Ballona Wetlands Habitat
and Plant Communities

At Ballona there can be found several distinct habitat areas.  When these are dominated with plants, they are termed plant communities.  Each of these habitats tends to occur on a certain type of substrate or in a specific hydrological niche. 

• Subtidal Areas
  Constantly covered with salt, brackish or fresh water, this habitat has few or no higher plants and has a muddy substrate.

• Intertidal  Mudflats
  This habitat is composed of mud substrates on flat areas and in estuary channels which are exposed during low tides and inundated during high tides.

• Coastal Salt Marsh
  This community, containing many succulents, occurs at the core of the wetlands, growing on mud substrates on flats and in estuary channels.

• Coastal Strand
  Plants of this community are often prostrate, occurring on coastal sand dunes.

• Coastal Sage Scrub
  This shrubby community is found on uplands near the coast in southern and central California.

• Riparian and Freshwater Marsh
  Plants of these communities are found near surface or underground sources of fresh water.  Riparian plants tend to be shrubs and trees; freshwater marsh plants are often long-leaved herbaceous monocots.

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