Santa Monica Mountains presentation

1. Santa Monica Mountains
Photo credit: M. Carter
Los Angeles County,
California
By: Meghan Carter

2. The Santa Monica Mountains
Coastal mountain range located in Southern California
- 46 miles in length
- 10 miles wide
- Hollywood Hills in Los Angeles to Point Mugu in
Ventura County.
Part of the Transverse Ranges
- Bordered by Simi Hills and Verdugo Mountains.
Highest peak is “Sandstone Peak” at 3,111 feet in Malibu.
Dry climate with coastal fog. Prone to wildfires and can be
severely affected by Santa Ana Winds.
Residents of Southern California and visitors from around the
world are able to enjoy the Santa Monica Mountains while out
on the hiking trails, or while mountain climbing, biking,
horseback, and camping. Photo Credit: M. Carter

3. SANTA MONICA
MOUNTAINS
- Began forming
16 million years
ago.
- “Active fault
lines, fossils,
remnants of
volcanoes, and
even formations
created underwater
now at the top of
ridgelines.”
Photo Credit: hike-losangeles.com
Source: Geologic Formations nps.gov

4. Whitney CAnyon Park
Tucked away in Santa Clarita, Whitney
Canyon Park is a section of the Santa Monica
Mountains that I recently explored.
This area consists of:
- Mudstone
- Alternating beds of sandstone
- Conglomerate
- Metamorphic rock
Photo Credit: M. Carter
Sources: Elsmerecanyon.com

5. Metamorphic Rock
“Metamorphic rocks result from the alteration
of other rocks, usually beneath the surface, by
heat, pressure and the chemical activity of
fluids” (Monroe & Wicander, 2012, p. 18)
I believe there gneiss, which is a type of
metamorphic rock as well as sedimentary rocks
out in Whitney Canyon. You can see the faults
in the basal gneiss in the photo to the left.
“Gneiss is a coarse grained metamorphized
igneous rock. In this rock, you get the
recrystallization and foliation of quartz,
feldspars, micas, and amphiboles into
alternating light and dark colored bands.”
(physicalgeography.net)
I observed many alternating colored bands in
the rocks while I was exploring.
Photo Credit: M. Carter

6. Photo Credit: M. Carter
Principle of Inclusions
When it comes to sedimentary rock, if there are
inclusions or fragments of rock found in the
formation or layers of the rocks, then the
inclusions must be older than the rock that holds
them. This is the principle of inclusions.
(Monroe & Wicander, 2012, p.420)
In Whitney Canyon I observed the layers of
sedimentary rock that had inclusions which showed
the different ages of the rocks, the oldest being
at the bottom layers.
I believe what we
are seeing in the
photo to the
right is angular
unconformity, as
the layers are
tilted
horizontally and
angular
discordance
within the rocks

7. Sedimentary rocks are formed closely to Earth’s
surface, therefore geologists are able to use
these rocks to conclude information about the
area. (Monroe & Wicander, 2012, p.18)
“Sedimentary rocks are composed of sediment and
form in one of three ways.” (Monroe & Wicander,
2012, p.18)
- The first way is “consolidation of mineral or
rock fragments” (Monroe & Wicander, 2012,
p.18)
- Second is by “precipitation of mineral matter
from solution” (Monroe & Wicander, 2012,
p.18)
- Lastly is through plant or animal remains
being compacted. (Monroe & Wicander, 2012,
p.18)
I believe Whitney Canyon has sedimentary rocks
that are sandstone, as sandstone is composed sand
sized grains of quartz and that is what I
observed.
Sedimentary Rock

8. Mountain Lions
- Commonly seen on
trails in the area.
- Population peaked in
1996, decreased and
now has maintained
stable.
- Attacks on humans are
rare.
Photo retrieved from:
https://www.nps.gov/samo/learn/nature/pumapage.htm
Source: wildlife.ca.gov (n.d.)

9. Tadpoles
The waterfall that was found at
the end of Whitney Canyon trail,
had water flowing down the hill
that created small pools that
were breeding grounds for frogs.
There were multiple pools with
dozens upon dozens of tadpoles,
on their way of growing into
frogs.
Photo Credit: M. Carter

10. Earth Shaking - Quakes
Southern California is known for being a
shaky area, enduring many earthquakes
over the years. These quakes helped
build the Santa Monica Mountain range
over millions of years. Surrounded by
faults the two most prominent fault sets
in the mountains are the Sycamore
Canyon and Boney Mountain Faults at
the western end of the range and the
Malibu Coast Fault that runs east-west
along the coastal boundary of the park.
Always leaving the question… When is the next big one?
Photo retrieved from: https://www.businessinsider.com/photos-1994-
northridge-earthquake-in-los-angeles-2019-1

11. References
Santa Monica mountains in Los Angeles, Ventura County. (n.d.). See California Vacation Travel Guide | Photos, Cities, Beaches, Hotels. Retrieved
June 9, 2020 from, https://www.seecalifornia.com/mountains/santa-monica-mountains.html
Whitney canyon geology. (n.d.). Elsmere Canyon. Retrieved June 9, 2020 from,
https://www.elsmerecanyon.com/whitneycanyon/geology/geology.htm
Santa Monica mountains. (n.d.). HIKE LOS ANGELES. Retrieved June 9, 2020 from, https://www.hike-losangeles.com/santa-monica-mountains.html
Geologic formations. (2015, August 13). NPS.gov (U.S. National Park Service). Retrieved June 9, 2020 from,
https://www.nps.gov/samo/learn/nature/geologicformations.htm
Monroe, J. S., & Wicander, R. (2012). The Changing Earth: Exploring Geology and Evolution. Belmont, CA: Brooks/Cole.
10(g) characteristics of metamorphic rocks. (n.d.). Geography : Physical Geography. https://www.physicalgeography.net/fundamentals/10g.html
Commonly asked questions about mountain lions. (n.d.). California Department of Fish and Wildlife. Retrieved June 20, 2020 from,
https://wildlife.ca.gov/conservation/mammals/mountain-lion/faq#359951243-are-mountain-lion-numbers-increasing-or-decreasing-in-california
Earthquakes in the Santa Monica mountains. (2015, March 1). NPS.gov (U.S. National Park Service). Retrieved June 9, 2020 from,
https://www.nps.gov/samo/learn/nature/earthquakes.htm
Bendix, A. (2019, January 17). Devastating photos show the damage from the 1994 Northridge earthquake in Los Angeles. It could pale in
comparison to the next 'Big one.'. Business Insider. Retrieved June 9, 2020 from, https://www.businessinsider.com/photos-1994-northridge-
earthquake-in-los-angeles-2019-1