Sam and I just arrived in Monterey California, home to the nation’s largest National Marine Sanctuary. California, on the west coast of the US is home to my friend Sam, who will visit with friends and family while we are here. March in California is very different than in England – the flowers are blooming everywhere and it is a lovely 21 C today.
I am here to see just some of the Monterey Bay National Marine Sanctuary. This sanctuary is quite large, it’s 444 km in length and covers 15,783 km2 of ocean. At its deepest point, the Monteray Bay Nation Marine Sanctuary (MBNMS) reaches down 3,250m!
Elephant seal
A beautiful sea slug
Nesting coastal bird
Without even stepping foot on a boat you can witness its incredible marine life from shore -- whales, sea otters, harbor seals, sea lions, pelicans, and a variety of marine life abound!
Slip under the surface of the water and you can glide through kelp forests, home to many species of fish, sea stars, urchins, and nudibranchs.
Leatherback turtle
Just two years ago, they added the Davidson Seamount to the sanctuary – it’s an underwater volcanic mountain!
Jellyfish
Life on the seamont
There is a neat slide show about the sanctuary here: http://montereybay.noaa.gov/visitor/slideshow/slideshow.html
I can't wait to find out more. Bye for now Ed and Sam
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