Environmental Setting
On the Map
Located in sunny Southern California, Calabasas enjoys mild winters and hot dry summers. You can escape the heat of the valley with a 20 minute mountain drive to the beach, or head to downtown LA for some night life. Calabasas covers about 13sq. miles and is nestled between Malibu, Agoura and Woodland Hills.
"much of the area is oak savannah: sloping grassland dotted with valley oak trees" - Malibu Creek State Park
On the Surface
The giant cork tree in front of my parents house in Calabasas
Calabasas is sprinkled with hidden treasures, from the occasional run in with a coyote to a hillside covered in chaparral. My parents for instance, have the only cork tree left in the whole city in their front yard. Because of this, they can not cut or trim the tree without facing legal charges. It is actually kind of nice, seeing as though they never have to pay a tree trimming service and they get to enjoy this "beaut". Most residents have become accustomed to having indoor pets due to the abundance of coyotes that roam even the busiest of streets. Not to mention the occasional rattlesnake in the garage and mountain lion drinking from the pool. Even in this picturesque suburbia you will find some pretty unique natural hazards. However, it is easier to talk about the natural landscape of Calabasas when talking about the landscape of Malibu Creek. Since most of Calabasas has been built on and the natural wildlife is being encroached on more and more, Malibu Creek offers a safe haven for plants and animals in the area. Our book best defines this type of vegetation zone as "Mediterranean scrubland"(35). Lucky for us California is its own bioregion and I can definitely attest to its uniqueness. In some places, Calabasas feels like a forest, in others a desert and in most it looks somewhere in between. "Neither desert nor forest, the Mediterranean scrub biome, found in California and southern Oregon, is a greater reflection of the influence of climate on vegetation than the other biomes. Its deep-rooted, small-leaved, perennial shrubs mixed with scattered, savanna-like woodland is particularly adapted to summer drought and mild winters."(37). Although, because of the dry nature of the scrub, Calabasas/Malibu Creek easily succumb to fire. Within the last century there has been significant damage to the landscape and now you can often catch Fire Department 69 or the C.E.R.T., the cities emergency response team, setting controlled fires along hillsides to prevent summer damage.
Scratch the Surface
San Andreas Fault
While Calabasas is hidden from the city by its nook in the coastal mountains, it is not hidden from what is beneath the soil. In January of 1994 the 6.7 magnitude Northridge Earthquake shook my parents house in Calabasas so badly, that the damage caused them to have to move. Earthquakes continue to be a major concern for the area as the valley lays directly above the San Andreas Fault. This is a transform boundary of the North American and Pacific Plates and is long overdue for another major earthquake. Earthquakes are a concern for all Southern Californians, and Calabasas remains prepared with periodic emergency drills in all of its schools.
Other Things
Malibu Creek State Park, Rock Pool
The average rainfall in Calabasas is 13.6 inches and the temperature ranges between 40-70 degrees Fahrenheit in winter and 60-100 in summer.
Residents escape the blistering summer heat by about 5 degrees, compared to neighboring cities.
Much of Malibu Creek is covered in volcanic rock and during the summer you can find 100's of visitors lounging by the rock pool or scaling some of the cliffs.
Check out the slideshow below for more pictures!
Residents escape the blistering summer heat by about 5 degrees, compared to neighboring cities.
Much of Malibu Creek is covered in volcanic rock and during the summer you can find 100's of visitors lounging by the rock pool or scaling some of the cliffs.
Check out the slideshow below for more pictures!