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| Wrack Line of Velella |
A second wave of Velella velella washed up onto Ocean Beach overnight. It's kind of amazing that these immense strandings aren't catastrophic for the species. I was also surprised that the bounty was being disregarded by shorebirds and occasional scavengers like crows and ravens. At sea, their predators include ocean sunfish, pelagic snails, and nudibranchs. An interesting tidepool predator of Velella is described at The Natural History of Bodega Head.
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| Lines of Velella Below Sutro Baths |
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| Note the stranded by-the-wind sailors in the pool at the bottom of the frame. New lines of the stranded animals spread south along Ocean Beach, close to the water's edge. Older and denser lines are higher up the beach. |
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| These stranded riders of the high tide are still fresh enough to have retained their blue coloration. |
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| I spotted this black-crowned night heron yesterday at Blue Heron Lake but forgot to include it in yesterday's post (which included an April Fool's joke). |
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| The heron fluffed its feathers before re-entering the water. Apparently it was looking for a place to rest in concealment, as it eventually ducked out of sight behind some shore vegetation. |
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Yosemite High Country This Morning
(There was snow on the valley floor as well.) |
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