Haystack Rock Awareness Program Nature Blog

The birds at Haystack Rock are busy nesting. Have you ever wondered what the eggs look like that they're laying? Common Murre  The common murre lays one egg at a time. They lay their egg on a bare rock ledge on a cliff face. The egg is blue-green in color and is speckled. The incubation period for the common murre egg is 32 days. Once hatched, the young fledge on Haystack Rock for 20-25 days. When it comes time to leave the nest, they fall to the ocean at dusk or at night while following their father.  Common murre egg Notice the shape of the egg. What would happen if you tried to roll the egg? What path would the egg take?  How could this help in the success rate of the nesting pair in producing a chick? Common murre egg that rolled off the rock Black Oystercatcher The pair of black oystercatchers nesting in the saddle at Haystack Rock were sitting on two eggs that were la yed in late May . Unfortun ately, those eggs were lost. There's still time ...

While opalescent and shaggy mouse nudibranchs are fairly common at Haystack Rock, every once in awhile the staff and volunteers find some more obscure ones. One example, which was seen last week, is the alabaster nudibranch. As reported by Steve Grace, a volunteer, "This morning, after several months of searching, I finally spotted the alabaster nudibranch (Dirona albolineata). Its white lines glowed against a dark kelp background, its oral veil undulated in the current, and its translucent body seemed to be lit from within." alabaster nudibranch (photo courtesy of Steve Grace) Steve also found a Christmas anemone (aka mottled anemone or painted anemone) Urticina crassicornis. While they've been seen at Ecola Point, this was the first one seen at Haystack Rock. Christmas anemone (photo courtesy of Steve Grace) The intertidal area at Haystack Rock is ever changing. Sand comes in, sand goes out. Sometimes we have to look really closely to find some interesting ...