While there are over 500 species of birds that breed in North America, only one, the island scrub-jay, lives and breeds on a single island, Santa Cruz in the Channel Island National Park. The island scrub jay breeds in the coastal oak and chaparral oak that are found throughout Santa Cruz, and feeds on insects, lizards, mice and nestlings.

Other species endemic to the Channel Islands are the island fox. The island fox lives on only 5 of the 8 Channel Islands, and no place else. Each island fox species is recognized as its own separate unique subspecies. The island fox is a third smaller than the mainland ancestor, and more the size of a small cat, at only 4 – 5 lbs. It has distinctive markings around its face, with rust colorings on its sides and white underneath.

The one (above) we saw on Santa Rosa, was visibly different from the one we spotted on Catalina (below).

We found our visit to the Channel Islands to be interesting, educational, and tiring with the many nature hikes and excursions we enjoyed. for more photos of the Channel Islands – Anapaca, check out my blog post here…https://kritterspaw.com/2023/05/05/channel-islands-anacapa/