LIMPETS: Long-term Monitoring Program and Experiential Training for Students

Point Bonita

GPS coordinates:

37° 48.56’ N, 122° 31.47’ W

LiMPETS monitoring site since:

2006

Directions:

Point Bonita is located in the Marin Headlands just north of the Golden Gate Bridge. The monitoring site is just northeast of the tunnel that leads to the Point Bonita Lighthouse. The site is closed to the public. The Headlands Institute has received special permission to monitor the site through the National Park Service.

Restrooms:

There are no restrooms nearby.

Site description:

The site is composed primarily of an elevated bedrock shelf that underlies an old life-saving station boat ramp. This monitoring site is located at the entrance of the San Francisco Bay, an area of high risk of an oil spill due to the great amount of vessel traffic with petroleum products. Point Bonita is also a unique location where southern intertidal species, which inhabit warmer waters, and northern intertidal species, which inhabit colder waters, overlap. This location provides us with an opportunity to monitor how southern and northern species composition might change over the years due to global warming.

LiMPETS methods:

1. Total counts in a permanent area

Download site-specific protocols and datasheets used at this site.

Permit and visitor information:

This site is located in the Golden Gate National Recreation Area (GGNRA). There is no public access to the site.

Contact your LiMPETS site coordinator:

Farallones Marine Sanctuary Association • The Presidio, 991 Marine Drive, San Francisco, CA 94129 • • (415) 561-6625 x304