Spiral fanworms on coralline algal crust at the bottom of a rock pool. Mouille Point, Cape Town, Western Cape (2020) - iNaturalist Minute coiled worms with spiral shells. Head with a small number of feathery filter-feeding branches and a stalked operculum that blocks the shell. About 2 mm. Abundant everywhere, dotting most rocks in the… Continue reading Spiral fanworms (Spirorbis sp.)
Tag: Hondeklipbaai
Crevice anemone (Anthopleura michaelseni)
Details of the spherules, and the long tentacles of the crevice anemone. Fishhoek, Western Cape (2020) - iNaturalist Also called long-tentacled anemone. Column with large sticky pads, to which shells and gravel adhere. Dark stripes usually radiate from mouth to the 96 long pink-to-brownish tentacles. Spherules present. Up to 150 mm in diameter, but commonly… Continue reading Crevice anemone (Anthopleura michaelseni)
Dead-man’s finger (Splachnidium rugosum)
Wrinkling dead-man's fingers in a rock crevice. Hondeklipbaai, Northern Cape (2020) - iNaturalist Swollen yellow-brown, finger-like bladders, filled with thick, clear slimy mucilage, turgid when wet and becoming withered and wrinkled when dry. The main stipe is swollen with many similarly shaped side branches which are constricted at their point of origin and rounded at… Continue reading Dead-man’s finger (Splachnidium rugosum)
Mediterranean mussel (Mytilus galloprovincialis)
Mediterranean mussel bed surrounded by algae of all sorts. Yzerfontein, Western Cape (2020). Shell smooth, typically black or blue, shading to brown on the lower surface, but rarely light brown. Broad in cross-section and usually widest at base. Distinguished from Choromytilus meridionalis by pits in the resilial ridge. Up to 140 mm. Thought to be… Continue reading Mediterranean mussel (Mytilus galloprovincialis)
Ribbed mussel (Aulacomya atra)
Lone eroded mussel in a rock crevice. Hondeklipbaai, Northern Cape (2020) - iNaturalist Easily recognised by the strong wavy ridges running the length of the shell. Shell brown in juvenile, but becomes blue-black in larger individuals. Eroded areas are white. Up to 90 mm. Forms extensive beds low in the intertidal and on rocky reefs… Continue reading Ribbed mussel (Aulacomya atra)
Cape rock crab (Guinusia chabrus)
Crab hiding under a boulder. Hondeklipbaai, Northern Cape (2020) - iNaturalist Formerly known as Plagusia chabrus. Carapace smooth and velvety in texture, with two notches between the eyes that house the first antennae, and three marginal teeth. Colour red-brown, with orange-yellow ridges on the legs, and rows of yellow tubercles on the nippers. About 50… Continue reading Cape rock crab (Guinusia chabrus)
Prickly limpet (Helcion pectunculus)
Two limpets with eroded tips in a rock crevice. Doringbaai, Northern Cape (2020) - iNaturalist Shell tall, oval in outline, apex positioned very close to the anterior end, dark brown in colour with about 26 black ribs that are distinctively prickled. About 30 mm. Lives very high on the shore, concealed in crevices or beneath… Continue reading Prickly limpet (Helcion pectunculus)
Granite limpet (Cymbula granatina)
Eroded limpet carrying smaller limpets on its shell. Hondeklipbaai, Northern Cape (2020). Previously known as Patella granatina. Similar in shape to the goat's eye limpet (Cymbula oculus), but taller, with about 15 major ribs. Distinctive granite-like chevron pattern on the upper surface, although this is often eroded away. Interior pale, with a narrow edging that… Continue reading Granite limpet (Cymbula granatina)
Flame-patterned burnupena (Burnupena catarrhacta)
Whelk with a delicate flame pattern, and a slipper limpet (Crepidula porcellana) attached to its shell. Hondeklipbaai, Northern Cape (2020) - iNaturalist Previously know as Burnupena delalandii. Shell elongated (length twice width), smooth by crossed by numerous fine spiral ridges. Juveniles often patterned with alternating dark and light streaks or 'flames', later obscured by erosion… Continue reading Flame-patterned burnupena (Burnupena catarrhacta)
Granular limpet (Scutellastra granularis)
An eroded limpet next to a younger limpet with its 'tentacles' out. Jacobsbaai, Western Cape (2020). Previously known as Patella granularis. Roughly oval, with approximately 50 fine ribs textured with white granules. Often eroded, smoothing the ribs and revealing a brown cap. Interior blue-white with a central brown patch and a dark border that is… Continue reading Granular limpet (Scutellastra granularis)
F*CK FISH 