Kelpscape

A Gazillion Tiny Senorita Wrasse

Perhaps the El Nino is the reason that a gazillion tiny Senorita Wrasse are in the water of the South Coast Beaches.  The only other species competing are Blacksmith Damselfish. 

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Refugio on Black Friday

On the reef at Refugio I spotted a horn shark; I haven't seen one of those in years! Also enjoying the day were two octopi, one using the shell of a topsnail for a door; a dozen juvenile Garibaldi; a tiny abalone, about 2 inchss across; and a gazillion tiny Senorita Wrasse. Visibility was over 25 ft and the water was 63F.

Senorita Wrasse Cleans Sardines

Once sardines realize that a senorita wrasse is grooming one of their school, they descend en masse to have their own parasites removed. It seems to hurt: they flinch when the senorita nips at their gill covers. IAfter a few, the senorita becomes overwhelmed and swims off, eager sardines in pursuit. For some reason, a senorita swimming across the reef is usually left alone. n this photo, the senorita is the dark fish near center. She still seems interested in the work. She has a black halfmoon on her tail, not too visible here.

Cleaner wrasse in the tropics appear to hang out in particular spots, and to eagerly tend their customers. These cleaners seem more rushed and less interested in cleaning as their main activity.

Conditions have been great lately; despite high surf on Saturday, the visibility on the West side of Refugio Beach was better than some swimming pools I've been in, and the water was 66F at depth; 71F on the surface. 

Surfy Day at Refugio

Despite occasional high sets at the surf zone, the visibility was excellent at Refugio above 25' depth today. The water is now 69F at 30 ft depth, a little off the high of 72F to 75F before winds stirred it up. What little giant kelp is left on the West side is seething with senorita wrasse, with lots of schools of little purple-and-yellow blacksmith and some of the blueish bigger ones. Purple-and-orange juvenile garibaldi and brick-red young sheepshead were hiding under the ledges. A couple of schools of more than 50 pacific barracuda cruised through, and sardines came through in clouds and streams.

Sand Dollars at Refugio Before the Spill

Refugio had areas of sand dollars before the oil spill. They seem to have disappeared. Are they particularly susceptible to oil, or is it for some other reason or combination of reasons? These are from Januart 2015. They were in a long, wavy band that extended from not far south of Surfer's Point to the west, at about 20 ft depth.

Feather Duster Worms

Feather duster worms and burrowing clams on the West side, on the reef east of Surfer's Point, in April 2015, 1 month before the Refugio Oil Spill. This area appears to be covered with sand now. There's quite a bit of sand movement along the coast, both on the beach and underwater.  Overall there seems to be more sand on the beach and less atop the rock reef, than before the spill.

Acid Kelp At Refugio Beach

There's quite a bit of acid kelp at Refugio Beach right now.  The dark purple color does soak up light so that any particles in the water show up like a sore thumb.  On the other hand, the color is lovely and little nooks often harbor juvenile rockfish.  I understand that it clears out areas that other living things can populate.

Refugio After the Oil Spill

Refugio Beach has now reopened after the oil spill -- and lots of people have gotten the news.  It's in good shape underwater, with some good patches of kelp; and lots of fish. It's possible that an oil spill that closes the beach may be better for wildlife than a lot of traffic by beachgoers. It reminds me of a story told to me by a health physicist who'd participated in the work to clean up Bikini Atoll. He said that there were lumps of plutonium on the beach from unexploded nuclear test devices; but that if you went into the lagoon with a net to gather a sample of fish, you needed a buddy to beat off the sharks with a baseball bat.  

Aeolidia papilosa with Unfurled Hood

We spotted a Aeolidia papilosa at Reguio this weekend, with hood extended.  I assume that there's a hapless but tasty anemone underneath that this one is delightedly sucking in.  This was smaller than the individual we spotted last week.

The water at Refugio was 47F by my gauge, 43F by my buddy's.  We had strong winds all last week and some deeper water mixed with the shallow.  It must be really cold deeper down.  This is as cold as I've ever experienced at Refugio -- and in June! 

 

Here it is again, showing a neighboring sand dab watching with a disgusted expression.

Scrubbrush Nudibranch

 
This nudibranch looked like a scrubbrush, lying on a field of sea apples south of the big ledge at Refgugio.  According to Pacific Coast Nudibranchs, it dines on anemones -- of which there were few nearby!  It was making rapid progress toward the big ledge and its extensive corynactis ranches.