Introduction to GGNRA Wildlife
Here in the San Francisco Bay Area we are fortunate to have a national park right in our backyard. The GGNRA is the world's largest urban national park covering 75,000 acres in San Francisco, Marin, and San Mateo counties. GGNRA has a unique geographical position covering a broad range of habitats for plants and wildlife including marine habitats, salt marshes, redwood forests, chaparral and coastal scrub habitats, and grasslands, just to name a few.
Most
of us know that we live in a unique environment, with urbanization and
wildlife overlapping. In fact, frequently the local newspapers report
on this overlap -- including times when young gray whales are spotted
in the San Francisco Bay. The stories highlight the unique environment
we live in, and they also raise awareness of environmental issues and
efforts to preserve our treasured wildlife habitats. Other unique
overlaps between wildlife and urbanization, which have been witnessed
by naturalists and visitors around the Bay Area, include mountain lions
in the watershed lands of San Mateo County, peregrine falcons nesting
on Bay Bridge towers, and California quail nesting in Golden Gate Park.
