Wednesday, March 2, 2011

TIDE POOLS AND THE BIRCH AQUARIUM AT SCRIPPS



Tide Pools - Cardiff Beach
 One of my favorite walking routes is along the beach at low tide to the Cardiff Beach State Tide Pools.  On my first visit, I saw a cool red starfish - unfortunately I haven't seen one since. I can always count on seeing mussels, sea anemones and crabs. 

Mussels - Cardiff Beach Tide Pools

Sea Slug - Cardiff Beach Tide Pools

Today I saw a sea slug for the first time. There is something very fascinating about the tide pools, I guess it is like seeing under the water without getting wet. These little creatures survive two floods a days and are vulnerable to wind, water, rain and sun. The rocks at this tide pool are about 45 million years old - now that is OLD. 

 I also visited the Birch Aquarium at Scripps  - probably because of my new found interest in tide pools. They have a display of tide pools for observation and touching.  However,  I was most impressed with the incredible display of live seahorses called "There's Something about Seahorses".   The lionfish and octopus were also very interesting. 

Seahorse - Birch Aquarium

Seahorse - Birch Aquarium
Lionfish - Birch Aquarium


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