![]() ![]() In combination with the estuarine mouth of Moore Creek, the state beach provides habitat for a variety of bird species, such as shorebirds, gulls, and snowy egrets. Marine mammals, such as whales, seals, and sea otters can be seen from the beach. Receding tides reveal populations of urchins, sea stars, hermit crabs, and kelp. Tide pools at the beach provide a glimpse into marine life habitat for visitors to the park. Sand dunes and a fresh water pond are also found at the park. Coastal Scrub surrounds the margins and undeveloped interior areas of the park. Saltwater and freshwater marshes are found on Moore Creek. The 65-acre (26 ha) of the park have a variety of habitats. The decline at Natural Bridges State Beach has meant an increase in butterfly numbers at nearby Lighthouse Field State Beach. Biologist attribute the decline to a lack of habitat caused by fallen pine and eucalyptus trees. Beginning in the late 1990s the population of butterflies at the park began to decline. The butterflies cluster onto the trees, "intertwining their legs among the branches to resemble a clump of leaves." The butterflies protect each other from cold winter winds and rains by clustering together. At Natural Bridges State Beach they find shelter from the wind and sources of water and food. Monarchs settle in groves along the coasts of California and Baja California. The city of Santa Cruz holds an annual festival to mark the return of the butterflies. Up to 150,000 butterflies migrate up to 2,000 miles (3,200 km) to the park to escape the cold weather of winter in the northwestern United States and Canada. Natural Bridges State Beach is home to a eucalyptus grove that provided habitat for monarch butterflies. Visitors were formerly permitted to climb up, walk and even drive on the bridges. The middle arch is in danger of collapsing as well due to erosion by wind and waves. The outermost arch fell during the early 20th century and the inner arch collapsed during a storm in 1980. Of the three original arches only the middle one remains. ![]() Wave erosion carved the arches and then cut away the cliffs leaving only islands. The arches formed over a million years ago when a combination of silt, clay and diatoms were solidified into a mixture of stone that formed the three original arches of the beach. Natural Bridges State Beach is named for the naturally occurring mudstone bridges that were carved by the Pacific Ocean into cliffs that jutted out into the sea. It is a great place to take your kids and family to get some fresh air and beautiful views.The intertidal zone is home to mussels, sea stars, sea anemones and limpets, seen here being studied by children. ![]() They have a store and a museum in the park with some history on the animals and these butterflies. This lovely place is also the home to the Monarch Butterflies. It is best to go during low tide to really see what this place has to offer: star fish, shore crabs, sea anemones, and other colorful ocean life. They are a park and a beach with public access to tide pools. Natural bridges is located on the west side of Santa Cruz, at the end of the beautiful west cliff drive and Swanton Blvd. ![]() If you love the beach and the outdoors, you’ll most likely end up in Santa Cruz. However, as a local I park outside and walk in to enjoy all the goodies this place has to offer. The best of all is that they are free, unless you want to pay to use the park for the day. Being a local Realtor in the area, I wanted to start posting some helpful insights and photos of the local places to explore. I remember coming here for field trips and thinking how amazing it is to have this so close at our finger tips. Natural Bridges State Marine Reserve What an amazing place! One of my childhood favorites. ![]()
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