Turkey vultures, hawks, owls, herons, egrets, flycatchers, swallows, and ravens are common birds. Birds of concern include the brown pelican, lesser tern, osprey, black rail, clapper rail, marbled murrelet, spotted owl, and bank swallow. Reptiles and amphibians include the western rattlesnake, common and western aquatic garter snakes, northern and southern alligator lizards, and several species of salamanders and frogs. Marine and shore species include sea otter, sea lions, seals, brown pelicans, gulls, cormorants, terns, and various shore birds. Introduced species include small populations of fallow deer and barbary sheep.
Feral hogs are common throughout large portions of the Section.
Summer daytime temperatures often are modified by morning fog and sea breezes. The growing season lasts 200 to 330 days. Surface Water Characteristics. Several slow moving, tide-affected major rivers in alluvial channels terminate in San Francisco and Monterey Bays. Much of the saltwater marshes on the north and south ends of San Francisco Bay are converted to salt evaporation ponds.