Elger Bay - June 1, 2010

With the completion of monitoring for 2010, Camano Beach Watchers took the time to begin evaluation of data collection. You can find a set of comparisons in CHARTS that are linked at the bottom of the main Intertidal Zone webpage. Take a look at what collected data says about our species gains/losses on our shorelines. Then enjoy the pictures below from this year's monitoring.

Elger Bay - June 1, 2010
Finally, a year when the Elger Bay monitoring landed on a sunny day! The shoreline seems to remain about the same. This year there were an abundance of sea stars but the real surprise was on the teal blue glove, seen below.

Sea stars Sea stars

Searching Searching

Elger Team Elger Team

New species?? New species??

Onamac Beach - May 27, 2010

With the completion of monitoring for 2010, Camano Beach Watchers took the time to begin evaluation of data collection. You can find a set of comparisons in CHARTS that are linked at the bottom of the main Intertidal Zone webpage. Take a look at what collected data says about our species gains/losses on our shorelines. Then enjoy the pictures below from this year's monitoring.

Onamac Beach
This beach has 2 monitoring lines done in parallel by the Beach Watchers on Camano. Generally the northmost line has more intertidal critters found. This year there was more green seaweed cover than on previous years.

Interesting Interesting

Teamwork Teamwork

Iverson Beach - May 26, 2010

With the completion of monitoring for 2010, Camano Beach Watchers took the time to begin evaluation of data collection. You can find a set of comparisons in CHARTS that are linked at the bottom of the main Intertidal Zone webpage. Take a look at what collected data says about our species gains/losses on our shorelines. Then enjoy the pictures below from this year's monitoring.

Iverson Beach 2010
This beach was monitored on a day when we could not see across Port Susan. The team trudged out to the lowest tide point wondering if they would be able to see where shore stopped and waters began.

Ugly weather! Ugly weather!

Poor views Poor views

Cama Beach State Park

With the completion of monitoring for 2010, Camano Beach Watchers took the time to begin evaluation of data collection. You can find a set of comparisons in CHARTS that are linked at the bottom of the main Intertidal Zone webpage. Take a look at what collected data says about our species gains/losses on our shorelines. Then enjoy the pictures below from this year's monitoring.

Cama Beach intertidal monitoring occurred May 17, 2010

N. Cama Beach N. Cama Beach

N. line N. line

2010 team 2010 team

Anemone in Q. Anemone in Q.

Tasks done Tasks done

Old Clinton Beach

Old Clinton Beach team photo 2010 Old Clinton Beach team photo 2010

Checking salinity Checking salinity

Profile reading Profile reading

..Chthamalus dalli.. Little brown barnacle Chthamalus dalli Chthamalus dalli

Recording data Recording data

..Littorina scutulata.. Checkered periwinkle Checkered periwinkle Checkered periwinkle

..Hermissenda crassicornis.. Opalescent nudibranch Opalescent nudibranch Opalescent nudibranch

..Phyllaplysia taylori.. Eelgrass sea slug/Taylor's sea hare Eelgrass sea slug Eelgrass sea slug

It was an enthusiastic team of five that closed out Whidbey Island's 2010 monitoring season at Old Clinton Beach on August 10th with Virginia Allen at the helm. A thick layer of eelgrass blanketed the lower intertidal and the gung ho monitors carefully sorted through it in search of the small organisms that call this rich habitat home. They were rewarded with the discovery of three species of sea slugs (Phyllaplysia taylori-eelgrass sea slug, Hermissenda crassicornis-opalescent nudibranch, and Onchidoris bilamellata-barnacle eating nudibranch). They also saw quite a few eelgrass limpets (Lottia parallela) and at upper levels of the intertidal zone there were large numbers of little brown barnacles (Chthamalus dalli). With the tide dropping below the -2 foot level, the profile line at this beach extended 410 feet to the water’s edge. This beach is just down from Clinton's ferry landing so the team enjoyed watching the big boats coming and going as they worked. Topping it all off were flybys by pairs of great blue herons, bald eagles, and belted kingfishers.

Ledgewood Beach

Profiling Profiling

Ledgewood Beach Team Photo 2010 Ledgewood Beach Team Photo 2010

Species consultation Species consultation

..Gobiesox meandricus.. Northern clingfish Gobiesox Gobiesox

..Pisaster ochraceus.. Purple sea star Pisaster ochraceus Pisaster ochraceus

..Amphipholis sp... Dwarf brittle star Amphipholis sp. Amphipholis sp.

Six Beach Watchers and one neighborhood resident showed up to check out the beach at Ledgewood on the nifty singular date that can be written out as 8/9/10. Three species of seastars were found (mottled, sunflower, and purple) and one species of brittle star (Amphiphois sp.). This was the first time several of the team members had seen a live brittle star so they were quite thrilled by that discovery. A close look at the mottled seastar (Evasterias troschelli) revealed that it packed along a commensal scaleworm. The team also encountered hundreds of tiny Lacuna snails. While Lacuna snails are generally less than a cm. tall, a vast majority of those found at Ledgewood were so small as to be barely discernable as snails. Each of the six quadrats at the +1 foot and 0 tide levels had almost 100% coverage by Ulva sp. To top off the morning, two great blue herons flew past the profile area and loon call was heard.

Possession Point

..Upogebia pugettensis.. Blue Mud Shrimp Upogebia Upogebia

Possession Point Team Photo 2010 Possession Point Team Photo 2010

..Melibe leonina.. Lion nudibranch Melibe leonina Melibe leonina

Three dedicated Beach Watchers took on Possesion Point on August 9th with Kathy Fritz heading up the team. Kathy reports that the beach had a lush growth of eelgrass and they made some interesting finds including Melibe, the lion nudibranch. This is a strange gelatenous looking organism that makes its home in kelp and eelgrass where it employs a hoodlike apparatus to capture amphipods and other small organisms, the hood functioning somewhat like a Venus flytrap. Another great find was that of a mud shrimp. Team members were rather startled when one of them was dive bombed by a sea gull that dropped a large butter clam on her!