Mile 311 Report
Jockey Cap, Silver Pt, S Cannon Beach, Tolovana Beach
June 18, 2022
Today, we observed 464 Ochre sea stars (Pisaster ochraceus) at the northern rocky outcroppings exposed by the low tides at Silver Point.
Report Details
Today, we observed 464 Ochre sea stars (Pisaster ochraceus) at the northern rocky outcroppings exposed by the low tides at Silver Point. We had 8 team members participate for 1.5 hours for a total survey effort of 12 hours. These efforts involved visually inspecting the stars for signs of sea star wasting syndrome (SSWS). A total of 373 stars were healthy (80%), 71 had one white lesion on the ray or central disk (mild SSWS; 15%), while 20 individuals had more than one lesion, arm curling, body disintegration, or organs emerging from body cavity (severe SSWS; 4%). We sent images to MARINe who confirmed our correct designations of mild vs. severe disease category symptoms. Size class measurements ranged from the minute 10mm to a whopping 260mm, measured from the center of the central disk to the longest ray. No stars were touched in this observation (visual inspection only). Of the 373 healthy individuals counted, 320 individuals measured between 50-140mm in terms of size class designations, which is 85.7% of all healthy Pisaster measured. Only a few juvenile stars were observed. In addition, our group had 15 positive outreach interactions with the curious public at this site to educate about sea star wasting syndrome, tidepool etiquette, and why it is imperative NOT to touch any sea stars.
Conditions
Temperature: 58 F. Cloud Cover: Partly Cloudy. Tide Level: -1.2 feet.
Human Activities
Number of people: 30. Number of dogs: 4. Walking or running: 20. Tidepooling: 10. Other Activities: This number is a conservative estimate of visitors to the immediate vicinity of the Silver Point tidepools in addition to our group of 8.. Silver Point at extreme low tides attracted many curious onlookers eager to explore the tidepools. I believe that this site would greatly benefit from a tidepool ambassador program, similar to the one set up at Cape Falcon Marine reserve.
Concerns
Vehicles
Notable Wildlife
Observed an exact total of 464 Ochre sea stars (Pisaster ochraceus) on the north side of Silver Point rocks exposed by the extreme low tide.
Driftline Content
Small rocks, Shells, Animal casings (e.g., crab, shrimp molt).
Actions & Comments
A MARINe seastar observation log was completed for qualitative observations of SSWS at this locality for this date.
Report Images
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Mile 311
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Mile 311
Jockey Cap, Silver Pt, S Cannon Beach, Tolovana Beach
Today, we observed 464 Ochre sea stars (Pisaster ochraceus) at the northern rocky outcroppings exposed by the low tides at Silver Point.
sultanym
Mile 311
Jockey Cap, Silver Pt, S Cannon Beach, Tolovana Beach
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sultanym