Mile 313 Report
Tolovana Park north, Haystack Rock
September 27, 2016
There were many humans out on the beach for this usually slow time of the year.
Report Details
There were many humans out on the beach for this usually slow time of the year. Dead birds were minimal, but still present. The wrack line was patchy and contained bull kelp, large woody debris, moon jellies, lions mane jellies, many mole crab casings, and some plastics. The intertidal at Haystack Rock was thriving with life and interpreters with HRAP were actively protecting the area. The sand is slowly being pulled back out from the beach as the winter storms have started rolling in.
Conditions
Temperature: 68 F. Cloud Cover: Cloudy. Wind Velocity: Calm/Light. Wind Direction: W. Tide Level: 1.3 feet.
Human Activities
Number of people: 120. Number of dogs: 10. Walking or running: 100. Playing in surf: 5. Playing in sand: 15. Photography: 20. Tidepooling: 40. Lovely day, HRAP truck was parked on the beach protecting Haystack Rock. Visitors were calm and leisurely. No unusual activity or sightings. There were a lot of larger logs on the beach in the wrack line. The wrack line was broken up and spotty. Lots of Gulls on the beach. Many moon jellys in the wrack line. A lot of bull kelp washed in -- usual for this time of year. Sand is slowly being pulled back out from the beach.
Concerns
Litter
Disturbances: Shorebirds moving in response to humans/dogs
Vehicles
Notable Wildlife
Western gull, cormorant, pelican, scoter, grebe, sea stars, barnacles, mussels, bull kelp, dead moon jellys
Beached Birds
Total dead birds: 20. Common murre, cormorants, grebe, gulls
Dead Fish or Invertebrates
moon jelly,
Driftline Content
Seaweeds and seagrass, Shells, Animal casings (e.g., crab, shrimp molt), Wood pieces, Land-based debris (picnics, etc.), Marine debris (plastic, styrofoam, etc. washing in from the sea), Ocean-based debris (from fishing boats, ship trash, etc.).
All Mile 313 Reports
Mile 313
Tolovana Park north, Haystack Rock
An early morning walk to Haystack Rock was mostly foggy and overcast, with a brief clearing in the weather mid-morning.
sultanym
Mile 313
Tolovana Park north, Haystack Rock
Overall, Haystack Rock is a treasure trove of marine biological diversity, from invertebrates and pelagic birds to marine mammals, with an active education program for curious beach visitors. The best tidepool invertebrate diversity today was observed at the south end of Haystack Rock in the area often referred to as "The Needles. As I was tidepooling, I heard multiple beach visitors asking about sea slugs and how to locate nudibranchs.
sultanym
Mile 313
Tolovana Park north, Haystack Rock
Beautiful day on the beach, cloudy and pleasant.
FOHRAP1
Mile 313
Tolovana Park north, Haystack Rock
A cloudy calm day on the beach with a few visitors.
FOHRAP1
Mile 313
Tolovana Park north, Haystack Rock
A beautiful beach day, with small numbers of people.
FOHRAP1
Mile 313
Tolovana Park north, Haystack Rock
A beautiful day on the beach today.
FOHRAP1
Mile 313
Tolovana Park north, Haystack Rock
Today was windy, mixed with rain.
FOHRAP1
Mile 313
Tolovana Park north, Haystack Rock
A cloudy day with intermittent mist, with comfortable temperatures and light human activity for a summer day made the mile walk very enjoyable.
FOHRAP1