• Tule elk silhouetted against sunlight reflecting off of Drakes Bay.

    Point Reyes

    National Seashore California

  • 2012 Harbor Seal Pupping Season Closures

    From March 1 through June 30, an annual closure of Drakes Estero and certain beaches of Tomales Bay is implemented to protect harbor seals during the pupping season. Please avoid disturbing seals to ensure a successful pupping season. More »

Fire Management Units: Estero

Bolinas Ridge | Estero | Headlands | Highway One | Inverness Ridge
Limantour Road | Minimum Management Unit | Non-NPS Land
Palomarin | Tomales Point | Wilderness North | Wilderness South
 
Drakes Estero and Douglas Iris by Sue Van Der Wal

Drakes Estero and Douglas Iris

ESTERO (1,638 acres) - The Estero FMU is located at the northern end of Drake's Estero, along the edges of Schooner and Home bays. This area supports primarily grassland and mixed coyote brush and poison-oak scrub habitats, with patches of wax-myrtle (Myrica californica) in seasonal drainages. A stand of Monterey pine occurs in the southeast corner of the FMU. The Seashore has been using prescribed fire and mowing treatments to control the non-native plant Scotch broom (Cytisus scoparius) in this FMU since 1993, and plans to continue with these treatments. Populations of Point Reyes mountain beaver occur in shrubby drainages within this unit. This species, although not federally listed, is of concern to Seashore managers as it is a rare species whose populations were significantly reduced by the Vision Fire in 1995. This FMU also supports nine plant species of management concern, five of these are federal Species of Concern.

Vegetation Map of Estero Fire Management Unit (Low-res HTML or High-res 560 KB PDF)

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Did You Know?

The pernicious Cig Egret makes its nest in beaches, estuaries, and marshes. Physical removal is the only means of eradication.

40 percent of all debris items picked up during California Coastal Cleanup Days are cigarette butts. In 2008, volunteers picked up over 340,000 of them in only three hours. 2008 was the 24th straight year in which cigarette butts were the most numerous debris item picked up. More...