Existing comment:
Palos Verdes Peninsula Habitat
The Palos Verdes Peninsula supports a plant community called coastal bluff scrub that contains elements of coastal sage scrub. Coastal sage scrub communities are composed of soft, witty sub-shrubs. Coastal sage scrub seen at this site is dominated by lemonadeberry (Rhus integrifolia), California sagebrush (Artemisia californica), California buckwheat (Eriogonum fasciculatum) and small amounts of cactus.
The California sagebrush and California buckwheat are the natural habitat of a bird called the coastal California Gnatcatcher. Indigenous to the coastal zones of California, the California Gnatcatcher is a threatened species that feeds on insects gleaned from California sagebrush and buckwheat. The California Gnatcatcher maintains a year-round territory but stays within the home range during the breeding season. Since these areas of the Peninsula maintain California sagebrush, keep an eye out for a California Gnatcatcher, like the one pictured to the left.
December 2000 |