Anacapa’s+Endemic+Animals


 * __Anacapa's Native and Endemic animals__**

There are many native or endemic animals on Anacapa Island. Like the California Brown Pelican, the Xantus’ Murrelet, the Western Gull, the Aggregating Anemone, and the Garibaldi. The first animal I will talk about is the **California Brown Pelican**- Scientific name: Pelecanus occidentalis, Kingdom: Animalia, Phylum: Chordata, Class: Aves, Order: Pelecaniformes, Family: Pelecanidae, Genus: Pelecanus. Well there’s the simple facts, but here is some more. The Brown Pelican is the smallest of the eight species of pelican. It is 42–54 inches in length, weighs 6-12 pounds and has a wingspan from 6 to 8.2 feet. Description- The brown pelican is a large, diving water bird. It has a light brown body with a white head and neck, which are often tinged with yellow. In breeding season, the back of the neck turns dark brown and a yellow patch appears at the base of the neck. You can occasionally see it soaring by the beach. Its diet consists of fish and sometimes shrimp. It once was almost extinct but is making a slow comeback. Sure the California Brown Pelican is outstanding, but here is a animal not many have heard of **Xantus' Murrelet**- Scientific name: Synthliboramphus hypoleucus, Kingdom: Animalia ,Phylum: Chordata, Class: Aves ,Subclass: Neornithes, Order: Charadriiformes ,Suborder: Lari ,Family: Alcidae ,Genus: Synthliboramphus. This bird is a small black and white auk with a small head and thin sharp beak. Xantus’ Murrelet feeds far out at sea, its diet consists of fish like tuna, anchovies, sardines, fish larvae, crustaceans and Sebastes rockfish. The Xantus’ Murrelet is not an everyday animal but here is one that is very common. **Western gull**- The western goal is native to Anacapa not endemic. And most of us call them “seagulls”. Scientific name: Larus occidentalis, Kingdom: Animalia, Phylum: Chordata, Class: Aves, Order: Charadriiformes, Family: Laridae, Genus: Larus, Species: L. occidentalis. The Western Gull is a large gull, around 60 cm long with a white head and body, and gray wings. It has a yellow bill with a red spot this is the small spot near the end of the bill that chicks peck in order to stimulate feeding. At sea they take fish and invertebrates like krill, squid and jellyfish. They cannot dive, and feed exclusively on the surface. On land they feed on seal and sea lion carcasses. They also feed on human food refuse, and taking food from people at marinas and beaches, they even fly to landfills for food. At times some Western Gulls can be predatory, preying on the young of other birds and even adults. Western Gulls also will snatch a fish from a pelican's mouth before it is swallowed. The Western Gull is a bird that everyone knows is an animal, but this animal can be mistaken as a plant. **Aggregating Anemone**- And no, I am not mistaken, an Anemone is a animal. Well its scientific name is Anthopleura elegantissima. Here are some different facts- Kingdom: Animalia, Phylum: Cnidaria, Class: Anthozoa, Subclass: Hexacorallia, Order: Actiniaria, Suborder: Nyantheae, Infraorder: Thenaria ,Family: Actiniidae, Genus: Anthopleura. It eats a wide variety of small crustaceans. Its habitat is rocky intertidal to shallow subtidals. The Aggregating Anemones collect tiny bits of shells and sand on their column that can be like a like a sunscreen for underwater creatures and help protect them from drying. The last animal is one unique fish. **The Garibaldi**- The Garibaldi is our national fish. This fish is native to Anacapa Island. The Garibaldi is actually a damselfish. Well here are some facts- Kingdom: Animalia, Phylum: Chordata, Class: Actinopterygii, Order: Perciformes, Family: Pomacentridae, Genus: Hypsypops, Species: H. rubicundus. Its scientific name is Hypsypops rubicundus. It eats a variety of mussels, sponges, small fish, snails and snail eggs, algae, worms, shrimp, crustaceans and crabs. It can grow to be 14 inches.