It’s an especially beautiful morning, the water is glassy and calm and I’m out enjoying the peacefulness of kayaking in the bay. A group of sometimes reclusive, and always stunning, American White Pelicans are floating together in a dreamlike mirage. I keep my distance, admire their beauty, and slowly paddle by. Brown pelicans fly in V-shaped formations overhead while a colony of sea lions are raucously barking nearby.
Pelicans are just one of hundreds of bird species recorded here in Morro Bay’s surrounding estuary. The bay is one of the most important water bird stopover and wintering locations in California south of San Francisco Bay. Pacific Loons, Clarke’s Grebes, Brandt’s Cormorants, Mallards, Black-Crowned Night Herons, Great Blue Herons, and Snowy and Great Egrets all call this area home.
The Pacific Coast Snowy Plover population is one that has been of concern due to a loss of habitat caused by development, recreation, and other human activities. It was listed as threatened in 1993 by the US Fish & Wildlife Service, under the Federal Endangered Species Act. The San Luis Obispo Coast District of California State Parks has been carrying out monitoring, public education, and enforcement of regulations for several years to promote their population recovery.
Standing tall and proud, nearby Morro Rock was an important navigational aid for mariners for over 300 because the rock is approximately 576 feet tall which made it the most visible in a chain of 9 peaks. Portuguese explorer, Juan Rodriguez Cabrillo named the rock “El Morro” in 1542. In Spanish “Morro” means crown shaped hill. It is also well known for its Peregrine Falcons that nest atop this majestic rock.
When Peregrine Falcons were added to the California Endangered Species List in 1970, Morro Rock was one of only two remaining nesting sites in San Luis Obispo County. Residue from the agricultural pesticide DDT was largely to blame for the birds’ steep decline. Thanks to hard work, research, and determination by several key groups, they were removed from the Federal Endangered Species Act in 1999 and removed from California Endangered Species list in 2009.
Stop by the Morro Bay State Park Museum of Natural History to learn much more about these and other natural habitat success stories in and around Morro Bay’s impressive estuary. The views are incredible, and the displays are fun and interactive for everyone in the family.
