Black Cormorant

Opalescent Nudibranch with Tunicates

Opalescent nudibranch with tiny tunicates, at Channels on the south side of Anacapa. The tunicates are about the size of the head of a pin. This is a small individual of this nudibranch species.

Small Giant Spined Star

Giants come in different sizes. This giant spined star is still an infant. Even the adult giant spined stars seems smaller than the sunflower stars, though; but maybe I've never seen a fully adult giant spined star.

Giant Spined Star

Gaint spined star crawls up a wall at San Miguel, gaining height on an anemone and a bat star below. The different lengths of the arms of the giant spined star makes me wonder whether this star grew from one arm of another.

Bat Star

Lobster

Lobsters use their vision as well as their sensitive antennas to examine their environments.

Brittle Star with Red Gorgonian

A yellow brittle star clambers over a red gorgonian. Brittle stars like to be above the ocean floor, and will climb up on anything. Groups of them can crush young eelgrass plants under their collective weight.

Spiny Lobster

Lobsters are very curious and will energe from their crevices to stroke a visiting diver with their antennas. They are strong and speedy and can evade all but the quickest of tail-grabbers.

Anemone

This green anemone  was orange, although it wasn't particularly deep.  It was about the size of a coffee cup.  It was at Cat Rock, off the south coast of Anacapa.

Pink Abalone

Pink abalone at Channels, on the south side of Anacapa. The white fringe on the foot identifies it as a pink -- see http://seafood.ucdavis.edu/pubs/abalone.htm. Abalone may be slow-moving, but they have a lot of personality. With two independent, movable eyes, they can take in lots of scenery. We should all soak up our surroundings in this way!

2-spotted Octopus

A 2-spotted octopus inspects an alien intelligence, while maintaining camoflage. I've heard that octopi hunt at night but it's not uncommon to find them out hunting, or prowling around, in the daytime as well. For a few years, perhaps 1998-2004, they seemed less numerous at the islands than off the mainland beaches, but they seem to be becoming more common again.