The coastal marine bioregion of the Southern California Bight is one of the most threatened "hot spots" for biodiversity in the world. It includes the last remnant of coastal wetlands of the south coast, and diverse coastal, marine and island ecosystems. |
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The south-central coastal bioregion includes the Santa Ynez Range, the Gaviota coast, the Santa Barbara Channel and northern Channel Islands. The Chumash reference for the northern Channel Islands are Tuqan (San Miguel), Wi'ma (Santa Rosa), Limuw (Santa Cruz) and Anyapax (Anacapa). Limuw means "in the sea is the meaning of the language spoken" while Chumash villages were named after the sea, such as Mikiw or "the place of mussels". This region's animals and plants depend on ecological relationships among mountains (the Santa Ynez, San Raphael and Sierra Madre Ranges) and their soils, creeks and riparian forests of coastal watersheds, the majestic Santa Ynez River, urban and rural areas, vernal pools and coastal wetlands, and the marine environment. The common ground of this unique place - the relationship between the creeks, coastal watersheds, the Santa Barbara Channel and Channel Islands - are part of our shared community. Living-in-place requires that we know where water comes from, where waste goes, and where food comes from. A sense of place also requires that we are aware of the circle of animals and plants that are native to a bioregion. There are cultural representations of a place, such as the locations of historical landmarks, the stories of animals and plants, the sites of Chumash ritual and ceremony, and urban and rural areas. Local and place-based knowledge can take many forms, such as the knowledge of a careful farmer or rancher of the Gaviota, with his or her long experience of soil, crops, livestock and weather. Local knowledge is also found in the traditional earth builder, a craftsperson, fisher, a bird watcher or a conservationist. Taken together, the local knowledge of a farmer, fishermen and conservationist is the common ground of understanding about a particular place and region; local knowledge is a type of collective memory born from a sense of inhabitation and place. The loss of coastal and marine habitat in this bioregion contribute directly to the reduction in coastal and marine biodiversity of southern California. California ranks second in the country in the number of listed threatened and endangered species |
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