What came first at Sharp Park: the golf course or the endangered species?
Some have argued that Sharp Park’s golf course and sea wall are the reason that the San Francisco garter snake and the California red-legged frog exist at Sharp Park. They say this is so because the golf course and sea wall somehow prevent Laguna Salada from becoming too saline for these animals to survive. This argument is demonstrably false. The United States Geologic Survey created a map of Sharp Park and the surrounding areas in 1869, before any significant man-made changes occurred at Sharp Park. This map shows that freshwater vegetation fringed Sharp Park’s Laguna Salada: these vegetation types are indicative of salinity levels low-enough for amphibians and reptiles to thrive. This map is corroborated by early photos taken at Sharp Park. These photos show Laguna Salada as dump trucks were filling-in some of the wetlands on the property, but it also shows that cattails fringed the lagoon: vegetation that cannot survive in saline environments, indicating that the area was suitable
