Over, Under, Sideways and Down: Patterns of Marine Species Richness in Nearshore Habitats off Santa Catalina Island, California

Abstract

Santa Catalina Island, located off the southern California coast, is home to the Blue Cavern Onshore State Marine Conservation Area (SMCA), which is recognized as a marine protected area. Here, we provide an updated species inventory of nearshore macroalgae, seagrasses, bony and cartilaginous fishes and invertebrates documented inside the Blue Cavern Onshore SMCA. Species richness data were compiled using scuba-based visual surveys conducted in the field, references from the primary and gray literature, museum records, unpublished species lists and online resources. The current checklist consists of 1091 marine species from 18 different taxonomic groups, which represents an ~43% increase in species diversity compared to the value reported previously. These data are indicative of the high biodiversity known from the Southern California Bight (SCB) region. The total number of intertidal and subtidal taxa reported represent approximately 85% and 45% of the documented macroalgae and plants, 41% and 24% invertebrates, and 62% and 20% of fishes from Catalina Island and the SCB, respectively. Among the marine taxa documented, 39 species either have undergone a geographic range shift or were introduced as the result of human activities, while another 4 species are listed as threatened, endangered or critically endangered. Research findings presented here offer an important baseline of species richness in the California Channel Islands and will help improve the efforts by resource managers and policy makers to conserve and manage similar habitats in the coastal waters off southern California.