Battery Rocks ROCKS

We had a great turnout of volunteers for the Shoresearch survey today at Battery Rocks right next to the jubilee pool, Penzance. My good friend Rory Goodall of www.elementaltours.co.uk was leading a fox club rockpooling event and myself and the Shoresearch volunteer team came along to conduct a survey of this important site! We were not disappointed! It is a fantastic shore!  We were met by David Fenwick of www.aphotomarine.com who showed us no end of fascinating tiny creatures we wouldn't have found otherwise! I definitely need a set of reading glasses! It was great to meet Liam from Falmouth aquarium and his girlfriends dad and brother who relentlessly discovered interesting things.
Prize for find of the day was definitely the candy striped flatworm and the beautiful Risso's crab found by Rob wells who had travelled all the way from Mevagissey to be at the survey (Margaret and Tim came even further, travelling all the way from Fowey!)

I'm looking forward to heading to Mounts bay again soon - next survey / public event is at Long Rock on the 12th July!

In this gully there is a multitude of seaweed species

Cowrie grazing in a lowershore overhang

Thanks to David Fenwick for helping us find this bizzare tiny isopod Campecopea hirsuta that lives inside empty barnacles on the upper shore at this site. this one was about 3mm. You are looking at its abdomen and the spine that is sticking up is part of pereon segment 6 of its back.

Montagues blenny portrait! Ruben found 10 of these in one pool.

Rissos crab Xantho pilipes found by Rob Wells

Hairy legs are the key identification feature but they are also far more colourful than Montagu's crabs.

David found this piece of rock covered in sponge and barnacles Acaster spongites within Dysidia fragilis sponge.

I found  this just sitting on a muddy ledge inside a small cave out of the water - a topknot - a type of flatfish.

Rob Wells found this beautiful large (one inch) candystripe flatworm.

Gastroclonium ovatum - Red grape weed