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Santa Rosa Island
S anta Rosa Island has beautiful sandy beaches, to be the oldest human remains ever found in North
fresh water springs, many unique plants, and a America, dating back 13,000 years. Pygmy mam-
Torrey pines forest, which is one of the rarest trees in moths were likely here when humans were as well.
the world. During the ice ages, when the the north- Six plant species exist on this island and nowhere
ern Channel Islands were joined, they were widely else. Santa Rosa Island is influenced by cool northern
inhabited by pygmy mammoths. Santa Rosa Island currents. Its underwater is characterized by rocky
has thousands of archaeological sites, including the pinnacles and thick kelp forests, both with abundant
site of “Arlington Springs Woman”, which is thought and diverse fishes and invertebrates.
