San Elijo Lagoon is one of the largest coastal wetlands in San Diego County, California

California

California is a state located on the West Coast of the United States. It is by far the most populous U.S. state, and the third-largest by land area...

, USA. It is the location of the San Elijo Lagoon Ecological Reserve.
The lagoon lies within the southernmost part of the city of Encinitas

Encinitas, California

Encinitas is a coastal beach city in San Diego County, California. Located within Southern California, it is approximately north of San Diego in North County and about south of Los Angeles. As of the 2010 census, the city had a population of 59,518, up from 58,014 at the 2000 census. Encinitas is...

. Its watershed

Drainage basin

A drainage basin is an extent or an area of land where surface water from rain and melting snow or ice converges to a single point, usually the exit of the basin, where the waters join another waterbody, such as a river, lake, reservoir, estuary, wetland, sea, or ocean...

 is 77 square miles (199.4 km²). The two main feeds are Escondido Creek and Orilla Creek. The reserve covers 900 acres (3.6 km²).

The Reserve is owned by the California Department of Fish and Game

California Department of Fish and Game

The California Department of Fish and Game is a department within the government of California, falling under its parent California Natural Resources Agency. The Department of Fish and Game manages and protects the state's diverse fish, wildlife, plant resources, and native habitats...

  and is managed by the County of San Diego .