National Park Service Point Reyes National Seashore U.S. Department of the Interior

PLANET OCEAN

How inappropriate to call this planet Earth when it is quite clearly Ocean. Arthur C. Clarke NASA 2011

Visible in the foreground is the of Andros in the Bahamas, surrounded by azure-colored shallow waters, looking out to the and the deeper blue of the Atlantic Ocean. Why We Live Here Imagine you are flying in gigantic cosmic explosion called the “Big may have prevented them from becoming Bang.” The origin of earth’s water is not liquid water worlds. Venus is closer to the Sun, from a distant galaxy to our solar system. You entirely known but several theories exist and Mars farther from the Sun than Earth. come through the icy debris of the Kuiper to explain it. As our planet coalesced out Venutian water may have boiled off because its Belt, past Neptune and Uranus, on by the gas of this dust cloud, it grew very hot, and surface temperature is so hot. Martian water giants, Saturn and Jupiter. Then, after making volcanic eruptions happened frequently. The may once have flowed, but now is thought to it through a belt of asteroids, you hover over eruptions brought water to the surface as well be locked up as ice, mostly below the planet’s little, red, rocky Mars for a look. Next you see as magma. The earth’s gravity increased and rocky, red surface. a lovely, bright blue orb partially shrouded in more water from the inner solar system was white clouds. It looks like no other place in captured by our growing planet. In addition, So we live on this blue planet—because life, the neighborhood. What gives it its distinctive comets—largely made of ice—collided with the as we know it, requires liquid water to form. look? young Earth. These are proposed sources are By three billion years ago, the ocean basins liq Liquiduid water.water proposed for Earth's water. were filled with water to about their depths, and the first living things probably Billions of years ago according to most Our nearest planetary neighbors, Venus and formed in warm, shallow, ocean water. Inside, scientists, Earth materialized out of collisions Mars had similar formative experiences, but you can learn more about our oceans and our of dust, gas, and water that resulted from a the position of their orbits around our Sun connections to them.

Inside Page Why The Ocean Matters 2 Please use caution when Visit the Point Reyes In The Zone 2 recreating near or in Lighthouse, walk the Land And Water In Motion 3 the Pacific Ocean. The stairs and get a stamp to The Bottom of the Food Chain 4 Point ReyesSAMPLE TEXT are prove you did it! Journeys 5 subject to rip currents Humans And Oceans 6 and rogueSAMPLE waves TEXT that Page 8 has activities for Food For Thought 7 pose significant dangers. kids and you can collect Out At The Point 7 some stamps! Kid’s Activities 8

Page 1 Why The Ocean Matters

1. The Earth has one ocean with many basins. O 2. The ocean covers about 70% of the Earth’s surface, 1 and contains about 97% of the Earth’s water. 3 2 CO 4 3. Half of Earth’s oxygen is produced in the sunlit ocean layers, and half of the carbon dioxide in the atmosphere is absorbed by the ocean. It’s the blue heart of the planet — and we should 4. Most rain, the source of much of our 5 drinking water, comes from the ocean. take care of our heart. It’s 6 what makes life possible 5. The ocean is a major influence on weather and climate. for us.

6. The ocean and ocean life shape the —Sylvia Earle shoreline features of the Earth. 8

7. Life in the ocean is diverse. The smallest known virus and the largest animal live in 7 the ocean. 8. Many geologic and geochemical cycles begin in ? the ocean. 9 9. Most of our knowledge of the ocean comes from shallower waters. Less than 5% has been explored. ? 10

10. Humans and all living things are inextricably connected to the ocean. In The Zone

The Atmosphere—(an ocean of water, in the air): (In Epipelagic Zone) • Tufted Puffins can dive up to 196 feet (60 m) • Pigeon Guillemots can dive up to 212 feet (65m) Splash Zone organisms depend on for moisture, adapted Epipelagic Zone—To 650 feet (200 m) below the to long periods of surface—The sunlit upper layer of the ocean exposure • Moon Jellyfish • Barnacles • Many Sharks • Ribbed Limpets • Dolphins High Zone Mesopelagic Zone—To 3300 feet (1000 m) organisms covered at most high below the surface—The twilight zone • Turban Snails • Swordfish • Chiton • Wolf Eel Mid Tide Zone • Ochre Sea Star • Green Anemone

Bathypelagic Zone—To 13,000 feet Low Tide Zone (4,000 m) below the surface— most protection from The midnight zone (no sunlight) desiccation; inhabited by the most number • Anglerfish of species • Many Octopus • Dungeness Crab • Sea Hare

Abyssopelagic Zone—To a known depth of 36,067ft or 6.831 mi (10, 993 m)—The abyss * The Abyssopelagic zone continues to yield its • Microbes secrets. In December 2014 a snailfish was found • * 5 miles (8 km) deep in the !

Page 2 Land and Water In Motion

Land and Water Oceans and Climate The California Current Continental crust 15–45 miles (25-75 km) thick The Earth rotates from east to west The California Current flows south from Oceanic crust 4.5–6.3 miles (7-10 km) thick contributing to the circular movement of air latitude of British Columbia as part of the across the oceans. Relative to this rotation, North Pacific gyre. This river of water flows Our planet’s surface is divided into thin, the air is deflected to the right in the Northern along the from north to south and then stiff plates that move around on molten Hemisphere, and to the left in the Southern rotates east near Baja California. Additionally magma. If all of the plates were made of the Hemisphere, causing winds to develop. These during the spring months, easterly winds same material, and the surface of the earth global winds drag on the oceans’ surface blow from north to south-east across the was smooth, the oceans would cover the causing surface currents, and the currents coastal waters and the warmer surface waters earth to an average depth of 6500 ft. (2000 form ocean-circling spirals called gyres. are replaced by much colder water from m)! But there are two plate types: denser, the sunless depths. This process, known as thinner, balsalt oceanic rocks and lighter, The oceans strongly impact the world’s upwelling, is responsible for the very nutrient- thicker, granitic, continental rocks. If you climate. Energy from the sun is absorbed and rich waters off the California Coast. put a wooden block and a styrofoam block then circulated around the world in warm in a swimming pool, both would float, but surface currents. Since the cold waters are rich with nutrients the denser wood would float lower than the and more saturated with oxygen, they styrofoam. Similarly, the dense basalt sinks support a rich community of (more deeper into the mantle, creating basins where Ocean Motion on page 4) , the basis of the marine food the water collects to form the great oceans of Water in the ocean is constantly moving. A chain. In general, the strongest upwelling the world. deep, global conveyor current underlies the happens between Point Conception and surface currents. These are the thermohaline Mendocino. The largest seabird rookery Water evaporates from the ocean and currents. These currents are density driven, south of Alaska, the Farallon , is falls over land as rain. As the ocean water resulting from differences in temperature situated in the middle of this area. evaporates, the minerals—mostly salt— and salinity. Dense, cold, salty water sinks remain behind in the sea. These ocean while warm, less salty water rises to the minerals originally came from rain water surface. The “start” of the ocean conveyor flowing over continental rocks, dissolving belt is in the northern polar regions. Cold minerals from those rocks, and flowing out arctic water sinks to the ocean bottom, and to sea. Deep in ocean trenches, there are is carried south, eventually flowing all the hydrothermal vents that also release minerals way to Antarctica! Over time this water Cape into the oceans. This is why ocean water is on warms up again, rises to the surface and Mendocino average seventy times more salty than fresh flows back north, where warm water currents g in water. ll Point carry water from the equator to the north, e w Reyes Because of the extra minerals, saltwater and heat is lost again to the atmosphere in p U Farallon the northern latitudes. This motion forms a t is denser than fresh water. When you see s Islands e globe-encircling oceanic conveyer belt. One t large rivers flowing out into the ocean, the a drop of water spends about 1000 years making e fresh water floats on top which causes color r G a round trip of over 25,000 miles! variations of the nearshore waters. f Point

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Oyashio Ocean Waves Bering Alaska A wave is a disturbance that carries energy from one place to another. What we are North Pacific witnessing when we look at waves is the energy moving through the water, not the water moving horizontally any significant Kuroshio distance. The waves we see breaking on the

CONVERGENCE ZONE California come from winds blowing over the ocean’s surface, along with deeper internal Hawai’ian waves. Underwater earthquakes also cause waves—big waves called tsunamis. Arrival on North Equatorial As ocean waves approach a shore, the motion Equatorial Countercurrent they generate deep down begins to interact with the sea floor. This slows the waves down South Equatorial and causes the crests in a series of waves to bunch up—an effect called shoaling. The period of the waves does not change, but they gain height as the energy each contains is compressed into a shorter horizontal distance, and eventually break. Ocean waves Ocean currents like the California Current, circulate the cold waters in the polar regions back to the equator. can also refract, or bend, as they reach a This helps to re-oxygenate these warmer waters. This movement creates gyres that can draw in, concentrate, coastline. This concentrates wave energy onto and trap debris, such as plastic trash and fishing nets. More information on page 6. and helps to shape the shoreline.

Page 3 The Base of the Food Chain

Giant Plankton Giant kelp (Macrocystis pyrifera) is the largest The complex relationships between on Earth. It can grow 24 inches (60 producers and consumers in food webs on cm) per day and up to 100 ft (30 m) in a year. It land are mirrored in our oceans. Plankton grows at a depth of 30–100 ft (10–30 m), but in are organisms that drift in bodies of water. clear water can grow much deeper. The huge Their name comes from the Greek word “root” called a holdfast is firmly attached to planktos (πλαγκτός), meaning wanderer or the seabed and when mature, can grow to 2 drifter. The base level of the ocean food feet (60 cm) in circumference. Several long, web are —tiny, sometimes flexible stalks stretch toward the surface, microscopic plants—that live in the epipelagic have straplike fronds, buoyed by gas-filled zone, the top layer of the ocean. This layer bladders. The giant kelp’s fronds continue to extends to 660 feet (200 meters) the depth grow after reaching the surface, floating as a at which enough sunlight penetrates for dense canopy. photosynthesis to occur, and phytoplankton are therefore rarely found beneath this layer. In kelp forests, including giant kelp and other species, invertebrates such as bristle Also living in the epipelagic zone are worms, snails, feed on the holdfasts. A wide , usually microscopic range of important , including many that forage on the phytoplankton and also types of rockfish, are found in kelp forests. prey on each other. This is a very diverse Marine mammals inhabit kelp forests for group, from members that are primitive protection and food. These include sea lions protozoans to the larvae of more complex and seals that feed on the fish. Sea otter and creatures such as jellies and squid. One type their pups use kelp forests as a safe haven of zooplankton, , were made famous from predators, and feed on the abundant by Spongebob Squarepants’ archenemy, invertebrates associated with the kelp. named Plankton. Gulls, terns, loons, grebes and cormorants Adaptations to avoid predators include dine on the many fish and invertebrates gathering in large swarms, being transparent, living in the kelp. Flies, maggots, and small and producing bioluminescence. crustaceans that are abundant in the kelp Bioluminescence is the production and that is washed ashore provide a smorgasbord emission of light by living organisms, and is for birds such as shorebirds including the an adaptation of some marine invertebrates federally protected Western Snowy Plover. and fish. Plankton may bioluminesce to distract, confuse, or discourage prey. NOAA Photo are a type of marine plankton that are not plants or animals, but have qualities of both. Dinoflagellates are a type of marine plankton that are not plants or animals, but have qualities of both. Some of these creatures are responsible for the algal blooms we call red tides, and for the sparkling bioluminescence in breaking waves at night. NPS Photo In winter storms, massive piles of kelp wash up on the beaches at Point Reyes. At this point, fly , amphipods, , and fungi feast on the piles, working quickly to decompose them.

Krill are small, shrimplike crustaceans which surface at night. Although krill have many occur worldwide in all of the oceans. They predators, some species can live to be up to six are near the bottom of the food chain. Their years old! main food is phytoplankton. Krill are eaten by NOAA Photo whales, penguins, seals, squid, fish, and also Blue whales feed almost exclusively on krill, by people. even though they are the largest animal that Photoplankton release oxygen as a by-product of photosynthesis. and phytoplankton provide has ever lived. Blue whales grow to be as much over half of oxygen we breathe—more than all land One defense krill have against predation as 100 (30 m) feet long, larger than the biggest plants combined. One type of phytoplankton, called is swarming, during which densities of dinosaur that ever lived on earth! These Prochlorococcus, may be the single most abundant 20,000 individuals per cubic foot occur. This whales weigh up to 150 tons, and due to their species on earth! behavior confuses some predators. Krill also immense size, they need to eat up to four tons spend their days in the deeper parts of the of krill each day. ocean to avoid most predators and rise to the Did you know scientists are studying kelp on the West Coast to determine the radiation levels from the Fukushima reactor fallout? Kelp takes in elements including radioactive Cesium, Strontium, and Iodine and concentrates it in its tissues. Scientists can analyze kelp tissue samples for traces of NOAA Photo these elements.

Page 4 Journeys

Migrations 12,000 mile migration Why do animals migrate? Available resources CHUKCHI SUMMER SEA vary seasonally, for example, food that is FEEDING GROUNDSBERING SEA FLUKE PEDUNCLE DORSAL RIDGE BARNACLE BLOW HOLE ROSTRUM abundant in the summer is not in winter. PATCHES ALASKA Temperature variations mean some areas are only hospitable for mating and giving birth during one season. The place and season that is best for breeding may not be optimal for CANADA finding food. This means that some animals travel great distances searching for feeding PECTORAL FINS EYE BALEEN 12 FEET and breeding grounds. 45 FEET UNITED STATES

POINT REYES Gray whales undertake one of the longest 100 *NATIONAL SEASHORE migrations of any mammal, traveling up

80 MEXICO to 13,000 miles (21,000 km) from feeding WINTER grounds to breeding grounds and back every CALVING 60 AND BREEDING year. They reach their northern and southern GROUNDS destinations within 49 to 55 days. The Point 40 Reyes lighthouse is a great location for gray 20 whale observation during their migration, Pregnant females, Newly pregnant females, males and juveniles Females and calves because the juts out 10 miles (16 Sightings Per Day 0 males and juveniles km) west, into the Pacific Ocean. Heading South Heading North JANUARY FEBRUARY MARCH APRIL MAY Pinnipeds, such as seals, sea lions, and fur seals, are also known for making long journeys. Each year, the northern elephant Surface Behavior seal migrates farther than most other marine Gray whales are often found mammals in the world, traveling as many traveling alone or in small as 14,000 miles (about 22,500 km). It is also groups of two to four. They the only mammal known to undertake two are a coastal species, usually migratory journeys each year. found within 6 miles of shore. SPOUT SPY HOP BREACH About 1,800 of the world’s bird species are migratory. The record for the longest Diving Behavior migration of any animal belongs to sooty Gray whales rarely pause on their migration, resting for only a few shearwaters and Arctic terns, each of which 20 feet hours per day. They slowly swim migrate over 40,000 miles a year! to their destination following a somewhat predictable diving pattern 30–60 seconds Fluke appears 3–5 minutes at speeds of 3-5 mph, covering up to 100 feet for each shallow on final dive for a deep dive 115 miles per day. dive Ramos Anela

Baleen hangs from the upper jaw of the mouths of some whale species. The whale takes water into its mouth, then pushes the Amphipods water out with its tongue. Animals such as are crustaceans amphipods, krill, and small fish are filtered that scavenge through the baleen and trapped inside. in the ocean Baleen is made of keratin, the sediments. NOAA Photo same substance Gray whales Phenomenal long-distance migrants, the Sooty as human love eating Shearwater, Puffinus griseus migrates between the fingernails amphipods! They subarctic and the South Pacific each year. and hair, and drag their heads along continues the bottom to stir up Many shark species travel thousands of miles to grow sediments and filter through open water every year, scouring the throughout the these tasty morsels ocean for food. Some white sharks travel whale’s life. through their baleen. across the Indian Ocean, from to and back again and from California to Hawaii, over the course of a year. Salmon are impressive for their ability to Want to learn more about the ocean? traverse both and freshwater during their journey. They can travel hundreds The Humboldt squid Bodega Marine Laboratory University of California at Davis of miles inland via rivers and waterways— (Dosidicus gigas), can grow bml.ucdavis.edu/ sometimes ascending thousands of feet as to 6.2 ft (1.9 m) long and MarineBio Conservation Society they migrate upstream—to spawn in the rivers weigh up to 100 lb (50 kg). marinebio.org/ where they were born. They are most commonly found at depths of 660 to Monterey Aquarium & Research Institute Leatherback sea turtles have been recorded 2,300 ft (200 to 700 m), traveling across the Pacific Ocean between www.montereybayaquarium.org from Tierra del Fuego to www.mbari.org/ Asia and North America, a distance of over California. 12,000 miles (19,000 km) in less than two National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration years. Similar to salmon, they navigate back to www.noaa.gov/ the beach where they were born to dig a nest www.sanctuarysimon.org in the and lay their eggs. National Park Service Zooplankton float in the water column of the http://www.nature.nps.gov/water/oceancoastal world’s oceans and seas and include creatures Scripps Institution of Oceanography as diverse as jellies, copepods, krill, larval University of California at San Diego worms and snails, and juvenile fish. Theirs https://scripps.ucsd.edu/ is a vertical migration of thousands of feet Woods Hole each day—up in search of food, and then back Oceanographic Institution down to avoid predators. www.whoi.edu/

Page 5 Humans and Oceans

"Unless someone like you cares a whole awful lot, Nothing is going to get better. It's not." ro ast C w re Dr. Seuss, d n A The Lorax Anela Ramos Anela

Also trapped and killed are seabirds, seals, Mola mola, or sunfish, can grow up to 11 ft (3.3 m) dolphins, and sea turtles which, unable to and weigh over 5,000 lbs (2,250 kg). They LOVE reach the water’s surface and breathe, drown lion's mane jellyfish, but do you? in the nets. Too Many Rick Starr, CBNMS Starr, Rick Some scientists predict that if these practices Rosy rockfish on top shallow of Cordell Bank continue, it is possible that ocean fisheries Bottles In The Sea National Marine Sanctuary. Slow growing reefs are could collapse by 2050 or sooner. With larger Sailing home to California from Hawai’i in vulnerable to contact with fishing gear. fish removed from the seas, jellyfish may 1997, Charles Moore discovered an enormous become dominant in the . Jellyfish, mass of largely plastic fragments, which was anyone? later dubbed the Great Pacific Garbage Patch. The Ocean is a No precise measurements are available, Giant CO Sponge Like to eat fish? If you enjoy seafood, consider because the ocean is always moving, but may 2 where it came from and how it was caught. be twice the size of the continental US. There The ocean has always absorbed C0 , playing The Seafood Watch card produced by the 2 are “garbage patches” in all 5 ocean basins. an important role in stabilizing global climate. Monterey Bay Aquarium helps consumers Since the Industrial Revolution, human make choices for seafood that have the Most of the garbage is plastic—nearly two activity such as burning of fossil fuels and least impact on the environment. www. million bits per square mile. Where did it all come from? The sad answer is us. Disposable deforestation has put excess C02 into the seafoodwatch.org. atmosphere creating carbon pollution. More plastics are the greatest source of plastic pollution. Plastic bags, straws, bottles, C02 in the atmosphere means more C02 in the ocean. The excess C0 (carbon pollution) Of Sharks And Men utensils, lids, cups offer a small convenience, 2 Sharks belong to a group of animals called is rapidly changing the ocean. When C0 but remain on this planet forever. Trash on 2 elasmobranchs whose skeletons are made of dissolves in seawater, carbonic acid is formed. the ground could eventually get transported cartilage, not bone. There are over 500 species This chemical reaction leads to ocean to a river ultimately leading to the ocean and of sharks in the world and they come many acidification. Ocean acidity has increased carried around via currents. Hundreds of sizes. The smallest sharks, called dogfish, by 30% since the beginning of the Industrial ocean animals, including birds, have been are just 8-10 inches (20-25 cm) long, while Revolution. This increase is 100x faster than documented with plastic in their bellies. the largest shark, the whale shark, can grow any change in acidity experienced by marine to over 40 ft (12 m) and weigh almost 50,000 Follow the “4 Rs” of sustainable living: organisms for at least the last 20 million lbs (22 metric tons)! Many sharks don’t begin Refuse, Reduce, Reuse, Recycle. Join the years. With acidic ocean conditions, shelled breeding until they are teenagers, and some “Bring Your Own” revolution and bring your animals have to work harder using more live to be 70 years old. own grocery bags, utensils, coffee cup and energy to make their carbonate shells and more and you’ll be amazed at how much less structures and in some areas of the ocean, the Few shark species attack people. The white plastic you use. corrosive waters affect their reproduction and shark, tiger shark, bull shark, and oceanic physiology. Human actions have accelerated whitetip shark are involved in most attacks. While visiting the beach, consider lending a ocean acidification, but human actions can Worldwide, between 1580 and 2014 less than hand and picking up trash at the beach and also slow down the process. Any and all 600 fatal human shark attacks have been disposing it in a garbage can when you leave. actions to reduce the use of fossil fuels also documented. Compare that with over 3,500 Each individual action does make a difference. reduces the amount of carbon pollution drowning deaths in 2011 in the U.S. alone! If added to the atmosphere and to the ocean. galeophobia (fear of sharks) keeps people out Choosing to use less energy- to burn less fossil of the water, sharks may actually save lives. fuel, emitting less C02 will help ocean animals and plants. With our help ocean plants In comparison, shark researchers estimate and animals may have time to adapt to the that humans kill over 100 million sharks every changing ocean. year. Many are killed just for their fins. Once their fins are cut off the sharks are frequently thrown back into the ocean. Unable to Overfishing swim, they bleed to death or succumb due to Overfishing is the taking of marine species suffocation or starvation. Many sharks take so such as fish, shellfish and even mammals long to reach reproductive age, some species

at a rate that is not sustainable and can are now threatened with extinction. NOAA Photo disrupt ecosystems. In the 1800s, we nearly complex communities from disappearing obliterated several species of whales to from our world. A Laysan albatross chick surrounded by brightly colored plastic trash on a beach on Midway Island. harvest whale blubber for lamp oil and lubricants for our machines. With the passage

of the Marine Mammal Protection Act in

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Page 6 Food For Thought Wind, Fog, Whales—Oh My!

Point Reyes is the windiest and foggiest place on the Pacific Coast, and conditions presented a major hazard to shipping. In the 1900s, many went aground or sank, necessitating the establishment of the Point Reyes Lighthouse in 1870. Lighthouse keepers living here then struggled with long hours, harsh working conditions, isolation, and depression. A few were driven to drinking the

metal cleaners, and at least one was carted PRNS Archives away to an institution. Today the Point Reyes is still an U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service adventure at any time of year. Winter and U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service biologist Rachel Carson early spring the gray whales migrate by (see and USFWS artist Bob Hines surveying the Atlantic chart on page 5) and northern elephant seals Ocean in Maine, 1951. are abundant on the beaches near Chimney Rock. Spring is the windiest time of year, “It is a curious situation that the sea, when 40-plus mile-an-hour winds commonly from which life first arose should now pummel the promontory, and the stairs to the Ramos Anela be threatened by the activities of one lighthouse close. Hold on to your hats! form of that life. But the sea, though changed in a sinister way, will continue Spring and summer are the seasons when one to exist; the threat is rather to life itself.” can view the nesting Common Murres below the Point Reyes Lighthouse, and admire the — Rachel Carson, abundant wildflowers blooming along the The Sea Around Us Chimney Rock Trail. Summer days tend to be foggy and relatively cold, but if you are “The poet Auden said, ‘Thousands have looking for an air-conditioned retreat from

lived without love; none without water.’ triple digit temperatures in California’s NPS Photo Ninety-seven percent of Earth’s water Central Valley, come on by. In autumn, is ocean. No blue, no green. If you think temperatures are warmer, and migratory the ocean isn’t important, imagine Earth birds—some blown wildly off course—rest in without it. Mars comes to mind. No the Monterey cypress trees along the path to ocean, no life support system. I gave a the Lighthouse Visitor Center. talk not so long ago at the World Bank and I showed this amazing image of Just offshore are two national marine Earth and I said, 'There it is! The World sanctuaries, the of the Farallones Bank!' That’s where all the assets are! National Marine Sanctuary and Cordell NPS Photo And we’ve been trawling them down Bank National Marine Sanctuary. Extending much faster than the natural systems can out to the edge of the continental shelf, replenish them.” these ocean preserves have protections that prevent oil and gas leasing and discharges — Sylvia Earle, into the waters. The craggy Farallon Islands, Marine Biologist a National Wildlife Refuge, and the rocky submarine peaks of Cordell Bank rise from “All the king’s horses and all the king’s the floor of the Pacific Ocean. This network men will never gather up all the plastic of marine protected areas also includes Point and put the ocean back together again.” Reyes National Seashore, which embraces NPS Photo — Charles Moore, Oceanographer the only congressionally designated marine Wilderness south of Alaska, and several California State Marine Protected Areas that further limit fishing and protect species in the POINT REYES nearshore waters of the coast. NATIONAL SEASHORE 1 Bear Valley Road The oceanographic conditions combined Point Reyes Station, CA 94956 with diverse seafloor features such as islands, banks, canyons and seamounts create a Bear Valley unique "hotspot" that supports a diverse Visitor Center 415-464-5100 community of above and below the surface. In addition to sustaining a Lighthouse vibrant ecosystem year round, the region is Visitor Center a migratory destination for seabirds, whales, 415-669-1534 seals, sea turtles and fish that travel thousands Kenneth C. Patrick of miles annually to feast on the seasonal Visitor Center bounty of these waters. NOAA at Drakes Beach 415-669-1250 www.nps.gov/pore The Top Five Questions At The Lighthouse 1. Is it always this foggy? About a third of the year, most notably in late summer, CONTRIBUTORS PRINTED WITH persistent fog envelops the lighthouse area. Some days it lifts in the afternoon, but Sarah Allen, Ph.D. FUNDING FROM: not always. Ocean and Coastal The 2. Is it always this windy? Wind speeds of up to 133 miles-per-hour have been Resources Program Marin County Sarah King Wildlife and measured at the lighthouse. Spring is the windiest time, when, in 40+ mph winds, Park Guide Fisheries the stairs close for visitor safety reasons. Anela Ramos Commission 3. What causes all the on the ocean? Sea foam is created by the agitation Park Ranger Mary Beth Shenton of seawater that contains high amounts of dissolved organic matter. These Park Ranger compounds, churned up by breaking waves, form bubbles that stick to each other. Eric Stearns 4. What time do the whales go by? Whales don’t sleep for long periods like Park Guide humans do. Instead they nap at the surface, and during their migration can be Jennifer Stock Cordell Bank swimming by Point Reyes any time of day. National Marine 5. What is that concrete dome across from the visitor center? That is a cistern Printed on Sanctuary recycled paper that was used for gathering and storing water.

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Get Stamped! Go to a visitor center, answer five of the questions above, , and get a stamp for each correct answer.

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