ABSTRACT
This chapter provides general descriptions of Southern California’s biotic communities (plants and associated vertebrates) in a west-to-east sequence, that is from the coast, to the foothills, to the mountains, and on into the deserts. Numerous species of vertebrates range across several types of communities, especially in the coastal, foothill, and mountain habitats. The communities are Coastal Strand, Coastal Salt Marshes and Estuaries, Coastal Sage Scrub, Chaparral (chaparral is the signature biome of Southern California apart from the deserts.), California Evergreen Woodland, Montane Coniferous Forest, Subalpine Coniferous Forest, Great Basin Scrubland, the Mojave Desert, and the Sonoran–Colorado Desert. These biotic communities together support 30 species of amphibians, 80 species of reptiles (turtles, lizards, and snakes), and 125 species of mammals. Approximately 550 species of birds have been recorded in Southern California. These species, too numerous to consider individually, but, as a group, are discussed as the unique biological phenomena that they are.
Southern California’s riparian habitats are indispensable to the survival of numerous plants and animals. They provide shelter, foraging opportunities, nesting sites, and serve as corridors for dispersal. Southern California’s native freshwater fish (18 species) have suffered from stream depredation and exotic competitors and predators.
