PHOTO CONTEST WINNERS: SHARE THE BEAUTY AND BOUNTY OF MORRO BAY

Our Beauty and Bounty of Morro Bay photo contest celebrates National Estuaries Week and recognizes the many benefits that estuaries provide. These places where freshwater rivers and streams meet the salty sea are home to myriad wildlife. They nurture juvenile fish, including commercial species. They provide us protection against both flood and drought. They also provide us with a chance to recreate and reconnect with nature. They give us beauty and solace, too. We received so many beautiful photographs that showed every angle, mood, and aspect of the bay. It was very difficult to choose between them, but after much …

Sea Slugs on the Move: Bent on World Domination, or Opportunistic Travel Bums?

September 19, 2020 Posted by Morro Bay National Estuary Program climate change global warming MBNEP morro bay morro bay national estuary morro bay native species native species nonnative species nudibranch nudibranchs Robin Agarwal sea slug seaslug species displacement species migration Blog Posts Sea Slug of the Month Wildlife spotlight

Polycera atra (top) and Polycera hedgpethi on Bugula brozoan prey San Luis Obispo County, California

Sea Slugs on the Move: Bent on World Domination, or Opportunistic Travel Bums? With the passing of the very low, very early morning tides of summer, tidepooling minds must reluctantly turn away from the outer edges of our coastline for a few months, until the autumn minus tides return in mid-October. And what better topic to occupy our Covid/smoke/asteroid/politics stressed minds than possible world domination by sea slugs? I exaggerate, of course. We won’t be marching in lines and waving tiny nudibranch flags any time soon. But there has been a quiet movement of sea slug populations taking …

International Coastal Cleanup Day Gets Social-Distancing Friendly

September 12, 2020 Posted by Morro Bay National Estuary Program 2 minute beach clean beach cleanup creeks to coast creeks to coast cleanup 2020 ecoslo international coastal cleanup MBNEP morro bay morro bay national estuary program pack it in pack it out tiny trash Blog Posts

This photograph shows a collection of tiny trash pieces. They may be small, but removing them from the environment can have a big positive impact.

This time of year, we typically find ourselves preparing for Creeks to Coast, the San Luis Obispo County version of the International Coastal Cleanup. We pick up supplies from our friends at ECOSLO, whose staff manage and coordinate the county-wide cleanup effort, get in touch with local boat captains to secure a ride for our volunteers over to the sandspit, and get ready for the big day. The photographs below are from the Creeks to Coast cleanup sites that the Estuary Program hosted last year. This year, the Creeks to Coast cleanup, like many yearly events, is adapting to …

Photo Contest: Share the Beauty and Bounty of Morro Bay

August 28, 2020 Posted by Morro Bay National Estuary Program morro bay morro bay estuary photo contest photography contest Blog Posts

Estuaries worldwide deserve our attention and protection. Every year, Restore America’s Estuaries hosts National Estuaries Week during the third week of September to recognize the many benefits that estuaries provide. These places where freshwater rivers and streams meet the salty sea are biological hot spots, home to a wide range of wildlife including protected species like steelhead trout, Southern sea otters, and tidewater gobies. Estuaries provide a nursery for commercially important fish that mature and then venture out into the ocean. Their marshy extremities filter and absorb stormwater runoff, removing pollutants before the water enters the bay and …

Morro Baycam: Cloud Watching, Spring and Summer 2020

August 21, 2020 Posted by Morro Bay National Estuary Program 805 webcams california sunset cloud watching morro bay Morro Bay clouds morro bay national estuary program Morro Bay sunset Morro Bay Webcam Morro Baycam Weather in Morro Bay Blog Posts Photograph Friday

We like watching the clouds go by over the bay whether we’re on the beach, on a boat, or taking a peek at the Morro Baycam on a break from working at home. Today, we invite you to check out some of our favorite cloudscapes from dawn to sunset and everywhere between. Subscribe to our weekly blog to have posts like this delivered to your inbox each week. Help us protect and restore the Morro Bay estuary! Donate to the Estuary Program today and support our work in the field, the lab, and beyond. The Estuary Program is a 501(c)3 nonprofit. We …

Bioassessment 2020: Highlights from the Season

August 14, 2020 Posted by Morro Bay National Estuary Program bioassessment bioindicator creek health creeks field survey Harold J. Miossi Charitable Trust macroinvertebrates MBNEP Miossi Charitable Trust Miossi Trust monitoring morro bay morro bay national estuary program streams water quality Blog Posts

Giant Water Bugs, also known as “Toe-Biters,” are large invertebrate predators with a powerful bite! Females typically deposit their eggs onto the males’ back, and the male “Toe-Biter” keeps the eggs safe until they hatch.

As many of our readers and volunteers know, our spring bioassessment season is one of the major monitoring efforts of the year. We use a state-wide protocol that includes detailed habitat measurements and macroinvertebrate collection to assess creek health. Volunteers are an integral part of this effort. Our volunteers come to us from all walks of life, from seniors to college students and everything in between. We kick off the season with an orientation, and then volunteers join us on our surveys. Each season we usually have about 20 volunteers helping us monitor ten sites, collecting over 1,000 data points per site. Spring 2020: a …

Catch Up On Morro Bay Estuary Wildlife Blog Series

August 7, 2020 Posted by Morro Bay National Estuary Program MBNEP morro bay morro bay estuary morro bay national estuary program native plant series native plants native wildlife nature walk sea slug sea slugs wildlife Blog Posts

Most of us are spending more of our free time time at home, taking socially-distanced walks along the bay or finding refuge on less-traveled trails. Whether you’re taking time to notice all the details of the green spaces you already knew well or branching out to new near-home destinations, you may be seeing some wildlife you don’t yet know. To help you identify and get to know a little bit about some of our native species, we’re sharing a few of our favorite series with you this week. Learn Native Plants by Habitat Type This series introduces you …

Be Sea Otter Savvy: A New Perspective on Sea Otter Photography

July 31, 2020 Posted by Morro Bay National Estuary Program Gena Bentall marine mammal act MBNEP morro bay morro bay national estuary program responsible wildlife viewing sea otter Sea otter biologist sea otter savvy wildlife disturbance wildlife in Morro Bay wildlife photography wildlife storytelling Be Sea Otter Savvy Blog Posts Guest post

You can make a difference by following ethical wildlife photography practices and scrutinizing wildlife photos carefully for signs of disturbance. Photo by Gena Bentall.

This post is part of our blog series, Be Sea Otter Savvy, written by Gena Bentall, Director and Senior Scientist at Sea Otter Savvy. Posts in this series include tips on how to help sea otters thrive through ethical stewardship, as well as information about sea otters’ behavior, biology, and their role in the estuary and ocean ecosystems. A New Perspective on Sea Otter Photography You will soon be wondering what has directed my attention so intensively on photographers. In the past the field of wildlife photography was more of a specialist field—you had to have an expensive …

Investigating the State of Morro Bay Estuary: State of the Bay Report 2020

July 24, 2020 Posted by Morro Bay National Estuary Program aquaculture bay filling in bay science bird populations climate change conservation eelgrass erosion los osos MBNEP morro bay morro bay estuary shellfish farming state of the bay swimming Blog Posts

Every three years, the Morro Bay National Estuary Program publishes a State of the Bay report that uses data gathered by our staff, volunteers, and partner organizations to examine the health of the Morro Bay estuary and watershed. It provides important information about environmental trends and guides local efforts to protect and restore this special place. This year, we published a digital version of the State of the Bay report with additional multimedia content and information that we couldn’t fit into into the print version of the report. Today, we invite you to investigate the the health of …

Bioassessment Survey Results 2019: Tracking the Health of Local Creeks

July 17, 2020 Posted by Morro Bay National Estuary Program benthic macroinvertebrates bioassessment bioindicators bmi creek health field survey funders grants habitat survey Harold J. Miossi Charitable Trust ibi scores macroinvertebrate Miossi Miossi Trust south central California coast steelhead steelhead stonefly volunteers Blog Posts

Two volunteers wear waders and dark red plaid shirts. The one on the left holds an algae-covered rock that is about 12 inches long. The volunteer on the right uses a red ruler to measure the width of the rock. The data that they collect will be used to calculate the overall bioassessment survey results for the year.

What we learn from bioassessment survey results One of the goals of the Estuary Program is to monitor the bay and the lands that surround it to better understand conditions and how they are changing over time. As part of this effort, the Estuary Program conducts spring bioassessment surveys. This data allow us to assess the health of our creeks and determine if they support sensitive aquatic life. What we collect during bioassessment surveys Each spring, staff and volunteers head out to local creeks to collect habitat measurements such as the depth of the water, the size of the …