somewhat abundant here, with several of the usual suspects:


Cormorants, either perched on the trash booms or here, flying in V-formation.


Great egret.

Not shown: belted kingfisher and great blue heron. The vacant lots around the channel show evidence of wild dogs--either strays, or perhaps coyotes!

The contrast between the graceful birds and the imposing industral backgrop can be quite jarring:


The bridge on Studebaker offers a glimps into muddier habitat than is typical of other parts of the channel, which are full of rocky riprap:


You can see long and elegant smelt swimming at the surface, or even jumping out.


The most exciting sighting of the day were two large-ish octopuses (or octopi--both are correct!) fighting in the shallow water! Sadly, I got no photos to show. But I will be sure to try again sometime soon!

Colorado Lagoon Restoration

According to an article in today's Grunion Gazette:

The City's Planning Commission is set to certify the Enivornmental Impact Report (EIR) for restoration of Colorado Lagoon!

You can read the entire EIR, which describes the plan and all the expected impacts here:

link

The primary goal of the restoration is to address the poor water quality that afflicts the lagoon and often prevents swimming and other uses. For example, the EIR describes plans to improve storm drains so that pollutant-laden runoff only enters the lagoon in the largest rains.

However, restoration of natural areas is also included in the plans!

Several areas of wetlands will be formed along the margins of the lagoon, and a "bird island" will be created. Eel grass beds in the open water will be restored.

For more details, also check out the Friends of Colorado Lagoon.

Sea turtles in Long Beach!

The Press-Telegram has an article about green sea turtles (Chelonia mydas) in Long Beach!

Apparently, about a dozen of the endangered critters are swimming up the San Gabriel river, attracted by the warmth from the powerplant that uses the river to cool its generators.

Read the article here.

Presumably, the turtles are hanging out in the soft-bottomed estuarine portion of the river (south of PCH), and not going into the concrete-lined freshwater portions (pictured below):



I have never seen turtles in the San Gabriel River, but now that I know they are there, I'll be sure to look!

Marine Protected Areas

This post is an update to let you know about a meeting hosted by the Long Beach chapter of the Surfrider Foundation.

The meeting is Wednesday, 7 pm at the Barnes and Nobles Bookstore at the Marina Pacifica Mall (6326 E Pacific Coast Highway, Long Beach, CA):


View Larger Map


The meeting concernes Marine Protected Areas--a statewide initiative to establish zones in the ocean and along the coast to protect marine life. The actual regulations in these areas may include prohibitions on commercial or recreational fishing, and may impact a number of other activities.

It is unclear to me (and seems doubtful) that any such areas will include Long Beach, although plenty of nearby areas may be affected, including areas near the Channel Islands.

Brief notes from Rainbow Lagoon

Remember how I derided Rainbow Lagoon for being overhyped as a natural area?

Well, this little park has surprised me again. I was walking from downtown Pine to the Long Beach Gay Pride celebration, when I noticed a huge school of bass swimming in the shallows!



Consultation with my ichthyological buddies have indicated that this was a school of mixed species, including sand bass (Paralabrax nebulifer, top) kelp bass (Paralabrax clathratus, bottom):


There may have been other species as well!

In deeper (and, sadly, unphotographable) water, I saw a huge flatfish--almost certainly a California halibut (Paralichthys californicus). Definitely keep an eye out for these monsters next time you're by the lagoon!

Where did these fish come from? Did they swim in naturally with the tides? Or (I suspect) were they stocked by the Aquarium as a way of brining the ocean closer to the public?

If anyone knows, send me an email!

Shoreline Park

CommunityWalk Map - Shorline Park
Red area outlines dune restoration area.



Shoreline Park may seem like an incongruous place for nature--it is, after all, built on artificial landfill. The open water and mudflats that used to be found here have been destroyed to create Rainbow Harbor. However, the park that now sits on top of this fill has a small restoration area that includes a habitat found in no other place in Long Beach--the sand dune. In addition, the park is a great place to observe rocky shoreline and open water habitats. And, of course, the park is home to The Aquarium of the Pacific, one of Southern California's premier destinations for anyone curious about the natural world.


The skyscrapers of downtown Long Beach are easily visible from the restoration area.

Sand dunes were probably common along the beaches and island around Long Beach, but the creation of the Port and development along the beach has essentially erradicated them. The "dune" in Long Beach in no way resembles the real thing--you actually get a more reasonable facsimile at the eastern end of the Beach near the Peninsula, where the sands blow freely in the breezes. However, many plants of a mature dune community have been planted here to recreate the ecosystem.




Principle among these plants is the familiar shrub, coyote bush (Baccharis pilularis).


Coyote bush is the most common shrub in the dunes of Shoreline Park.


This shrub has a gall, possibly caused by the Baccharis gall fly (Cecidomyiidae: Rhopalomyia californica). Although the gall kills the growing tip of the branch, the plant is generally not severely affected by this parasite.

California sagebrush is the other common shrub. Its leaves release a distinctive odor when crushed.


California sagebrush (Artemesia californica). Although the odorous oils in the plant are thought to make the plants distasteful to herbivores, it seems that these aphids are undeterred.

The shrubs have an understory of wildflowers, including the beach evening primrose (Camissonia cheiranthifolia), seacliff buckwheat (Erogonum parvifolium), and bush sunflower (Encelia californica).


Wildflowers grow under and between the shrubs.

Unlike the more common buckwheat found further from shore, seacliff buckwheat (Eriogonum parvifolium) has heart-shaped leaves.



Beach evening primrose (Camissonia cheiranthifolia) can grow as a low, spreading plant or upright as a small shrub.)

A few of the more eye-catching nonnative weeds I saw in the park:


Yellow sweetclover (Melilotus indica)

White sweetclover (Melilotus alba)

Scarlet pimpernel (Anagallis arvensis)


The stone riprap that protects the park from erosion creates a second habitat to observe at Shoreline Park: the rocky shoreline.



Sea birds are abundant and conspicuous here--many gulls, egrets, and cormorants patrol the shores looking for fish and invertebrates in the shallows or in the mud.


Snowy egrets (Egretta thula) are easily identified by their black bills and bright yellow feet.

It is easy to observe the abundant mussels (Mytillus californianus) and acorn barnacles (Balanus spp.) that attach to these rocks, as well as sea lettuce (Ulva spp.). Schools of fish (mostly perch) swarm in the shallows. Interpretive signs erected by the Aquarium optimistically tell you to keep an eye out for California sea-hares (Aplysia californica), but the water was far too turbid, oily and slicked with grime to discern these creatures.

The Aquarium has put up a lot of interpretive signs around the park. One of the most interesting was a 3-D painting of the Los Angeles Basin.


Seen from one side, you see the pre-development basin. But from the other angle, you see the modern-day landscape.

Acess to the park is easy by the Shoreline Bike Path, the LB Transit Passport, and Pine Avenue Link.

Sims' Pond Biological Reserve

CommunityWalk Map - Sims' Pond



This park is operated by the City of Long Beach, but it is entirely inaccessible. A chain-link fence blocks off all access from the streets, and the other boundaries of the park are abutted by private property. [See Bailey's explanation below.]

The Los Ceritos Wetland Stewards hosts occasional clean-ups of this park, so you can contact them (info@lcwstewards.org) about accessing the pond on those dates.



Still, walking along the exterior of the park on Loynes or PCH provides an opportunity for bird watching and appreciating the pond itself.



The pond is almost entirely ringed with wetlands. Bulrushes (Scirpus acutus and Scirpus californicus) and cattails (Typha dominguensis and Typha latifolia) stand tall right at the water's edge. Tiny duckweed (Lemna sp.) float in the open water, covering the pond with an opaque green mat.

On higher ground, several species of willow grow. Their fluffy seeds catch sunset light beautifully.



These tall trees provide excellent roosting for birds, such as this black-crowned night heron (Nycticorax nycticorax):



The pond provides food for the herons. I spied one heron struggling to eat a fish it had caught:




The LB Transit 171 and Passport-D bus take you this park.

Jack Dunster Marine Reserve

CommunityWalk Map - Jack Dunster Reserve



This park is a gem. A little hard to get to, but well worth the trip.


There are many short trails to wander about the park--though nothing you could rightfully call a hike. Benches provide many pleasant places to sit and gaze at the busy boat traffic in Alamitos Bay.

This area is a restoration site that was created as mitigation for wetlands lost on Santa Catalina Island. It's a bit non-traditional of a restoration, becaues much of the restored habitat contains species endemic to Catalina Island. Purists (like me) might argue that restoring a nonnative habitat (nonnative to the mainland US) doesn't really count as a restoration. But I won't argue that the park is beautiful and has great environmental and educational value.



Unlike the Golden Shore Preserve, this restoration includes a good deal of upland habitat. The wetlands are small, but very easily viewed from shore or from the viewing docks.


Viewing docks let you get closer to the water and watch marine life. Birds also like to perch on these docks as well!

From the dock and near the shore, you can examine the mudflats at low tide. The mudflats are full of burrows created by fiddler crabs:


To see the crabs, you must stand still for a while--they scurry into their holes when you approach, and will only exit once they feel safe.



These crabs have an enlarged claw (usually the right) which they swing and wave to establish territories and attract mates.


Fiddler crabs wave their claws to signal to each other.

At slightly higher elevations, the mudflats turn into salt marshes. At the Dunster Preserve, the marshes were planted with California cordgrass (Spartina foliosa), salt grass (Distychlis spicata), pickelweed (Salicornia sp.), and alkali heath (Frankenia salina). The last two are susceptible to parasitism by an unusual plant known as dodder (in this case, salt-marsh dodder).


A small restored salt marsh area, heavily parasitized by dodder Cuscuta salina)


Pickelweed (Salicornia sp.)


Alkali heath (Frankenia salina), heavily parasitized by salt-marsh dodder (Cuscuta salina). Alkali heath is unusual for salt marsh plants in that it has showy flowers that attract insect pollinators.


This pretty little plant was also growing in the salt marsh area. It resembles crystalline ice plant (Mesembryanthemum crystallinum), but I'm not sure of the ID.

The upland area contains many of the same plants you might expect from the coastal sage-scrub areas that used to dominate Long Beach:


California encelia, or bush sunflower (Encelia californica)


Quail bush(Atriplex lentiformis)


Lemonade berry Rhus integrifolia


Estuary sea-blite (Suaeda esteroa)


Coast prickly-pear (Opuntia littoralis)


Bladderpod (Isomeris arborea), with nymphs of a harlequin bug (Murgantia histrionica).


Chalk dudleya (Dudleya sp.)


Golden yarrow (Eriophyllum confertifolium)


Red sand-verbena (Abronia maritima). Note how the flower stalks are held erect, but the seed pods dangle straight down!


Wartleaf ceanothus (Ceanothus papillosus sp.)




But the preserve also showcases a number of unique plants endemic to Santa Catalina Island, located 25 miles to the southwest:



Santa Catalina--like the other California Channel Islands--is a botanical wonderland, filled with many unusual plant species found nowhere else on earth. (Animals too!) Many of these rare plants have been included in the Dunster Reserve as mitigation for habitat loss on the island. These unusual island plants are often similar to mainland forms, but gigantized in some way or another.

For example, compare the mainland coreopsis:


Corepsis (Coreopsis sp.)

with its island relative, the giant coreopsis:


Giant coreopsis Coreopsis gigantea. Even though it looks like topiary, this specimen displays the natural growthform of this species.

Similarly, compare the common California buckwheat of the mainland:


California buckwheat (Eriogonum fasciculatum)

with its giant island relative:


Giant buckwheat (Eriogonum giganteum)

Other unusual island endemics are also represented in the park:


Island mallow (Lavatera assurgentifolia)


Island snapdragon (Galvezia speciosa)




Partial list of plants:
Coastal dudleya (Dudleya caespitosa)
Chalk dudleya (Dudleya pulverulenta)
Mulefat (Baccharis salicifolia)
Coyote bush (Baccharis pilularis)
Golden yarrow (Eriophyllum confertifolium
California encelia (Encelia californica)
Bladderpod (Isomeris arborea)
Coastal prickly pear (Opuntia littoralis)
Red sand-verbena (Abronia maritima)
Estuary sea-blite (Suaeda esteroa)
Salt-marsh dodder (Cuscuta salina)

This park is perhaps the least accessible by public transit. All bus stops are about 1/2 mile away or more. You can try the 181, 182, 171, or Passport-D.