The Natural History of Bodega Head

    Very young Red Sea Urchin ( Mesocentrotus franciscanus ), about 8 mm across, on 31 December 2024.  Best wishes for 2025!

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

  Yesterday I took a few close-up photos of a Purple Sea Urchin test (or skeleton). You can see the rounded and raised tubercles ...

  We don't encounter juvenile Leather Stars ( Dermasterias imbricata ) that often, but here's a nice example.  This sea star wa...

Red Sea Urchins ( Mesocentrotus franciscanus ) among Purple Sea Urchins ( Strongylocentrotus purpuratus ) in tidepools along the Mendocino C...

We were doing field work on the Mendocino coast today (10 June 2016).  In between surveys, we documented a few nice invertebrates:   ...

Okay, I know you've been waiting for the answer to last night's mystery photo , so here's another hint — a zoomed out version: ...

  Last week we noticed quite a few small sand dollars — or perhaps they should be called sand quarters or sand dimes? — washed up on...

The predator approaches from below:   The prey reacts:   In this case, the predator is a Sunflower Star (Pycnopodia heliantho...