March 23, 2018

Temperature: 34 F. Cloud Cover: Cloudy. Wind Velocity: Moderate. Wind Direction: SW. Tide Level: 1.5 feet.

Number of people: 51. Number of dogs: 3. Walking or running: 3. Tidepooling: 8. Not many people on the beach! Cold temps. A little bit of hail on and off, and snow up in the coastal peaks. Beautiful afternoon.

Fire

Gulls, black oystercatchers, cormorants, and murres. Domesticated/wild bunny under the willow on the sand in the vegetation line.

Total dead birds: 2. One northern fulmar, one common murre. Fulmar was buried under sand, it's been shifting a lot recently with strong south winds. Fulmar mostly in tact, no leg bands. Common murre was recently killed, likely by bald eagle (probably earlier that day, as HRAP staff had noted eagles hunting that morning). Not much remaining beyond spine, wings and legs. See photo. No leg bands.

Not unusual, but notable dead invertebrates washed ashore: many salps, jelly fragments (probably moon jelly) & mole crabs. A few pyrosoma and scallop shells. One mysterious gelatinous remnant that we have seen in years past but couldn't determine what species from (see photo). I recall a pelagic sea snail as a possible ID. Lots of last year's vellela uncovered from recent sand movement. Lots of cellophane worm casings.

Animal casings (e.g., crab, shrimp molt), Wood pieces, Ocean-based debris (from fishing boats, ship trash, etc.).

Landslides/major boulder falls. Large chunks of the south-east wall of Haystack Rock fell down into the marine garden in January from winter storms.