A rose among the seagrass

 

I've heard of several observations in Sonoma County this summer, but this is the first Hopkins' Rose nudibranch (Ceratodoris rosacea) I've seen this year.  Thanks so much to Chris for spotting it!

This is a species that can appear in Northern California during and after El Niño events, so it's possible we're seeing a somewhat lagged response to warmer water conditions during the past year.

With a pearly luster

  

A quick shot of a fun sea squirt, Cnemidocarpa finmarkiensis.  One description says this species has a "pearly luster," which seemed right to me.  

Photograph from the South Jetty in Bodega Harbor on 24 July 2024.  Good spotting, Eric!

Not often visible

  

It was very foggy this morning, so perhaps the conditions led to this road-killed bird that I encountered today (22 July 2024).  The reddish coloration caught my eye from a distance, and I realized it was a species you don't often get to see up close, so I thought I'd share a few photos.

Note the gray face, and the reddish slightly down-turned bill.

Here's the entire bird:

 

 

You can see the large feet and very short tail.  This is a Virginia Rail (Rallus limicola), a secretive marsh bird, more often heard than seen.

Virginia Rails have striking barred black-and-white flanks:

 

 

So although this was an opportunity to learn about a local species that's not often visible but living close by in marshes and wetlands, this sighting serves as another reminder for drivers to slow down.

Silky seas

  

This photo is from a couple of days ago.  So calm!  Hardly a wave to be seen.  But I hear that the wind and waves are going to pick up quite a bit this weekend.  Might see some upwelling conditions at the coast during the next several days.  A contrast from one week to the next!

P.S.  You can tune in to the local marine weather forecast here.

Down and up

  

While helping out with a field trip in northern Sonoma County today (16 July 2024), we were fortunate to have nice views of a Steller Sea Lion (Eumetopias jubatus).  

In the photo above, the Steller Sea Lion is the larger, blonder sea lion at the top.  It's surrounded by California Sea Lions (Zalophus californianus).

At one point the sea lions started looking around while some birds were active in the area, which resulted in this fun head-on view of the Steller Sea Lion, and better views of the California Sea Lions for comparison:

 

 

P.S.  With many thanks to this summer's EVE 114 class for a great day in the field!

 

Blending in

  

Well, I need to take a better photo, but here's a quick one for the record.  This looks like Corambe pacifica, a nudibranch I haven't photographed yet.  It was on a bryozoan colony on a piece of drift kelp.

Along with Corambe steinbergae, this species is a bryozoan specialist. Its coloration and patterning looks just like the bryozoan prey.

For an introduction to these intriguing nudibranchs, see "Ay, Corambe!" on 20 September 2013 and "A story with a point" on 17 August 2014 (this one includes a link to a great video!).

A local network?

  

Net-of-Cords Kelp (Dictyoneurum californicum) 

Note the interesting reticulated or network-like patterning.  The blade was in the process of splitting into two through the center.

Dictyoneurum has a distinctive holdfast -- strap-shaped, with haptera (branching root-like structures) on both sides.

 

 

[This kelp had washed ashore, so I placed it on a rock to take a photo, but this kelp lives much lower in the intertidal zone.]