1917 BIRDS OF THE SOUTHERN CALIFORNIA ISLANDS 11 



SANTA BARBARA ISLAND 



S.inta Krirhiira Island lies twcnty-oiK' iniles in a f:;vn('ral westerly diroetioii 

 fi-oin Catalina. it is one and a half miles long, -with a maximuni width of one 

 mile, the liifi:hest jjoint heing 547 feet. The shores are hold and precipitous, with 

 but one regular landing place, even that being impossible to negotiate in very 

 rough weather. A rocky islet 257 feet high is situated a third of a mile southwest- 

 ward, and a smaller one with a height of 125 feet lies two hundred yards to the 

 westward. Except for two hills, the top is a smooth mesa with a heavy growtli 

 of grass and weeds. In certain parts there are scrubby bushes and patches of 

 cactus, with an abundance of iceplant. There is no water, and no one lives upon 

 the island. House cats have become established there. 



ANACAPA ISLAND 



This is the easternmost one of the northern group, and consists of three 

 islets separated by narrow passages, the eastward channel being navigable for 

 small boats at high tide only. The eastern point lies ten and three quarter miles 

 from the nearest mainland. The islands extend four and a half miles in a gen- 

 eral east and west direction. The eastern extremity of the group is a large arched 

 rock, but the true eastern island is a mile long, a quarter of a mile wide, and 2(10 

 feet high. It is the lowest of the group and is rather level on top. The middle 

 one is nearly one and three quarters miles long, three quarters of a mile wide, 

 and 320 feet high. The western and largest island is two miles long, three quar- 

 ters of a mile wdde, and rises to a peak 980 feet high. The shores are perpendic- 

 ular and filled with numerous caves. This is a most beautiful island, especially 

 in the spring, when it is covered with verdure and wild flowers. 



SANTA CRUZ ISLAND 



Santa Cruz Island is the most beautiful and the largest island of all, being 

 twenty-one miles long, in an east and west direction, with an average wndth of 

 five miles, and a peak 2407 feet high. The eastern part is very irregular, barren 

 and almost destitute of water. The western part, however, is, in certain locali- 

 ties, especially near Prisoners Harbor, plentifully besprinkled with forests of 

 the Santa Cruz pine, which, in the higher parts, gives a distinctly boreal impres- 

 sion. At the lower edge of the pines are oaks and considerable grass land. The 

 larger canyons are well wooded with a variety of deciduous trees, some of them 

 quite large, and there is good \\ater in many of them. Low cliffs skirt the shore. 

 About three quarters of a mile southward from the southern end, is Gull Islet, 

 i50 feet high, it being the largest and outermost of a group of small rocky islets 

 a quarter of a mile in extent. There are two ranches upon the island, and a 

 small hotel which is visited more or less regularly by an excursion boat from the 

 city of Santa Barbara. Good camping spots can be found almost anywhere. 

 There are many sheep on the island, a few^ pigs and house cats run wild, and 

 there are some foxes, though the latter are not as plentiful as formerly. 



