The waters surrounding the California Channel Islands are filled with profuse and diverse marine life, fed by nutrient rich waters rising from the Pacific depths as warm and cold currents meet and mix about the islands.The waters surrounding the California Channel Islands are filled with profuse and diverse marine life, fed by nutrient rich waters rising from the Pacific depths as warm and cold currents meet and mix about the islands.
Over the last few centuries they have been ruthlessly over-exploited, to the point where some species such as the California Sea Otter were almost extinct. Fortunately, the establishment of the Channel Islands National Park in 1978 has halted this trend, but the jury is still out on whether such species will ever recover their former numbers.
Some of the best dives are on submerged pinnacles rising seemingly vertically from the depths in exceptionally clear water. Covered in brightly coloured jewel anemones and plumose anemones, surrounded by shoals of fish, the pinnacles make spectacular diving.
The California state fish is the garibaldi, a protected species. Garibaldi grow to about 30 cm long, are bright orange in colour, and have a squat and chubby shape like a damsel fish. They are curious and will approach divers to peer at their reflections in a mask or camera lens if you take care to avoid sudden movements.
Other interesting fish included various species of ling, rock cod, angel sharks, horn sharks, and sheep fish (I have not got a clue how they got this name).