California golden gorgonian and Sheephead wrasse fish on rocky reef, below kelp forest, underwater. The golden gorgonian is a filter-feeding temperate colonial species that lives on the rocky bottom at depths between 50 to 200 feet deep. Each individual polyp is a distinct animal, together they secrete calcium that forms the structure of the colony. Gorgonians are oriented at right angles to prevailing water currents to capture plankton drifting by.
Location: Catalina Island, California
Image ID: 34183
California golden gorgonian, Garibaldi and Sheephead wrasse fishes on rocky reef, below kelp forest, underwater. The golden gorgonian is a filter-feeding temperate colonial species that lives on the rocky bottom at depths between 50 to 200 feet deep. Each individual polyp is a distinct animal, together they secrete calcium that forms the structure of the colony. Gorgonians are oriented at right angles to prevailing water currents to capture plankton drifting by.
Location: Catalina Island, California
Image ID: 34186
Mated pair of Brandt's Cormorants tend to the nest they have built on sea cliffs. Note the colors they assume during mating season: striking blue gular pouch (throat) along with some blue-green iridescence in their plumage.
Species: Brandt's cormorant, Phalacrocorax penicillatus
Location: La Jolla, California
Image ID: 40144
Tufa towers rise from Mono Lake, with the Eastern Sierra visible in the distance. Tufa towers are formed when underwater springs rich in calcium mix with lakewater rich in carbonates, forming calcium carbonate (limestone) structures below the surface of the lake. The towers were eventually revealed when the water level in the lake was lowered starting in 1941.
Location: Mono Lake, California
Image ID: 26983