Are the two objects in this photo the same or different? The answer to come!
Category: Marine biology
Glow
On this winter solstice, as we anticipate the return of light, I thought I’d write about a different kind of light. Merriam-Webster defines fluorescence as “luminescence that is caused by the absorption of radiation at one wavelength followed by nearly immediate reradiation usually at a different wavelength and that ceases almost at once when the…
Hungry? Then just keep swimming
Yesterday I had some time to kill before getting a COVID test, and, as usual, wandered down to the ocean. This time I was at Seacliff State Beach. It was pretty crowded, so I walked onto the pier to see if the fishermen were having any luck. They weren’t, really. One man kept catching jack…
Ready for battle
For some reason, many of the sunburst anemones (Anthopleura sola) in a certain area at Davenport Landing were geared up for a fight. I don’t know what was going on before I got there yesterday morning, but something got these flowers all riled up. We think of them as being placid animals, but that’s only…
Letting gravity do the work
This morning I went to Natural Bridges. The tide this morning was the lowest of the season, but early enough that for the most part I had the intertidal to myself for a couple of hours. I always like those mornings best. I did meet a docent out there, and we chatted for a few…
Serendipity, once again
Sometimes things just work out, through no fault of my own. In terms of good minus tides occurring in daylight hours, this weekend’s tides are the best we will have all season. Today (Saturday 29 May) is the third of five intertidal excursions I have planned. This morning I went up to Pistachio Beach to…
Beauty at low tide
The rocky intertidal is coming into its full summer glory right now. The early morning low tides have been spectacular in May, and they’ll get better for the remaining few days of the month. This morning I went out to Franklin Point to poke around. Low tide was -1.8 feet (yippee!) at 06:13. And for…
A snail’s pace
As we speed towards the summer solstice the days continue to get longer. The early morning low tides are much easier to get up for, as the sky is lightening by 05:30. Even so, when traveling an hour to get to the site, it’s nice when the low is later than that. This past Saturday…
From the tidepool to the stars
A few weeks ago I went out to Franklin Point and saw that the sea lettuces (Ulva sp.) were spawning in the high pools. I revisited the site today, with a lower tide to work with, and spent a considerable amount of time looking for and photographing the staurozoans. I did find some, too! But…
All dressed up with nowhere to go
For animals that do essentially nothing when you see them where they live, chitons have a lot of charm. They are the kind of animal that, once you develop the search image for them, you start seeing everywhere. It helps that they are easily recognized as being chitons because of their eight dorsal shell plates—nothing…