Biological Dredge

Sediment Desc: Brown pebble to boulder subangular clasts of siltstone and sandstone
Flora & Fauna: Red Algae, brittle stars, bryozoa, spotted Turbot (?), strawberry aenemone, tunicate, shell-less hermit crab, sponge, sand star, sea cucumber, red octopus, acorn barnicle, grey sponge, Lithopoma undosum (wavy turban snail).

Kelp does not put down roots in the sediments on the seafloor. Instead, it anchors itself onto rocks. Many organisms make these rocks their own. The area on the San Pedro shelf called the "Rock Pile" is where the coastline used to be 10,000 years ago. As the planet warmed and the ice sheets melted, sealevels rose, covering this rocky coastline with seawater.

Below are some pictures of the organisms we collected during this biodredge. All creatures were returned to the ocean.