Variation

 

 

Last week Eric had good luck finding Ten-tentacled Anemones (Halcampa decemtentaculata) with interesting color patterns.  [You can click on the image for a sharper version.]

Some of the patterns and the amazing variation between individuals reminds us of snowflakes.  And speaking of snow...it's in the forecast for Cotati on Saturday morning! 

Front and back

  

Two Bald Eagles perched in a cypress tree near the Bodega Bay post office today (29 November 2022).

The eagle on the left was often looking out at the harbor, and in this position its white head feathers were splayed out in the back:

 

 

When you least expect it

  

Okay, so this is a story about some photos that didn't quite work out.  And a follow-up when I was surprised when the same species showed up in a couple of other photos and I hadn't even realized they were there!

I was trying to photograph this small amphipod (Thorlaksonius sp., formerly Pleustes sp.) resting on algae.  They have an unusual shape — rounded at one and and pointed at the other — which makes them look like snails.  (Indeed, it's thought that this amphipod has evolved to mimic snails to avoid attention from visual predators like fish.)

I wasn't having much luck with the first one (above), but then I found another so tried again.  Still not a great photo as I was only able to photograph it from above:

 

 

I was frustrated and gave up, and didn't notice any other amphipods like this that night.  But later when I was reviewing my other photos, I noticed two more amphipods that I hadn't seen in the field.  I had been so focused on the other animals I was trying to photograph that I completely missed the amphipods.

Here's one while I was trying to photograph a Ten-tentacled Sea Anemone (Halcampa decemtentaculata):

 

 

Yes, that's an amphipod near the bottom of the photo in the center — this one was pink with white stripes.

Later I was trying to photograph a sculpin.  Can you find the amphipod in the photo below?

 

Yes, that's it, sitting on the back of the fish.  It's small, with red, white, and pink stripes, and it's resting on the wide pale stripe in the middle of the fish.

Hmmpph!  I'll have to keep my eye out for them the next time we're at this site.  And I learned a lot about the variable color patterns of this amphipod species, even if I missed them in the field.

At the beach

  

A couple of Snowy Plovers (Charadrius nivosus) at Point Reyes on 25 November 2022.

 

 

Bright blue highlights

  

Eric had good luck with spotting interesting shrimp last night (25 November 2022).  Here's another one -- with red/maroon background colors and bright blue spots scattered across the abdominal segments.  We think this is probably a Heptacarpus species, but I'm not sure which one.

And here's an even closer view of those beautiful blue spots!

 

 

Fun to know these handsome shrimp are living along the Sonoma coast!

Blue galaxy

 

 

So cool!  Eric photographed this shrimp in the low intertidal zone tonight (25 November 2022).  We think it might be a species of Heptacarpus, possibly Heptacarpus brevirostris.  (But if you have more experience with shrimp and have a different opinion, please let us know.)

 

I love the blue-green background color and the bright blue spots!  Sometimes Heptacarpus brevirostris is called the Stout Coastal Shrimp, but this one made me think of a galaxy, so tonight I'm calling it the Blue Galaxy Shrimp.  :)

 

Thanks, Eric!

Close to the ground

  

American Badger (Taxidea taxus) resting on a mound of freshly dug soil around sunset a couple of nights ago.  I rarely see badgers, so I almost couldn't believe my eyes. I love the striped facial pattern and the grizzled fur.  [You can click on the image for a slightly larger view.]

Eric and I are hoping you get to spend some time with family and friends this weekend.  

We'll be sending out thanks to all of the plants and animals and landscapes around us, and to you for tuning in to the Natural History of Bodega Head!

Spiderlings?

  

While doing some surveys during the low tide this afternoon (22 November 2022), Eric kept spotting these very small sea spiders (pycnogonids).  This species, Pycnogonum stearnsi, is common in this area, but we don't often see juveniles.  The ruler above shows millimeter markings, so this sea spider was only ~3 mm long.  (The sea spider is crawling across a purple sponge.)

Here's another photo  — with one individual of a more typical size (~8-10 mm long) and another small juvenile to the right:

 

 

Moon shot

 

 

Another shot of the moon, looking east from Cotati during the early morning on 21 November 2022.

Profile view

  

Although the light was dim, this profile view is helpful for identifying a young Northern Elephant Seal (Mirounga angustirostris).  Note the pointed snout and the dense and relatively thick eyebrow whiskers.  Photographed off Bodega Head on 20 November 2022.

In the harbor

  

A couple of quick shots from a shorebird survey in Bodega Harbor today (18 November 2022).

Above, a mixed flock, mostly Dunlin and Least Sandpipers.  (They were trying to evade a Peregrine Falcon.)

Below, a Wilson's Snipe -- it's a distant shot, but after 18 years of doing these surveys, it's the first time I've seen a Wilson's Snipe on the tidal flats.  In this area, I more often I encounter them in freshwater wetlands (for an example, see this post from last February).

 

 

Last quarter

 

 

Looking up at the moon from Cotati this morning, 17 November 2022.

Low to the ground

 

 

I've been doing lots of desk work lately, but here's a quick shot of a fly-by Burrowing Owl (Athene cunicularia) from 11 November 2022.

Golden highlights

  

Western Meadowlark (Sturnella neglecta), Bodega Head, 12 November 2022

At the surface

 

 

Harbor Seal (Phoca vitulina) at the surface, 11 November 2022

Sunset layers

  

 Sunset layers on 10 November 2022

Big sky

 

 

No view of the lunar eclipse for us last night (too many clouds), but there was a clear view of the moon tonight (8 November 2022).

 

And there were some impressive skies in the early evening...rainbows, showers, towering clouds:

 

 

 

Passing showers

 

 

Passing showers on the western horizon, 7 November 2022

Rain on the way

  

This photo was taken about a week ago, but it seemed similar to the conditions in the early evening tonight, so I thought it would appropriate to share ahead of the coming rain.  (Yes, rain!)

Twilight purple

  

An interesting purple color in the sky at sunset tonight — clouds gathering ahead of rain tomorrow?  Photographed from Bodega Head on 4 November 2022.

Oregon foam

  

There was a pretty large swell and lots of foam washing ashore while we were up in Oregon last week.  With an overcast sky, there were some amazing colors in the bubbles!  Photographed near Cape Perpetua on 29-30 October 2022.

 

 

Convergence

  

The underside of a Pacific Sand Dollar (Dendraster excentricus), showing the amazing food grooves leading to the mouth (close to the center of the sand dollar).

The grooves look like tree branches or tributaries:

 

 

You can also see the tiny white knobs that the sand dollar's spines would be attached to when alive:

 

 

One more, showing a close-up of the convergence of the food grooves at the mouth:

 

 

 Photographed in Crescent City, CA, on 27 October 2022.

 

P.S.  For a little more info about food grooves, see the post called "Petals and grooves" from 11 September 2012.