California Seas and Shores - Design Inspiration

California Seas and Shores - Design Inspiration

California’s scenic shoreline is admired around the world for its beautiful waters and breathtaking landscapes. Beyond the shoreline, the Pacific Ocean is a swath of moody blues and hosts a variety of landscapes including deep-sea canyons, kelp forests, rocky reefs, tidal pools, wetlands, and coastal estuaries. Each of these landscapes offer a niche for wildlife to thrive and together are home to billions of fish, mammals, and birds. 


The California Seas and Shores tapestry looks to celebrate the coastal region of California and showcases wildlife that are widely known by locals and tourists alike, are key economic exports of California, or are small treasures you can only find when you look closely at what the coastline has to offer. The tapestry moves from the deep sea, to coastal waters, to tide pools, and finally to the shoreline. It was impossible to fit all wildlife from each ecosystem onto the tapestry but the ones selected are either recognizable and beloved, or hold a special place in my heart from my time growing up along the coast. 


Below is a list of the species represented on the California Seas and Shores tapestry listed from top to bottom. I hope the tapestry inspires you to explore beyond what you are familiar with and helps you recognize the beauty in the California coastline. 


Giant Pacific Octopus - Enteroctopus dofleini

California Sea Lion - Zalophus californianus

Bullwhip Kelp - Nereocystis luetkeana

Pacific Sea Nettle - Chrysaora fuscescens

Pacific Coast Squid - Loligo opalescens

Ochre Sea Star - Pisaster ochraceus

Sea Otter - Enhydra lutris

Giant Kelp - Macrocystis pyrifera

Pacific Sardine - Sardinops sagax

Branching Coralline Algae - Corallinales spp.

Common Gull - Larus canus

California Mussel - Mytilus californianus

Black Turban Snail - Tegula funebralis

Channeled Dog Winkle - Nucella canaliculata

Purple Sea Urchin - Strongylocentrotus purpuratus

Tidepool Sculpin - Oligocottus maculosus

Sand Dollar - Dendraster excentricus

Western Snowy Plover - Charadrius nivosus

Purple Shore Crab - Hemigrapsus nudus

Beach Primrose - Camissoniopsis cheiranthifolia

Seaside Daisy - Erigeron glaucus

Thrift Seapink - Armeria maritima

Beach Sand Verbena - Abronia umbellata
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