3.4 Biological Resources
Moonlight Beach
Within Receiver Site Boundaries
While some of the site is sand habitat, during the May 1999 survey, 30 to 100 percent cobble bands
extended 30 to 80 feet seaward of the back beach. No marine life occurred on the cobble. Sand depths
averaged 3 inches in upper, 11 inches in the mid, and 21 inches in the lower intertidal zones. The mid and
lower intertidal sand habitat was occupied by sand crabs and polychaete worms.
California grunion eggs were not observed in shovel samples collected during the May 1999 survey.
Shallow sand depths and some cobble cover in the upper intertidal may have been limiting to grunion egg
laying during the survey period.
Nearby Sensitive Resources
The closest California least tern and western snowy plover nesting sites are at Batiquitos Lagoon, which
is about 2.5 miles from the receiver site (Figure 3.4-1).
The nearshore waters off Moonlight Beach are characterized by mostly sandy bottom, witha low-reliefreef
starting 500 feet offshore in -6 feet MLLW, just north of the site at a distance of about 400 feet from the
seaward boundary of the site (Table 3.4-2). Scattered giant kelp, surfgrass, and feather boa kelp were
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found on the low-relief reef in 1997. The Encinitas City Marine Life Refuge lies immediately south of the
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site. Refer to Section 3.6.
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The nearshore area offshore the receiver site and extending further south nearly to I Street was surveyed
in January 2000 by side-scan sonar and by divers. One small reef (0.04 acre) had very sparse occurrence
of surfgrass (1 turion per 10 ft2 (4 m2)). Feather boa kelp was fairly ubiquitous but ranged from sparse to
common abundance on several reefs. Several reefs and scattered rock areas were only vegetated with
opportunistic coralline algal turf. They mainly occurred in water depths ranging between -10 and-20 feet
MLLW. Giant kelp, sea fans, and/or sea palms occurred on reefs at depths ranging from -20 to -35 feet
MLLW. Sea fans were on relative higher relief substrate (greater than two feet). Giant kelp occurrence
was sparse, but localized areas with juvenile plants indicate some recovery from the 1997 El Nio event.
Page 3.4-24
Regional Beach Sand Project EIR/EA
99-69\SANDAG EIREA 3.4.wpd 7/17/00
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