I did a quick search, and there doesn’t seem to be a collective noun for sea stars. I’m going to remedy that by declaring “constellation” to be the official term for a group of sea stars. And by “official” I mean that’s the term I’m going to use. Who knows, maybe it’ll take. In any…
So big, so fast!
I am astonished at how quickly my Pisaster larvae are growing and developing. This week saw their 3-week birthday, and today they are all of 24 days old. And look at how much they’ve changed since Monday! This individual measures 1500 µm long, not including the length of those two long brachiolar arms on the…
Some smells linger for days
A few months ago, a former student invited me to participate in an activity with local Girl Scouts. The Scouts have a camp this weekend at Henry Cowell Redwoods State Park, and this year their theme is “Commotion in the Ocean.” The former student, whose name is Thomas, works for the Squids for Kids program run…
A thousand words
You know how the saying goes. I just wanted to share how beautiful this larva is. I have nothing to add. More on Friday, probably.
17 days old
What a difference a week makes! The Pisaster larvae have grown and developed quite a bit since I looked at them a week ago. Here they are as little space ships again. Since they are getting so big, Scott and I decided to redistribute the larvae from four jars into six. This will give them…
The answer to the puzzle
THE ANSWER TO YESTERDAY’S PUZZLE IS . . . . . . drum roll, please . . . Microcladia coulteri! I showed you this: but what you really needed to be certain of the ID was the rest of the photo: Huzzah again for natural history! I love it when natural history provides the answer to…
A tale of two algae, and a puzzle
If you visit the California rocky intertidal in the spring or summer, one of the first things you notice will be the macroalgae, or seaweeds. They are incredibly abundant and diverse this time of year, covering just about every bit of rock. In fact, in a landscape sense the only visible organisms are macroalgae and surfgrass:…
Branching out
Today I decided to look at some scuzz growing in one of the seawater tables at the marine lab. This table is populated mostly by coralline rocks, although I have some pet chitons running around in it. I picked out a promising rock and examined it under some decent light. Most of the rocks have…
Growing fast
Today my Pisaster ochraceus larvae are 10 days old. Although they seemed to be developing slowly, compared to the urchins that I’m more used to, in the past several days they have changed quite a bit. They’ve also been growing quickly, which makes me think that they’re off to a strong start. Of course, there’s…
Green is the new sexy, Part II
Part of what makes the marine algae so fascinating to me is their life cycles. I’m intrigued by organisms that do things differently from us. And to be honest, from the perspective of someone who studies invertebrates and their life cycles, we humans are rather boring: we’re born into in one body, reproduce (maybe), and then…