A little orange cup

  

I've been working on some photo organization, but here's a little Orange Cup Coral for you — Balanophyllia elegans, photographed in Bodega Harbor.

Every one is different

  

Sunset from Bodega Head, 21 January 2026
 

Plume de mer?

  

Close-up of the gill plume of the nudibranch sometimes known as a Sea Lemon (Peltodoris nobilis).  Note the extensive branching to increase surface area for respiration.

Evidence suggests that nudibranchs evolved from gastropod ancestors that lost their coiled shell and original internal gills.  Dorid nudibranchs like this one secondarily evolved an external gill plume for respiration.
 

Hidden talent

  

Eric was doing some field work tonight (17 January 2026), but on the side he ended up with several great shots of an intriguing Red Octopus (Octopus rubescens).  

Above, note how well the octopus blends in with the background, matching the surrounding colors and textures. 

Below, a closer view from the side next to the sea anemone:

 

 

 

And a zoomed in view, highlighting that beautiful eye:

 

 

 

 

When the octopus changed position, it changed color and texture, this time matching some of the surrounding seaweeds and nearby animals.  And check out how it matched the color of the sponge in the upper right corner of the photo — the suckers are the same deep orange color as the sponge!

 

 

 

P.S.  With thanks to the octopus and to Eric for the great photos! 

The hunter at dusk

 

 

Leaving work just after sunset tonight (15 January 2026), I caught a glimpse of a Long-tailed Weasel (Mustela frenata) bounding across the road.  I pulled over to see if it would appear again, and it did.  In fact, it kept running back and forth from one side of the road to the other.  It was getting dark, so a photo was difficult, but I kept watching because the weasel was so active:

 

 

 

And then I saw another flash and I realized that another animal was involved.  The weasel was chasing a Brush Rabbit (Sylvilagus bachmani).

 

The next sequence was amazing -- the rabbit would dash out from the bushes and start running down the road, and then the weasel would appear and start to chase after the rabbit.  This happened at least 4-6 times!  Here's a sample:

 

 

 

I wasn't sure what was going to happen, but in the end, the weasel ended up capturing the rabbit!  I've never seen a weasel subdue prey before.  It felt like it took longer, but according to my camera time stamps, the weasel subdued the rabbit in about 1 minute:

 

 

 

Wow!

Spindrift and light

  

10-foot swell + 15-second wave period + an offshore breeze = a setup for spindrift! 

A few wave photos from this morning (12 January 2026).

 

 

 

 

 

We bid you goodnight

  

Sunset from Bodega Head, 10 January 2026