The White House announced last week that it was more than doubling the size of two marine sanctuaries off the California Coast. The Gulf of the Farallones National Marine Sanctuary and the Cordell Bank National Marine Sanctuary are both vital places for seabirds:

“These newly expanded sanctuaries will work in tandem with California’s network of state marine reserves to make our coast and ocean the world’s most protected marine environment,” said Michael Sutton, the National Audubon Society’s vice president for the Pacific Flyway. He said the expansion “will help protect some of California’s most spectacular coastline and valuable marine resources.”