You’ve Done Such Great Work!

Thank you to everyone for participating in this project. We hope it was filled with education, opportunity to get outside and explore, and most importantly...FUN! Thanks to everyone’s hard work this year’s Whatcom Marine Shoreline Summer Observation project ended with 220 observations, 150 species, and 101 participants. More info on the observations, identifications, and species can be found on the project stats page (url at bottom of post).

Every observation and identification is important and we’d like to give a shoutout to some of our top participants and highlight some of your awesome observations

Top Observers

mossytoes = 58 observations and 48 species

hconkerton = 26 observations and 18 species

stevenrcolson = 23 observations and 22 species

Top Identifiers

phelsumas4life = 23 identifications

estehr = 20 identifications

hfb = 12 identifications

Most Observed Species

Aggregating Anemone

Ochre Sea Star

Eelgrass and Painted Anemone (tied)

Most Observed Locations

Chuckanut Bay (including Mud Bay) = 59 observations

Gulf Road Beach = 39 observations

Birch Bay = 18 observations

Thanks again to everybody for all of your participation in this project. Knowledge of what species are present on our shorelines is a great way to keep an eye on the health of our ecosystem. While this Summer’s project is coming to a close, your observations don’t have to. Continue to get out, observe, and identify whatever you see...you never know what you might find!

https://www.inaturalist.org/projects/whatcom-marine-shoreline-summer-observation?tab=stats

Thanks again to everybody that has worked hard to gather so many great observations! We are over the halfway mark and have already had some really great discoveries.

We’ve loved seeing all of the observations pour in and can’t wait to see what else everyone finds. It’s important to ensure that everyone is still practicing safe social distancing while visiting these beaches.

*If it is too crowded, find a new spot or go back another day. You can always participate by checking out other observations and providing ID’s for some of the critters.*

With just over a month left here are a few suggestions for local beaches to check out:

• Locust Beach
• Birch Bay State Park
• Point Whitehorn
• Teddy Bear Cove
• Larabee State Park.

If you have a great location of your own in mind, go out and enjoy discovering what calls that beach home! Be sure to check that any site you plan to go to is still open before you head out.

So get out there, and keep on:

Observing

Identifying

Having fun!

Wow! Everyone is doing an amazing job taking photos and collecting valuable data on what is out there. A big BIG thanks goes out to all those who have participated, whether you are taking photos, suggesting ID’s, or both, your effort is appreciated.

Thanks to all of you we have a total of 171 observations so far and we’ve documented 121 different species on our shorelines. All of you have helped in tremendous ways and we want to give a special thanks to some of our top observers!

Top Observers

• mossytoes - 44 observations

• stevenrcolson - 23 observations

• lyleander - 18 observations

Another special thanks goes out to our top identifiers!

Top Identifiers

• phelsumas4life

• jimbreezely

• estehr

Without help to identify some of the species’ iNaturalist can’t identify, and for some of the trickier ones, the project wouldn’t have the same success. So to all of you who are helping with identifications...thank you!

It’s been fun to see what everyone has observed. Below are just a few of the observations our community has posted.

Photos (left to right)

1. lennea, Northern Kelp Crab

2. dominicmoceri, sculpin sp.

3. stevenrcolson, Nuttall's Cockle

We encourage you to also take a peek at the main project page to check out the rest of the observations, there is some pretty great stuff!

Sorry folks! It looks like my Tide Station suggestions did not populate into my last journal post.
Here are those Tide Stations:

1. Bellingham Bay Tide Station
2. Cherry Point Tide Station

Here are some tips and tricks to check out intertidal critters on the beach, whether you’re collecting project observations or just hanging out.

Tides

Check out the tides before you go!

Typically, a tide in Whatcom County below a +1 ft tide will let you start seeing cool intertidal critters, but a tide closer to -1 ft or -2 ft is even better. Some places to check tides online that are suitable for at least tide pooling include:

Guidance

Some general guidelines to keep in mind as you're enjoying your beach experience.

• Be sure to follow all health and safety guidelines, such as staying home if you aren’t feeling well, maintaining 6 or more feet distance from others, consider wearing a cloth face mask for extra protection, and consider visiting another beach if the one you plan to go to turns out to be crowded.
• Wear appropriate clothes and footwear- check the weather before heading out and make sure that you wear shoes that will be appropriate for the beach you’re heading to- will you be okay getting sand and water in your shoes? Will they be okay walking on slippery or sharp surfaces like rocks covered in algae and barnacles?
• We want to make sure that we protect intertidal critters so we can keep enjoying them at the beach! We want everyone to have a fun and educational beach going experience when doing observations for our iNaturalist Marine Shoreline Summer Collection project, and we'd also like to make sure you are following proper beach etiquette. See this link on how to be a responsible beach visitor.
• Check out this link to see some of our field guides and past intertidal presentations on intertidal critters to help you ID what’s out there.