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| Marin Islands National Wildlife Refuge | |
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IUCN category IV (habitat/species management area) | |
 View of both Marin Islands, from the East Peak ofMount Tamalpais. | |
  Map of California Show map of San Francisco Bay Area Marin Islands (California) Show map of California Marin Islands (the United States) Show map of the United States | |
| Location | San Pablo Bay, Marin County, California,U.S. |
| Nearest city | San Rafael, California |
| Coordinates | 37°57′55″N122°28′16″W / 37.96514°N 122.47116°W /37.96514; -122.47116[1] |
| Established | 1992 |
| Governing body | U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service |
| Website | Marin Islands National Wildlife Refuge |
TheMarin Islands are two smallislands, namedEast Marin andWest Marin, inSan Rafael Bay, an embayment ofSan Pablo Bay inMarin County,California.
The Marin Islands are located offshore from thecity of San Rafael, in the northernSan Francisco Bay Area. The islands comprise theMarin Islands National Wildlife Refuge, which was established in 1992. The surrounding submerged tidelands are also included in therefuge. The islands are the property of theU.S. Fish and Wildlife Service and require special permission to visit.
The islands are named after theCoast Miwok man known asChief Marin, after whomMarin County was later named. He is thought to have hidden out there in the 1820s after escaping fromMission San Rafael, before being recaptured and incarcerated at the MexicanSan Francisco Presidio.[2]
The islands were donated to the federal government by the Crowley family of San Francisco. They had been bought by Thomas Crowley at auction in 1926 for $25,000 in the hope that they would become the western terminus of theRichmond–San Rafael Bridge. Instead, they became a family vacation spot for more than sixty years.
West Marin Island, elevation 26 meters (85 ft) above thebay waters, supports the largestheron andegretrookery in theSan Francisco Bay Area. Nestingspecies includegreat egrets,snowy egrets,great blue herons, andblack-crowned night herons.
East Marin Island, a former vacation retreat, now supports a variety ofintroduced andnative plants and provides critical nesting material and rest sites for the nearby colony.
The submerged tidelands support a variety of resident andmigratorywater birds such assurf scoter,black oystercatcher,diving ducks, andosprey. Refuge objectives are to protect migratory species, including the heron and egret nesting colony, protect and restore suitablehabitat for the colony, and protect the tidal mud flats and unique islandecosystem.
This article incorporatespublic domain material from websites or documents of theUnited States Fish and Wildlife Service.
Map: Islands of theSan Francisco Bay Area | |
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