Reading the shells?

  

While in Monterey last weekend, we were thinking about southern species that might become more common farther north if a major El Niño event arrives this fall/winter.  For fun, while walking the beach we gathered some shells and ended up with 11 of these species.  We used all of them to spell out El Niño in the photo above.

Three barnacles: Megabalanus tintinnabulum, Paraconcavus pacificus, Tetraclita rubescens

Six snails: Acanthinucella punctulata, Californiconus californicus, Hespererato vitellina, Atrimitra (formerly Mitra) idae, Pseudomelatoma torosa, Pseudopusula (formerly Trivia) californiana

Two limpets: Fissurella volcano, Lottia gigantea

You can click on the image above for a larger version, and here's an example with labels, a close-up of the "E":

 

 

 

P.S.  If you're interested, you can follow NOAA's El Niño predictions at this link (updated monthly). 

Love for the oceans

  

Seemed like this photo could be appropriate for World Oceans Day (8 June 2026).  

A heart from and for the ocean!

Here's the entire animal:

 

The heart shape surprised us, as the central opening on the underside of a sand dollar is usually circular.  But this skeleton broke in just the right way to create a perfect heart.  Pacific Sand Dollar (Dendraster excentricus) photographed in Marin County on 22 May 2026.

Sharing our thanks and love for all of the Earth's oceans. 

The colors of the sky...

  

...in a shell!  

Two close-ups of the inside of an abalone shell.  

I thought the first one (above) looked like an aurora, while the second (below) was more like a sunset.

[You can click on them for larger versions.] 

 

 

 

 Photographed in Monterey County on 6 June 2026.   

Flotilla

  

We were in Monterey yesterday (5 June 2026) for a concert, but we drove down early to spend a little time along the coast.  Here's a nice seascape including a flotilla of sea otters in the kelp offshore from Pacific Grove.  [You can click on the photo for a larger version.]

Yellow-bellied

  

A quick look at a Western Yellow-bellied Racer (Coluber constrictor mormon) this afternoon (3 June 2026)

With its head raised, the nice yellow color on the underside was easy to see: