Vegetation Significance

This photo was taken in the upper reaches of the Water Canyon Watershed on Santa Rosa Island. In this area of the watershed, the terraces are bare with eroded soil and small pockets of bunch grasses. There are steep slopes in the top of this watershed, similar to most watersheds. Vegetation not only contributes to healthy soils but also acts as a stabilizer and helps reduce erosion. Due to the lack of vegetation in this area it has unhealthy soils and the land is prone to land slides in the case of heavy storms. This photo shows the aftermath of the first rainstorm of the current El Nino. There was visible slippage of the terraces, filling the stream channel with sediment. This was the only significant change I saw after the first storm. I am curious to see the changes after all the storms during the El Nino. I predict there will be substantial changes throughout the watershed due to the condition of the soil, lack of vegetation, and types of vegetation on the terraces.