Visit the Tijuana Estuary and, whether you know it or not, you’re experiencing what it may have been like to stand on the beach in Southern California hundreds of years ago. This spot, where the Tijuana River meets the Pacific Ocean, is the largest and best example of the natural landscape that once was between Santa Barbara and some two hundred miles south of the border to San Quintín. Human development for cities meant paving over hundreds of miles of coast was wetlands.

And such an abundance of fresh water made the region a major stopover for the migrating birds using the Pacific Flyover, as well home to native species. As seen in this video, its especially critical to the native light-footed Ridgway’s rail, a bird species once abundant in SoCal’s wetlands, but almost went extinct over thirty years ago.