Wrack Line 2025

This page is a chronological curation of sea wrack, seashells, and other drifted material, along with tentative identifications, intimations of beach processes and cycles, and musings on mysteries of the Northern Oregon drift. Under each date, I present galleries with beach scenes and closeups arranged in the order they were encountered (Though I take occasional liberties (not always noted) to aid the presentation). Thus, each entry is kind of like a walk along the shore; some entries will feel more like that than others, but providing a beach walk feel is my aspiration.

May 29, 2025

What choice picks await down in the drizzle?

A rainy beachscape featuring a forested slope, cobbles, sandy beach, the surf zone, some rocks just offshore, and the open sea beyond. Sky gray and drizzly.

A forested scene featuring a wooden stairway leading down.

A muddy trail ends in a lineup of big driftwood. Beyond that, the surf zone. Gray drizzly sky.

Host and hitchhiker

Here, the host is a small detached and drifted mass of sea sacs Halosaccion, a rocky intertidal seaweed, and the hitchhiker, a pelagic barnacle, looks like Lepas pacifica.

A small drift mass of sea sacs Halosaccion and pelagic goose barnacles Lepas pacifica rests on the sand. — Pelagic meets rocky intertidal meets sandy beach

Two sides of Siliqua

Empty and drifted shells of the Pacific razor clam Siliqua patula.

Empty and drifted shell of the Pacific razor clam Siliqua patula resting on the sand, exterior surface exposed. — Exterior

Empty and drifted shell of the Pacific razor clam Siliqua patula resting on the sand, interior surface exposed, though sand obscures part of the view. — Exterior

The lovely lines of Phyllospadix

Isolated drift blades lay out with natural grace.

A single drifted blade of surfgrass Phyllospadix resting on the sand.

Four bucks

The eccentric sand dollar Dendraster excentricus. (I feel rich when I find whole sand dollar shells.)

A beached and drifted shell of the eccentric sand dollar Dendraster excentricus rests on the sand.

On the seaweed side

A drifted sprig of Fucus rests on the sand. — *Fucus*

Two drifted fragments of Pyropia rest on the sand. — *Fucus*

Off wrack line

I happened to find two little crustaceans out on the sand and it’s worth getting to know both of them; after all, you might encounter one or both of them next time you’re walking the shoreline.

The little crab shown below is a hermit that lives on the rocks and in and around tidepools where you may see them scuttling away to safety at your approach. Sometimes, though, they fall or get plucked or knocked off the rocks. Here, for whatever reason, its landing place was bare sand—vulnerable ground for a hermit crab—where the options are reduced to reclaiming its home rocks, or at least some suitable rocks, or death. I didn’t linger to learn the fate of this unfortunate hermit, a hairy hermit Pagurus hirsutiusculus. I left it as I found it.

A hairy hermit Pagurus hirsutiusculus looking kind of out of place on the sand. It has chosen to live in an empty shell of Nucella ostrina.A hairy hermit Pagurus hirsutiusculus looking kind of out of place on the sant. It has chosen to live in an empty shell of Nucella ostrina — *Pagurus hirsutiusculus*

If Pagurus is out of place on the sand, Lissocrangon and sand are one. They are common on surf-swept beaches where you can sometimes see them out on the surface or buried just below. Their molts are routine components of the wrack line.

A smooth bay shrimp Lissocrangon stylirostris burrowing, apparently, with its head buried in the sand. — *Lissocrangon stylirostris*

May 28, 2025

Welcome

A seascape with an array of big driftwood in the foreground. A headland just into the surf zone in the mid ground. Beyond, a cloudless sky with a band of dawn color along the horizon.

On the seaweed side

Macrocystis tenuifolia

Fucus

A small mass of drift focus resting on the sand.

Pyropia

Setup just right

Seascape with a boulder field in the foreground, beach in the mid ground, and the forested slopes of a headland in the distance. Cottony clouds.

A final drifted find

A little bleached shell, only about one inch long, it’s probably a baby gaper clam, Tresus.

A small bleached gaper clam Tresus shell (one valve only), resting on the sand with its exterior surface exposed. — As I found it

A small bleached gaper clam Tresus shell (one valve only), cleaned off and placed on the sand with its interior surface exposed. — As I found it

May 27, 2025

Anticipation

Trail's end. Beach, surf zone and offshore rocks framed by driftwood, willows. a band of low clouds in the distance.

Early morning finds

A drifted Pyropia blade rests on the sand. — *Pyropia*

Empty and drifted valves of Siliqua patula, interior surfaces exposed, resting on the wet sand. Both valves are damaged. — Razor remnants

A feather rests on the sand. — Razor remnants

A mirror between stillness and surf

A sunrise seascape with the beach and a quiet, sand-filled pool in the foreground, the mirror in the midground, and surf and rocks just offshore. Clear sky with a few wisps of clouds.

An Inscrutable red blade

A lone drifted red blade (seaweed) resting on the sand.

Track of the reclusive black-tail

Fine focus on the pinching claw

Closeup of the pinching claw (male), spot-bellied crab Romaleon antennarium. In the background, a portion of the rest of the crab, resting upside down on the sand. — *Romaleon antennarium* (male)

While I was walking the shore, I noticed, from a distance, that harvesters had left a clutter of mussel bed debris behind, so I went over to take a look. The set below shows a sample of doomed creatures they left behind.

A closeup of Halosydna brevisetosa on sand in a shallow pool, discarded by mussel harvesters working the bed above. — *Halosydna*

A closeup of a juvenile ochre star Pisaster ochraceus on the sand in a shallow pool, discarded by mussel harvesters working in the bed above. — ‘lil *Pisaster*

A tar spot cucumber Cucumaria pseudocurata on the sand, discarded by mussel harvesters working in the bed above. — ‘lil *Pisaster*

A view of the exterior left valve (I think) of an Entodesma clam on the sand, discarded by mussel harvesters working in the bed above. — This little nestler, probably *Entodesma*, once made a home in the mussel bed

A peanut worm Phascolosoma agassizii on the sand at the bottom of a shallow pool, discarded by mussel harvesters working in the bed above. — This little nestler, probably *Entodesma*, once made a home in the mussel bed

Drifted odds n’ ends

A granular claw crab Oedignathus inermis claw resting on wet sand. — Granular claw crab’s namesake

Looking down on a single thatched barnacle Semibalanus cariosus resting right side up on the sand. — Granular claw crab’s namesake

Empty and drifted valves of Siliqua patula, exterior surfaces exposed, resting on the wet sand. — *Siliqua patula*

A drifted branch of Fucus resting on wet sand in the swash zone. — *Siliqua patula*

A Dungeness crab Metacarcinus magister carapace resting on the sand. — Dungeness carapace

A slightly discolored drifted sand dollar Dendraster excentricus shell resting right side up on the sand. — Dungeness carapace

Closeup of a beached sea gooseberry Pleurobrachia bachei resting on the sand in the swash zone. — Sea gooseberry Pleurobrachia

A drifted tuft of Flustrellidra corniculata rests on a wrack line bed of surfgrass and seaweed. — Sea gooseberry Pleurobrachia

I conclude this walk on the beach with a view of an expansive mirror.

May 1, 2025

A view from above

A view from above is an opportunity for me to illustrate and place perspective on the wrack line and its adjacent reaches on the beach and beyond. A good place to begin is on the beach, where I’ve entered a few labels on the image below, and as good an anchor as any is the wrack line (the eponym of this page!). In this scene, I think of the wrack line as the thin line of debris at the boundary between wet and dry cobbles. It’s composed of material that washed up in one or more of the recent high tides. It contains the treasures sought by beachcombers—polished driftwood and seashells, and buoys and bottles—sometimes from distant shores. At any particular location, the tide sequence, surf conditions, and a bunch of other factors determine whether the wrack line is a single line of debris or more than one line. (In this instance, the label points to the line of debris from the previous night’s high tide, which just made the cobbles).

You can usually expect bare zones below and above the wrack line, where bare gives the wrong impression. (Bare doesn’t mean there is no wrack or drifted material—there are plenty of interesting finds to be had in this zone—it just looks bare from a distance.) Moving landward, across the bare cobbles, on this beach anyhow, you’ll encounter a band of big driftwood at the very top of the cobbles. This band seems fairly stable because deposition and removal of material from this band are punctuated events occurring only during the very highest tides and biggest surf of winter and spring. Some drifted logs remain in place for years. In this scene, the biggest wood comes to rest on a narrow shelf at the top of the cobbles, right up at the base of the willows, which are evident along the lower right-hand corner of the frame. (The broader the shelf, the greater the opportunity for accumulation of big wood.) Once we enter the willows, we will have stepped outside of the proper intertidal, into a sister ecosystem.

A seascape extending from willows on shore out across the cobbles and a sandy beach to the surf zone and the open ocean. A steep, rocky headland at the top left-hand edge of the scene. (Labels for Wrack Line, Big Wood, and Bare Sand & Cobbles. — May 1, 2025

Returning to the beach and looking seaward, it’s easy to find the surf zone (unlabeled), it’s the fairly obvious band of breaking waves just above the middle left-hand side of the frame, where surfers and surfperches gather. Venturing beyond, you leave the intertidal for sister ecosystems extending out to the open ocean, to the horizon and beyond. All adjacent ecosystems have ties to the intertidal. A surf-zone-adjacent band a bit closer to shore than the breakers is the swash zone (also unlabeled); you can feel its rhythm swashing and backwashing over your ankles. Sometimes, a quiet zone of reflective sheen forms. That’s the mirror; you can see traces of it at the center of the frame. The mirror is the band where sanderlings feed, and where you see them running, just above the leading edge of the swash. (Gulls loaf in the mirror, and other shorebirds feed and spend time there too.)

Each stretch of shoreline has its own features, as do the wrack-line-associated bands on any given day, so the descriptions I’ve given here are most applicable to the scene above on the day I took the photo. Furthermore, there is nothing special about the terms I used; they’re just terms I’ve adopted and all of them have synonyms or alternatives. Likewise, the descriptions of the various bands and zones, those are mine, along with and all their idiosyncrasies, errors, and omissions.

Caveats aside, let’s compare a birds-eye-view of the wrack line at the same site—at beach level—just over three years ago when the bands of bare sand and cobbles, and the lineup and location of the wrack line, and the band of big wood look almost identical to the present example. (To orient yourself to the two images, find the small creek cutting through the cobbles.)

A labeled beachscape indicting a zone of big wood (highest, way up in the cobbles), a bare zone (dry cobbles), the wrack line (in a narrow band of wet cobbles), and the surf zone (the lowest zone, here wet, bare sand and cobbles).

The labels on the older image translate pretty well, but there is an exception. Three years ago I put the Surf Zone label way up on the bare sand and cobbles, just below the wrack line. It makes sense now, just as it did back then, because, well, you’ve got to have surf and its swash to get a wrack line. However, at least today, I’m thinking about the surf zone as the place on the beach where the surf is breaking and the redtail surfperch are chasing mole crabs.

If you want to see some of my wrack line finds from 2025, just scroll up or down this page. For finds from previous years, go to any of my other Wrack Line pages.

***

April 30, 2025

From the swash zone up to the cobbles and the zone of big wood

View landward from the swash zone across the sand and onto the cobbles where there is an accumulation of driftwood where the mountain meets the shore.

Scraps in the swash

Empty and drifted valves of Siliqua patula, interior surfaces exposed, resting on the wet sand. — *Siliqua patula*

Drifted Fucus branch resting on the wet sand. — *Siliqua patula*

Watching a crow hunt the mussel bed and it watching me. They’ll use all their flexibility to get the right angle (upper right-hand panel).

American crow peering into the mix of mussels and barnacles.

American crow on the mussel bed craning its neck for the best hunting angle.

Crows have a great eye for crabs and the unsettling habit of eating the best and leaving the rest behind. Shown here are the partially-eaten remains of a granular claw crab (left-hand panel) and a flat porcelain crab (right-hand panel).

A granular claw crab Oedignathus inermis partially eaten (the abdomen is missing) upside down in the sand. Bird tracks. — *Oedignathus inermis*

A flat porcelain crab Petrolisthes cinctipes upside down in the sand. — *Oedignathus inermis*

Artifacts

Lost marker buoy rests high in the cobbles against a drifted log. Beach, surf zone and offshore rocks in the background.

A non-alcoholic beverage can rests in the cobbles among other wrack line debris, mostly small driftwood and mussel shells.

I’m closing this beach walk with a look at the shelf that can form at the top of the cobbles when the beach is wide enough. Backshore shelves are places of driftwood accumulation.

Driftwood accumulates on a shelf high in the cobbles. Steep headland walls in the background. — ***

April 29, 2025

Coming to you from the zone of big wood

Accumulation of large driftwood on a shelf in the cobbles. In the distance, cobbles, beach surf zone and maritime forest. Cloudy sky with light rain.

Where there is big wood, there is big human-made debris

I’m not sure it’s particularly evident in this image, but a lot of the big wood—and the fish tub lid— rests on a narrow shelf at the top of the cobbles. It takes high tides and the big waves of winter to get this wood on the move.

A large plastic lid from a fish tub rests on an accumulation of driftwood on a shelf at the top of the cobbles. In the background, the beach, surf zone, and beyond. Cloudy sky, light rain.

Perspective

A sort of distant view of the zone of big wood resting at the top of the cobbles, up against a steep slope up to the forest above. In the mid-ground, a band of cobbles. in the foreground, wet beach sand. Cloudy sky with rain.

Down on the beach

Closeup of a tangle of drifted surfgrass Phyllospadix leaves resting on the sand. — *Phyllospadix*

Closeup of a spray of Fucus with reproductive structures naturally laid out, almost as if on purpose for display, on wet sand. — *Phyllospadix*

Closeup of a fairly large by-the-wind sailor Velella velella washed ashore and resting upside down on the sand. — *Velella* (fresh and resting upside down)

Closeup of both valves of an empty and drifted razor clam Siliqua patula shell resting on the sand with the exterior surfaces exposed. — *Siliqua patula*

Closeup of a few detached and drifted California mussel Mytilus californianus shells featuring a cluster of about a dozen attached thatched barnacles Semibalanus cariosus, the whole pile resting on the sand. — *Siliqua patula*

Closeup of a bleached and drifted sand dollar Dendraster excentricus shell, a rather unblemished example, resting right side up on the sand with one margin partially buried in the sand. — Pretty perfect

Afterthoughts

An American crow perched atop a mussel bed. Cliffs and maritime forest in the background. Cloudy sky.

All the while, the crows, a few of them anyhow, were successfully working over the accompanying mussel beds and low rocks, mostly focusing, it seemed, on this particular morning, on crustaceans. Crows can be messy eaters and I came across a few of their discarded morsels, two of which I highlight below, because, thinking it through, there’s not much daylight between a crow’s leftovers and the other drifted specimens featured in this entry.

First, a little spot-belly Romaleon antennarium, as I found it, upside down and struggling at the base of a boulder.

A spot-bellied or Pacific rock crab Romaleon antennarium upside down on the sand at the base of a boulder. Signs of its struggle are etched in the sand.

Here, the same crab, washed free of sand for a better look at its namesake abdomen (left-hand panel) and the hairiness of juveniles (right-hand panel).

A closeup of an upside-down juvenile spot-bellied or Pacific rock crab Romaleon antennarium, upside down on the sand.

A closeup of a juvenile spot-bellied or Pacific rock crab Romaleon antennarium resting right side up on the sand.

To see more photos of spot-bellies (including the adult version) and other crabs you might encounter on the northern Oregon shore, take a look at my Crabs page.

I’ll end this entry with one of those little broken-back shrimps, maybe Heptacarpus or something similar.

A closeup of a broken-back shrimp, maybe Heptacarpus or something similar, laying on its side on the sand.

Striking when cleaned up and set upon a bed of Mazzaella.

A closeup of a broken-back shrimp, maybe Heptacarpus or something similar, posed on a bed of Mazzaella. — ***

April 28, 2025

Step right up

Beach, surf zone and offshore rocks framed by driftwood, willows, and a cloudy sky.

Ton of big wood up in the cobbles

Beachscape featuring lots of driftwood viewed from a shelf at the top of the cobbles. Maritime forest on one side, exposed beach on the other. Cloudy sky.

Seashells

An empty and drifted California mussel Mytilus californianus shell (both valves) rests on the sand. The interior surface of one valve is particularly featured. — *Mytilus californianus*

An empty and bleached clam shell (just one valve) rests on the sand with the exterior surface exposed. — I’ve always called this a macoma (no guarantee)

An empty and bleached clam shell (just one valve) rests on the sand with its interior surface exposed. — I’ve always called this a macoma (no guarantee)

A conical drifted limpet shell, probably a whitecap limpet Acmaea mitra, rests upright on the sand. — Looks like a whitecap *Acmaea mitra*

Closeup of an empty many ribbed puncturella Puncturella multistriata shell resting upright on the sand. — Looks like a whitecap *Acmaea mitra*

Do you feel like sand dollars are seashells? Either way, everybody’s on the lookout for a perfect find like this.

A bleached and drifted eccentric sand dollar Dendraster excentricus shell rests, right side up on the sand. — *Dendraster excentricus*

A different perspective

A beachscape with rocks jutting out of the sand and some reflections. Surf zone and offshore rocks in the distance, Mostly cloudy sky. — The shore at scale

Odds ‘n ends

A drifted and empty thatched barnacle Semibalanus cariosus with a few small Pollicipes polymerus attached rests on the sand. — *Semibalanus cariosus* with *Pollicipes polymerus*

A closeup of a portion of a Dungeness crab Metacarcinus magister carapace resting on the sand. — *Semibalanus cariosus* with *Pollicipes polymerus*

At times of low tide, some crows do their hunting on the shore. If they are lucky enough to find a granular claw crab—they’re pretty good at it—they pull them from their hiding place and eat their soft abdomen, discarding the rest.

Closeup on the drifted carcass of a granular claw crab Oedignathus inermis rests partially buried in the sand. — *Oedignathus inermis*

Sign from the human side

A round of timber rests in the cobbles, its flat surface hosts a pile of cobbles, pebbles and seashells. — ***

March 5, 2025

This crazy trail traverses a slide, and the slant of slip-sliding trees is a bit disorienting. Nevertheless, I’m curious about the wrack line. Does it perhaps hold a treasure or two, or maybe more?

A trail with stair steps at first, then dirt and gravel leading to the beach. Spruce trees on the landward side of the trail are slanted away from the beach due to a slide. — Anticipation

Affirmative says the Lion.

Seascape featuring Lion Rock in the surf zone. Partly cloudy sky and some offshore showers. — The Lion knows

The first shell I found was a drifted green false-jingle. (Note the raindrop-dimpled sand. You’ll see that in several other images. Showers were a theme throughout the morning.) I picked it up and washed it off and laid it out on the sand for a better look at both surfaces.

An empty and drifted green false-jingle Pododesmus macroschisma shell resting on rain-dimpled sand. — *Pododesmus macroschisma*

An empty and drifted green false-jingle Pododesmus macroschisma shell washed off and set up on smooth sand to expose the shell's interior surface. — Interior surface

An empty and drifted green false-jingle Pododesmus macroschisma shell washed off and set up on smooth sand to expose the shell's exterior surface. — Interior surface

That’s worth another try. This time the Pododesmus shell is a dark blue-grey color. I’m not sure what’s up with that, but it could be the result of iron sulfide staining. It’s not too unusual to find drifted bivalve shells of this color.

An empty and drifted green false-jingle Pododesmus macroschisma shell resting on sand in the swash zone. — *Pododesmus macroschisma* (as I found it)

This time, both sides of the left valve (so I say) of a gaper shell, most likely a fat gaper Tresus capax.

An empty and drifted gaper clam (probably Tresus capax) shell resting on the sand. Its clean interior surface is exposed. — Interior surface

An empty and drifted gaper clam (probably Tresus capax) shell resting on the sand. Its clean exterior surface is exposed. — Interior surface

Drifted Diversity

A bit of rhizome and associated blades of drifted Phyllospadix resting on the sand. — *Phyllospadix*

An empty and drifted California mussel Mytilus californianus shell (both valves) rests on the sand. The exterior surface of one valve is particularly featured. — *Mytilus californianus*

An empty and drifted limpet shell rests upright on rain-dimpled sand , surrounded by membranous castings of a sand-dwelling worm, maybe Spiochaetopterus. — *Mytilus californianus*

An oblique view into the opening of an empty and drifted giant barnacle Balanus nubilus shell partially buried in the sand. — Once home to a large barnacle

Both valves of an empty and drifted Razor clam Siliqua patula shell resting on the sand. — Razor clam *Siliqua patula*

Remains of a beached sea nettle Chrysaora fuscescens resting on the sand. — Razor clam *Siliqua patula*

A drifted Dungeness crab Metacarcinus magister carapace resting upside down on rain-dimpled sand. The inside portion of the carapace is somewhat filled with a layer of sand. — Dungeness crab *Metacarcinus magister*

The underside of a male northern kelp crab Pugettia producta on rain dimpled sand. — Dungeness crab *Metacarcinus magister*

A drifted fragment from a larger mass of fish eggs, maybe ling cod eggs, rests on rain-dimpled sand. — Small fragment of a much larger mass

Rough keyhole limpet Diodora aspera resting, right side up, on the sand in the swash zone. — Rough keyhole limpet *Diodora aspera*

Conifer branchlet tip resting on sand in the swash zone. — Rough keyhole limpet *Diodora aspera*

Drift Fucus resting on the sand. — *Fucus*

A peek at people’s contributions

Treated wood held together with rebar resting on the sand. — Winter’s toll

Closeup of a drifted paper label resting on rain-dimpled sand. — Winter’s toll

A satiation of mermaid’s purses

Closeup of a mermaid's purse, probably Beringraja binoculata, resting on rain-dimpled sand. The egg case is encrusted with small barnacles. A razor clam shell shares the scene.

Closeup of a mermaid's purse, probably Beringraja binoculata, resting on the sand. The egg case is encrusted with small barnacles.

Closeup of a mermaid's purse, probably Beringraja binoculata, resting on rain-dimpled sand. The egg case is encrusted with small barnacles.

Closeup of an upside down mermaid's purse, probably Beringraja binoculata, resting on rain-dimpled sand.

Closeup of a mermaid's purse, probably Beringraja binoculata, resting on rain-dimpled sand. The egg case is partially encrusted with small and a few larger barnacles.

Gooseberry gallery

Local landmarks

A sculptured car-sized rock juts from the sand. Surf zone in the background. Partly cloudy sky.

A more or less cub-shaped rock (about as big as two or three cars) appears to be resting on the sand. Lichens on the top of the rock. Surf zone in the background. Partly cloudy sky.

Two rocks, one van-sized, on the car-sized, appear to be resting on the sand. Lichens atop the bigger rock. Surf zone in the background. Partly cloudy sky.

A massive and quite tall (taller than broad) sculptured rock juts from the sand. Surf zone in the background. Partly cloudy sky.

Driftwood scenes

Beachscape featuring a drifted tree trunk with what appears to be pileated workings. Beach in the middle ground. Surf zone and a headland beyond. Cloudy sky.

Beachscape featuring a bit of driftwood up against a cliff. Beach in the middle ground. Surf zone and a headland beyond. Cloudy sky.

Parting shots

Closeup of an emptier and drifted pink scallop Chlamys shell, just one valve, resting on the sand in the swash zone. Exterior surface exposed. — *Chlamys*

An empty and drifted California mussel Mytilus californianus shell (both valves) rests on rain-dimpled sand. The exterior surface of one valve is particularly featured. — *Mytilus*

Jelly remnant, probably a Pacific sea nettle Chrysaora fuscescens, rests on rain-dimpled sand. — *Mytilus*

Closeup of a mermaid's purse, probably Beringraja binoculata, resting on rain-dimpled sand. — Mermaid’s purse

Closeup of an empty and drifted rough keyhole limpet Diodora aspera shell resting on the sand in the swash zone. — Mermaid’s purse

Closeup of a beached sea gooseberry Pleurobrachia bachei resting on the sand in the swash zone. Sea glint in the background. — *Pleurobrachia*

Turnaround

Beachscape featuring seaweed-covered rocks, a long wide beach, and forested headlands in the distance. Sparse clouds. — See you on the shore!

March 4, 2025

A sample from the tip top of the tide

For a few years I’ve been taking a photographic sample from the top of the tideline, about 50 paces north of where I set foot on the shore, when possible. Here, raindrops have dimpled the sand above the reach of the tide. The larger items in this sample are mostly terrestrial plant material and empty marine worm tubes. A few small plastic fragments are present, and a feather appears at the bottom right-hand corner of the frame. From this starting point—kind of my anchor—I wonder, what else awaits?

Closeup on a patch of sand at the top of the tide. 15 cm rule for scale.

In a few places along the tideline I noticed a buildup of marine worm tubes. I can’t claim certainty, but the clear segmented debris shown below might be associated with Spiochaetopterus, a little sand-dwelling polychaete that lives in a membranous tube vertically embedded in the sand. I don’t really know why buildups of empty casings sometimes occur on the shore, but they are pretty common.

Closeup on a patch of sand at the top of the tide. At the top of the frame, bare sand is dimpled by raindrops. At the bottom of the frame, an accumulation of empty worm tubes, possibly Spiochaetopterus.

Closeup on an accumulation of empty worm tubes, possibly Spiochaetopterus.

Material from diverse origins meets in the magical intertidal.

Closeup on a portion of a large mass of drifted ling cod eggs resting on the sand. — Portion of a large mass of ling cod eggs, probably | A pretty common winter/spring find

Closeup of a drifted mass of Phyllospadix, with rhizome and blades, resting on the sand. — *Phyllospadix*

A short tangle of lost line resting on the sand. — *Phyllospadix*

Closeup of a moon Jelly fragment and a sea nettle fragment divided by a short terrestrial plant cane. The surrounding sand is dimpled by raindrops. — Jelly obelus

A closeup on an empty and drifted valve of the Pacific razor clam Siliqua patula resting on raindrop-dimpled sand. Exterior surface visible. — The razor

A closeup of a stranded moon jelly Aurelia labiata resting on raindrop-dimpled sand. — The razor

Still a little fire inside

A closeup of the Iridescence in the interior of a drifted Mytilus californianus California mussel fragment resting on the sand. — *Mytilus californianus*

With all the focus on close up beauty resting on the sand it’s good to break from it for a moment once in a while, if for no other reason than to refresh your perspective. I have a connection with the rock in the foreground because I’ve gotten into a habit of watching its seasonal disappearance under a buildup of summer sand, and its reappearance each winter.

Seascape with a large rock rising above the sand; beach and a broad mirror in the mid ground. Surf zone and sea stacks in the background. Cloudy sky.

With my eyes again directed down, I picked up and cleaned off a drifted tellin, a left valve, I think, and laid it atop the sand for a good view. This shell is probably from the Bodega tellin Megangulus bodegensis, among other Bodega characters, the interior surface can have a yellow-orange blush. Concentric rings on the exterior surface are a sight of beauty.

A bleached and drifted Bodega tellin Megangulus bodegensis shell (left valve, laid out on the sand for a look at the shell's interior surface. — Interior

A bleached and drifted Bodega tellin Megangulus bodegensis shell (left valve, laid out on the sand for a look at the shell's exterior surface. — Interior

I’m going to close this wrack line tour with another beauty of a drifted bivalve, Crassadoma gigantea. I believe the right valve is attached to hard surfaces, so this is probably a left valve. The image below shows the shell as I found it.

Closeup of an empty drifted Crassadoma gigantea giant rock scallop shell resting interior surface up on the sand. — Interior

The image below shows the same shell washed free of sand and turned over for a look at the exterior surface. An interesting thing to notice here, is the lower portion of the shell (down by the hinge) shows the impression of its younger free-swimming self. (The demarcation isn’t nearly as evident on the shell’s interior surface.)

Closeup of an empty drifted Crassadoma gigantea giant rock scallop shell resting exterior surface up on the sand. — Exterior

To see more images of Crassadoma gigantea and examples of other bivalves I’ve encountered and photographed on exposed northern Oregon shores, take a look at my Bivalves page.

Share this: