A fish sampler?

  

Got lucky and noticed this River Otter (Lontra canadensis) at the north end of Bodega Harbor on my way back from the post office today (14 October 2024).  The otter was having a lot of luck, too -- I saw it catch at least three fish in a very short time!  Above, with a flatfish...

Below, with some sort of gunnel?  (Let me know if you can tell what it is!)

 

 

 

The otter spent most of its time fishing and swimming or resting at the surface:

 

 

 

 

It also came close to shore a few times, shook, and had a look around:

 

 

 

I suppose their long whiskers are helpful for locating fish under water, but sometimes I'm still surprised at their skill and success.

 

Almost invisible

  

I had to do some work in Bodega Harbor on Monday (31 May 2021), but on the side I noticed some small (~3 cm long) flatfish among the eelgrass and sea lettuce.  Not sure which species this is, but maybe someone will be able to help out with an identification?

P.S.  Can you see the black and gold coloration?  I can't help it — have to give a shout out to the Boston Bruins!  Go B's!  :)

Picasso and friends

Well, we couldn't resist.  Eric and I tuned in a few times and then pooled our favorite screen grabs from today's E/V Nautilus dive.  [It feels a bit like watching the Olympics. The entire event is short (there are only 4 days left); and, you can tune in at any time and you never know what you're going to see!]

A delicate pink soft coral:

 

This intriguing pink nudibranch was nearby.  The color would be a good match for the coral polyps!

 

A bright Yellow Picasso Sponge, with a great genus name: Staurocalyptus.

 

It was fun seeing different types of sea pens.  The one shown below is called Umbellula.  [Sea pens in this genus can be found down to depths of 6000 meters!]  If you're intrigued by sea pens, check out this paper by Gary Williams (who is on the ship):

 

  

Beautiful stippled patterns on a Deep-sea Sole (Embassichthys bathybius):

 

Thanks again to the E/V Nautilus for sharing amazing live deep sea footage from Cordell Bank National Marine Sanctuary.  You can tune in here until August 14th.

New England memories

Okay, I'll admit that I've been thinking about New England tonight (where I grew up).  So here are a few pictures from my past:

 

Homer (the golden retriever on the left), in front of lobster traps on Trouants Island in Marshfield, MA.

And to include some natural history: an Atlantic Halibut (Hippoglossus hippoglossus).  Fun Fact: Atlantic Halibut are the largest flatfish in the world, with record lengths of up to ~15 feet and weights of ~700 lbs.  [That's my dad on the right.] 

 

I'm thinking about all of my family and friends in New England tonight!