היומן של biologystudent47

I’d consider my trip this weekend to Fitzgerald Marine Preserve and Edgewood Park a success. I not only managed to gather snapshots of several sea anemones at the former, one of which has already been confirmed as research grade, but also ferns and mosses at both locations. Luckily, one of my fern observations was confirmed as well.

Last week, I was concerned about whether I’d have the opportunity to gather observations from tide pools, since my previous two attempts were thwarted by rules preventing me from entering the premises during the early morning hours, when the tide happened to be low. However, now that I know low-tide hours shift considerably over just a matter of days, I realize it’s simply a matter of timing and proper planning.

I now only need research-grade observations of organisms from 3 new phyla and am hopeful I’ll be able to secure at least 2 by next weekend.

I went to Pillar Point Harbor at the recommendation of Professor Thomson early in the morning, around 6:30 AM, to catch the low tide. Unfortunately, I had forgotten the specific instructions regarding where to look, and a local who was fishing by the shoreline told me there are no tide pools nearby after I asked. After noticing that low tide began significantly earlier than last month when I went to Fitzgerald Marine Preserve, which doesn’t open until 8 AM, I’ve come to the conclusion that I probably will not have the opportunity to observe a large variety of tide pool species before the project’s due date. I therefore need to come up with a new strategy for finding species representing 5 more phyla, as required by the project.

I don’t really have much to report in this journal. One thing that’s on my mind is that I need to update my taxonomy table. The other day, I created a preliminary version using the 42 research grade observations I made and only came up with organisms representing 5 different phyla, which is 5 short of the requirement for this assignment. However, I wasn’t aware that subphylum, as listed in iNaturalist, would count as a distinct phylum in our table, so I will probably have organisms from the required 10 phyla once adjusting for this.

It rained today for the first time in over half a year, so I’m hoping to find some mushroom species during my next search.

I woke up pretty early, at 6:30 AM, to go to the Moss Beach tide pools. I checked online, and it said that low tide was to be expected at 7:38 AM. However, when I got there I saw a sign saying the park opens at 8 AM, so I wasn’t able to go to the pools at the recommended time. When it came time to actually approach the pools, the tide had risen a significant amount. I was able to tell this because I’d been to the pools before during low tide and was able to see lots of creatures. This time, the rocks on the shore were all but completely covered in water. I was able to get a picture of a hermit crab, which has now qualified as research-grade, and also some snails and seagulls, but no other animal organisms.

This weekend, I might look into a different tide pool location where I’ll actually be able to observe while the tide is low. There is a wide variety of organisms in these little ecosystems, and it would really go a long way to completing the requirements for our iNaturalist project.

I think I learned a lot from my trip to the Palo Alto Baylands this past Friday. One thing I noticed is how widespread some of the plant species I saw there are in this general area of the SF Peninsula. I don’t remember the precise species, but there were a few abundant ones in the baylands that I saw scattered around as I made my way back home to Redwood City. It made me realize that, even though our cities are well developed and industrious, they are still continuous with the surrounding biome. I also found it interesting how bees and mosquitoes, both of which are common in our cities, were present out in the baylands.

Regarding the iNaturalist app, I learned a few new tricks. For example, when spotting an animal that you’d like to image, it’s a good idea to quickly have the camera in the app ready, with your finger near the button, to improve your chances of taking a quality image before the animal runs or flies off. This especially applies to animals that are aware of your presence and that you need to approach more closely for a better shot. Additionally, you can use your phone’s built-in camera without having the app open, then later input the location information.

It was a pretty sunny and warm, mostly cloudless day when I went to observe this tree. I had just picked up something from the Cañada bookstore, and figured I might as well check out some nearby wildlife so I can submit my observation for the Stepping Stone assignment. At first I was thinking of visiting Edgewood Park, but then I decided to choose a spot that was on the way to my house, which is in the opposite direction.

When I got to this tree’s location, I saw that it wasn’t the only type of tree there; there were at last two other distinct species. I also noticed how the ground was mostly dead, yellowish, long grass and dirt. It seemed rather barren, especially compared to what I’ve seen at Edgewood. I’m wondering if this has any connection to the ongoing drought in our state. Some of the leaves on the tree I observed were dried up and shriveled, which I think might be related here.

This is the first time I used the iNaturalist app. It was pretty straightforward and user-friendly, although I noticed that, where I was, it took about 5-7 minutes for my observation to upload. This might've been due to the internet connection in the area, which was probably weak.