Our Trip to Northern California and the Oregon Coast in July

The coastline is very different in the north as compared to San Diego County! Nice muricids like Nucella lamellosa appear, as well as many other colder water-loving species. Some old friends are there also (like Olivella biplicata).

We started out on the coast in Humboldt County, exploring Trinidad, Clam Beach and Humboldt Bay.

Tidepools at Trinidad, California

Pacific Blood Star (Henricia leviuscula). One of a few scattered around the intertidal area. I love this brilliant color - and I have never observed them in southern California.

Leather Star (Dermasterias imbricata). Another fairly common sea star. The sea stars seemed fairly healthy, and I saw no sign of wasting disease.

Black Katy Chiton, Katharina tunicata. A common chiton of these northern beaches.

Gumboot Chiton, Cryptochiton stelleri. There were plenty of these huge chitons here and there amongst the rocks. I have never seen so many before. Probably 8-10 total over about two hours of exploring.

Another Gumboot Chiton - a good eight inches long.

Lepidozona mertensii, a very small but prettily-marked and colored chiton.

Doriopsilla albopunctata, a nudibranch that was abundant in the tide pools.

Did not see so many of these - Triopha catalinae.

Calliostoma ligatum - VERY common among the rocks.

Ceratostoma foliatum - interesting to see "in situ"

 We visited Clam Beach, just north of Arcata, on the second morning. Olivella biplicata had been revealed by the low tide.

The "typical" color morph

The less common white morph. This is what I've seen in Mission Bay in San Diego as well, in terms of abundances of the color morphs.

Lots of tracks in the sand left by the little olives!

Beach Hopper, Orchestoidea californiana.

Close-up

On the third morning we visited Humboldt Bay. The sheltered environment provided habitat for different organisms.

Beached crab - I think this may be a rock crab. I am not up to speed on my crabs!

A jelly of some sort in the extremely shallow water.

Nucella lamellosa along a rocky stretch of the bay.

A "colony" of Nucella lamellosa.

Eventually we headed north into Oregon and explored up the coast as far north as Otter Rock (just north of Newport).

I did not take as many photos in the field in Oregon, but here are the cleaned muricids collected along the way.

Nucella lamellosa, showing different color morphs and degrees of "frilliness".

Nucella ostrina, which is the name for the more northerly of what used to be called Nucella emarginata.