Fog monitoring on the Point Loma Peninsula at Cabrillo National Monument: 2023 annual report
Javier VG, Simpson J, Wilder BA, Katayama T, Cat LA, Pandori LL . 2024. Fog monitoring on the Point Loma Peninsula at Cabrillo National Monument: 2023 annual report. Science Report. Science Report NPS/SR—2024/162. National Park Service. Fort Collins, Colorado. https://doi.org/10.36967/2305271
Cabrillo National Monument (CABR) is a unit of the National Park System located on the Point Loma peninsula in San Diego, CA, USA. Despite its small size (0.65 terrestrial km2), the monument attracts 851,000 annual visitors (IRMA SRSS Reports 2011-2020), and acts as an “urban island”, providing habitat for unique algal, plant and animal species in an area of increasing development and urbanization. The park is situated in a Mediterranean climate, characterized by hot, dry summers and wet winters. This climate supports rare habitats and plant communities, such as coastal sage scrub, maritime succulent scrub, and southern maritime chaparral. Since most precipitation occurs in the winter, fog and low cloud cover are vital sources of water for the survival of animals and vegetation in the dry summer months. It is unknown how climate change may impact fog dynamics and microclimates at the park. This information is crucial for resource management decision-making. Specifically, to create tailored strategies for future revegetation plans, including the establishment of rare and unique native plants. Thus, we designed and implemented a fog monitoring system consisting of two cameras, four weather stations, and twelve leaf wetness sensors at the park to investigate whether microclimates differ on small spatial scales (< 5 km), including differences in elevational gradient and across sides of the Point Loma peninsula. This report provides the first annual summary of the findings collected from July 2022 to May 2023. Results suggest that the ocean-facing side of the peninsula experiences more fog compared to the bay-facing side and that higher elevations experience less fog.
- Type
- Published Report
- Authors
- Javier, Virginia; Simpson, Jay; Wilder, Brenton; Katayama, Taro; Cat, Linh; Pandori, Lauren.
- Date of Issue
- 2024-08
- Publisher
- National Park Service
- DOI
- 10.36967/2305271
- Units
- CABR , NRSS
- Keywords
- Climate, Coastal Sage Scrub, Fog, Vegetation