News - April 2009 (updated 26th April)
The lumpsuckers have arrived!
We visited out first daytime low tide yesterday, which was a respectable 1.07m at 11:21am. A vareity of organisms were found, as is expected nowadays. Happily, our target of finding a lumpsucker was met, and here he is!...
Quite a decent size for a male, I think you'll agree. Unfortunately for this lumpsucker though, he was overshadowed by a new species, and it is our firstever..........cephalopod!
It was a little cuttlefish, scientifically know as Sepiola atlantica and we were exceptionally lucky to see it, as they spend the majority of their time buried partially or completely under the san. He was just 2cm long, and you can see him here...
It was an amazing find and easilyup there with the best, if not the best find ever for us. He even squirted ink for us before we caught him. Very adorable, I can assure you.
The cherry on top of the cake though, is the video we took when we released him back into the pool. He sank down to the bottom before burying himself under the sand, even using his wide-front tentacles to throw sand on top of his body. It was incredible to watch, and now you can watch him too.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=lxq-BWCdkV8
Please click the HD link. In my excitement, I did get a little close and as a result the cuttle is always a little bit out of focus. If you watch it in HD, then you will be able to see the tentacles of the cuttle much better, and that's a good thing!
We may be going to Filey Brigg on Monday next week, so stand by for further reports on this home page.
Steve
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No lumpsuckers yet, but after Easter they should start coming inshore for us to
see and video in HD!!
Yes unfortunately for me, the rockpools duriung early March's low tides were lumpsucker free, but it wasn't until May last year when we saw our first, so it was a long shot.
AFTER EASTER
We will be away from Scarborough until April 20th, roughly. After our break, we shall be day rockpooling and travelling more often. In addition to this, we will have a camcorder with HD video capabilities, meaning great quality footage of Britain's rockpools and wildlife!! Awesome!
Personally I can't wait, but I am looking forward to being home for 3 weeks!
Steve
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With my accomplice away on teaching practice, it will be just me who rockpools this month, with one visit tonight at 23:30 low tide (0.49m), and one visit tomorrow morning at around 11:30am with the tide at 0.95m.
I am hoping to see a lumpsucker for the first time this year, as the warmer spring weather entices them into shallow water to breed. It wasn;t until May lasy year when we saw a lumpsucker, but hopefully I'll stricke it lucky this month!
Updates soon,
Steve - posted at 21:55 on March 12th
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February's stunningly low tides did not disappoint, and we have added a new
species to our ever-growing list.
We visited Scalby Mills twice, and Holbeck once, although strictly speaking our first trip was called off before the low tide occured, due to bad weather.
Our new species came at Scalby Mills, on the 10th February, with a low tide of 0.42m, our second lowest tide ever. The new species was......a painted topshell! I shall add it to the 'Other Species' page very soon, once I get hold of the scientific name.
At a rather snowy Holbeck, we experienced a low tide of 0.41m, making it our lowest tide ever. I was rather excited to find a pool right at low water, knowing I was never going to see it again after that night. I eagerly turned over rocks and indeed found a rich diversity of life, even a sea lemon, which is a first for Holbeck. A large shanny and several species of crabs also found (none new).
Slightly higher on the shore we found our second ever great spider crab, which almost felt like a new species, they are seen so seldomly!
To see a more thorough account of both trips, consult these threads...
Otherwise, enjoy the last icy growls of a particularly cold winter!
Steve
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[January]
Ahoy-hoy!
January's low tides proved to be as fruitful as expected, and we found a wide
range of organisms on four separate trips.
Our first two trips were to Holbeck, on the 11th and 12th of January. The 13th and 14th of January saw us visit Scalby Mills for the lowest tides we have ever experienced (until next month!)
We saw two lobsters in total, and surprisingly, both were found at Scalby. Holbeck was a little bit of a disappointment, with no new species seen and no lobsters, but Scalby made up that, and also gave us a new species...
The above fish is a Rock Goby, and was found on the middle shore at Scalby. It was approximately 10cm long and was found underneath a stone in a shallow pool. A Long-Spined Sea Scorpion was also found in the same pool. rock Goby's do not commonly grow much bigger than 12cm, so it is likely that we caught a mature adult example of this attractive fish.
Here are the two lobsters that were caught at Scalby...
One of the most abundant invertebrates found on the four rockpooling trips was the Broad-Clawed Porcelain Crab, which was an extremely frequent find underneath stones on the middle and lower shore. 
You'll no doubt notice the large yellow/white blob next to the crab. It's the Return of the Sea Lemon! At Scalby we saw six Sea Lemons, compared to just the one last winter. The picture actually shows three Sea Lemons clustered together.
That is just a selection of finds that were photographed at Holbeck and Scalby in January. For further photographs and information, please visit my forum post here
Steve