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A Virtual Field Trip to the Oregon Coast August, 2002 |
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Haystack Rock at Cannon Beach |
Coastal tide pool |
Mrs. Renz attended an OMSI/JASON XIV Project training at the Oregon Coast all about Marine Biology.
The teachers took a field trip to Haystack Rock at Cannon Beach. These are a few of the pictures from her trip. Enjoy!
click each picture to see a larger view
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A typical foggy day at the Oregon Coast! |
A rock showing lots of gooseneck barnacles and mussels |
The high tide zone |
Sea anemones (say "uh nem o knees") |
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Close-up view of gooseneck barnacles and mussels. |
Chiton and green sea anemones |
The arrow is pointing at a lined chiton we saw. |
Chiton |
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| Sea star (missing one leg) showing the modraporae hole | Close-up of the sea star (missing one leg) showing the modraporite hole (used for letting water into its system to help it move around) | Sea star showing its tiny tube feet | This sea star lost two legs but was in the process of re-growing them! (see the little nubs near the thumb?) |
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| A sea anemone colony | This is an awesome picture showing the "war zone" (the bare part in the rock) between two different sea anemone colonies who don't like to be near each other! | Anemone colony and the "war zone" (with the arrow pointing at it) | Rock with lots of barnacles and mussels and pool with green sea anemones |
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| Sculpin camouflaged against the sand | Mussel threads used to help it hold fast to the rock | Anemones in a tide pool | LOTS of sea stars! |
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| Sea stars and mussels | Volcano barnacles | The sea star with the arrow is eating a mussel. | A menagerie of mussels, volcano barnacles, and gooseneck barnacles |
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| Sea lemon nudibranch (with the arrow pointing) and its egg sac (right above it) | Tide pool teeming with life | More sea stars and anemones |
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There are many kind of sea stars living in the tide pools and rocks in Cannon Beach. You can usually find the ochre star, which measures from two to twelve inches in diameter and ranges in color from orange to purple. Sea stars feed on mussels and other mollusks. |
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Mussels and barnacles live on rocky outcroppings. They both obtain food by filtering microscopic plants, animals, and bacteria from the water. They can close tightly to conserve water when they become exposed at low tide. Adult barnacles compete for space. Mussels and barnacles are usually found intermingled with each other in dense "beds". |
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Sea anemones have stinging cells on their tentacles which enable them to capture their prey. They are carnivorous (meat eaters) and often eat small fish. Many anemones get their color by having various types of algae in their tissues. |
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Chitons are slow-moving mollusks that usually have eight overlapping, shingle-like plates ("eight plates are great!") that allow them the flexibility to fit snugly into crevices or holes in the rocks. They graze on thin films of algae and diatoms (microscopic, single-celled algae) which coats the rocks. |
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Nudibranchs are sea slugs but have no shell. They are predators and are beautifully colored. They are more active than chitons. |
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Sculpin are small, striped fish which are well camouflaged in the tide pool areas. They feed on a variety of smaller tide pool animals and are an important part of the ecosystem. |
pictures by H. Renz August, 2002
