Bair Island

Not to be confused with Bear Island (disambiguation).
Bair Island State Marine Park
IUCN category V (protected landscape/seascape)
Bair Island in 2014
Map showing the location of Bair Island State Marine Park
Map showing the location of Bair Island State Marine Park
Map showing the location of Bair Island State Marine Park
Map showing the location of Bair Island State Marine Park
Map showing the location of Bair Island State Marine Park
Map showing the location of Bair Island State Marine Park
LocationSan Francisco Bay
Nearest cityRedwood City, California
Coordinates37°31′48″N 122°13′20″W / 37.5299362°N 122.2221881°W / 37.5299362; -122.2221881[1]
Area3,398 acres (13.75 km2)
Established1986
Governing bodyUS Fish and Wildlife Service, Don Edwards San Francisco Bay National Wildlife Refuge

Bair Island is a marsh area in Redwood City, California, covering 3,000 acres (1,200 ha), and includes three islands: Inner, Middle and Outer islands.[2] Bair Island is part of the larger Don Edwards San Francisco Bay National Wildlife Refuge.[3] It is surrounded by the Steinberger slough to the northwest and Redwood Creek to the southeast.

The California Department of Fish and Wildlife's Bair Island Ecological Reserve consists of 1,985 acres (803 ha)[2] on the Middle and Outer islands, although the entire island group is managed by the Refuge. Bair Island is an important ecological wetland,[4] which provides critical habitat for a variety of species, including the endangered California clapper rail and the Salt marsh harvest mouse, and is an important stop for birds on the Pacific Flyway.[5] Bair Island is bisected by Corkscrew Slough,[6] a major haul-out site for harbor seals (Phoca vitulina).[7]

  1. ^ "Bair Island". Geographic Names Information System. United States Geological Survey, United States Department of the Interior. January 19, 1981. Retrieved 2012-12-04.
  2. ^ a b "Bair Island Ecological Reserve". California Department of Fish and Wildlife. Retrieved 2016-06-23.
  3. ^ "Bair Island". U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service. Retrieved 2023-05-27.
  4. ^ Department of the Interior and Related Agencies Appropriations for 1993: Testimony of members of Congress. U.S. Government Printing Office. 1992. p. 104. ISBN 978-0-16-038699-2.
  5. ^ Bair Island Ecological Refuge Restoration and Management Plan: Environmental Impact Statement. 2006. pp. 3, 35, 256.
  6. ^ "Corkscrew Slough". Geographic Names Information System. United States Geological Survey, United States Department of the Interior.
  7. ^ Rebecca Sutton; Da Chen; Jennifer Sun; Denise J. Greig; Yan Wu (2019). "Characterization of brominated, chlorinated, and phosphate flame retardants in San Francisco Bay, an urban estuary". Science of the Total Environment. 652: 212–223. Bibcode:2019ScTEn.652..212S. doi:10.1016/j.scitotenv.2018.10.096. PMID 30366322. Retrieved March 16, 2019.