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Santa Monica Mountains National Recreation Area

The Santa Monica Mountains National Recreation Area exists today as a mosaic of diverse land ownerships and uses extending over 150,000 acres. Approximately 50 percent of the land within the park boundary is currently protected through ownership by federal, state, and local park agencies. Although, the other half of the recreation area is privately owned, much of this land is still undeveloped and, unlike most national parks, the Santa Monica Mountains National Recreation Area is still expanding as remaining natural open-space parcels become available and are purchased as public park land.

The Santa Monica Mountains are one of the last remaining examples of a relatively undisturbed Mediterranean-type ecosystem in the world. A unique climate, diverse topography, and other factors create a complex assemblage of vegetation types including oak woodland, several types of chaparral, coastal sage scrub, valley oak savanna, grassland, riparian woodland, wetland, and coastal marsh. This diversity in vegetation provides abundant habitat for 50 species of mammals, nearly 400 bird species, and over 35 reptile and amphibian species. These natural resources occur within and adjacent to Los Angeles, the second largest urban area in the nation.

Santa Monica Mountains National Recreation Area (nps.gov)
Santa Monica Mountains National Recreation Area Staff List
Santa Monica Mountains National Recreation Area Map (pdf)