City - San Francisco State - CA Country - United States
About
Ten thousand years ago, Mother Earth was shivering through the last major ice age. The world's major oceans were up to 330 feet lower, and the polar ice masses extended much closer to the equator. The west coast of what is now California reached 35 miles west of its present day location. At the edge of this ancient coastline were foothills similar to Mount Tamalpais. The ice began to melt, the water began to rise, and our little foothills became the isolated orphans that we now call the Farallon Islands.
A History of the Farallon Islands
Comprised of seven major islands jutting from the turbulent Pacific Ocean, they amount to 211 acres of seemingly uninhabitable terrain. Home to the largest seabird nesting colony in the contiguous United States, they are in fact one of the world's most biologically diverse environments.
The islands and surrounding waters have seen over 400 species of breeding and migrant birds. They also serve as a crucial haul out point for the six different species of marine mammals that breed on the islands.
The Farallones were first discovered by the Native Americans who called them the "Islands of the Dead" and refused to set foot on them for spiritual reasons. The first known person to set foot on the Farallones was the explorer Sir Francis Drake who made a stop at the islands on a journey westward into the unknown. Drake coined the rocky outcroppings the "Islands of St. James", but in 1769 the Explorer Juan Francisco de Bodega renamed them "Los Farallones de losFrailes." For hundreds of years, the islands remained unaffected by human interference until 1810 when New England sealing boats spent two years at the Farallones slaughtering more than 150,000 Northern Fur Seals. Following in the New Englander's footsteps, Russian fur traders set up camp at Fort Ross, and spent several years continuing the massacre of the Northern Fur Seal. Finally, when there was no longer a profit to be had, the Russians left in 1841. The Farallon Islands. Photo credit: Jason Thompson.
This gave the islands a short break from human predation. However, it quickly ended in 1849 with the influx of Forty-niners' hunting for the illusive pot of gold. The overwhelming increase in San Francisco's population resulted in an even greater increase in demand for consumer goods. It seemed that miners were particularly fond of eggs for breakfast and entrepreneurs knew that supply had to increase in order to profit from the overwhelming demand. This line of thought led to the creation of the Farallones Egg Company, which plundered sea bird eggs and sold them for a huge profit. The eggers would start their season by smashing all the eggs on the island, then collecting the new eggs as they appeared. This would ensure the freshness of the eggs, as well as the satisfaction of the hungry settlers. The egg company lasted almost 40 years, and in that time it is estimated that they removed 14 million eggs from nests on the islands. During the time of the Egg Company, a lighthouse was installed on the South Farallones Island. With the light came family after family of lighthouse keepers, along with rabbits, goats, dogs, cats, and other non-native species. These invasive species helped add to the destruction of the native plants and animals that had lived in peace on the islands for so many years. The Farallon Islands. Photo credit: Jason Thompson.
Finally, after years of destruction, Teddy Roosevelt declared the North and Middle Farallones a wildlife refuge in 1906. However, it wasn't until 1969 that the South Farallones Island was added to the bill. Another big success for the islands happened in 1972 when the human operated lighthouse was replaced by an automated system. This ended 117 years of continuous human residence of the islands. As a result of the government's actions the flora and fauna of the Farallones have slowly begun rebounding toward their original resilience. In 1996, the first Northern Fur Seal pup was born on the islands, ending an absence that had lasted over 150 years. Elephant seals have also returned to the islands to breed after they were hunted to local extinction more than 100 years ago. The Farallon Islands. Photo credit: Jason Thompson.
In 1981, the government established the Gulf of the Farallones National Marine Sanctuary, which ensured the protection of the waters surrounding the fragile Farallones. The Gulf of the Farallones is the local supermarket to all the animals that come to the islands to breed. Without the abundance of food that these waters provide, there wouldn't be the multitude of animals that use these islands as a place to raise their young. The waters surrounding the islands also act as the feeding grounds for 36 species of marine mammals, including the largest population of blue whales found anywhere else on earth. These testaments and more should be reason enough to understand and demonstrate the importance of these islands and their surrounding waters. With continued vigilance and human absence, this ecosystem will have the chance to return to the brimming pot of life that it once was.
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