5.3 Bay Delta and Central Coast Province
Province-Specific Conservation Strategies – Bay Delta and Central Coast 5.3 Bay Delta and Central Coast Province 5.3.1 Geophysical and Ecological Description of the Province The Bay Delta and Central Coast Province contains the important geophysical and ecological complex of estuaries, coastal valleys, and coast range mountains, comprising over 300 miles of central California coast, between the Southern California Bight and the North Coast, and extending approximately 75 miles inland from the Pacific Ocean (Figure 5.3-1). While the Bay Delta region plays many important ecological roles on its own and is affected by most of the state’s ecosystems north of the Tehachapi Mountains, incorporating it with the Central Coast as one province associates it with several other critical estuarine habitat and coastal areas. Geophysically, the province is defined primarily by the Southern Coast Ranges, with many peaks in between 3,000 to over 4,000 feet elevation, up to the tallest at 5,862 feet, which is Junipero Serra Peak in the Santa Lucia Range. Between mountain ranges are broad coastal valleys, such as the Santa Clara Valley and Salinas Valley. Ecologically, the province contains extensive areas of some of the most important and sensitive salt, brackish, and fresh water habitats in the state, including the San Francisco Bay system; Sacramento-San Joaquin Delta; and the Elkhorn Slough, Carmel River, and Morro Bay estuaries. Overall, the habitats of the province are highly varied, including tidal marsh, broad areas of cultivated lands in valleys, valley and mountain riparian corridors, coastal grasslands, chaparral and other scrub plant communities, and large areas of forest and woodland habitats.
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