West Cove

Click here for Long-Term trends

Click here for Biodiversity Survey findings

West Cove is located in the Southern Channel Islands. This site is not accessible by the public, as it is on navy-owned San Clemente Island. Visitation to this site is limited to fishing and tidepooling navy personnel and a handful of researchers. This gently sloping site consists of moderately uneven terrain, containing few cracks and folds.

West Cove is dominated by a mixture of consolidated granite bedrock and boulder fields, and the area surrounding the site is comprised of a mixture of consolidated bedrock, boulder fields, and cobble beach. The primary coastal orientation of this site is southwest.

Long-Term Monitoring Surveys at West Cove were established in 2011 and are done by Navy Marine Ecology Consortium. Long-Term MARINe surveys currently target the following species: Chthamalus/Balanus (Acorn Barnacles), Mytilus (California Mussel), Silvetia (Golden Rockweed), Endocladia (Turfweed), and Pisaster (Ochre Star). Click here to view Long-Term trends at this site.

Biodiversity Surveys were done in 2013, 2019, and 2022.  The Biodiversity Survey grid encompasses one section that is approximately 30 meters (along shore) x 50 meters (seaward). Click here to view Biodiversity Survey findings at this site.

For more information about West Cove, please contact Jessica Curran (jessica.j.curran.civ@us.navy.mil) or Erica Pollard (erica.a.pollard2.civ@us.navy.mil).