The Marine Detective

08/28/2026

Here's your Find the Fish Friday with a big bonus.

There are four fish here - Scalyhead Sculpins. If you find two, you are doing great since the other two are more hidden away.

The bonus? Search and study the three Pygmy Rock Crabs. Pygmy Rock Crabs are wonderfully adapted to be able to hide in the remains of Giant Barnacles' shells. Pygmy Rock Crabs appear to seek out the barnacle tests that are the perfect size for them, allowing them to block out predators' access. Yes, each crab is using the Giant Barnacle's shell as a fortress. And from whom? Well, the Scalyheads seem to target them.

Also enjoy searching for:
- Two Parasol Feather-Duster Tubeworms (aptly named)
- A Lined Chiton
- A Keyhole Limpet

The sea star species here is a Blood Star.

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Enjoy! Remember what these searches are about - appreciation that THIS is the life off our coast in the dark and cold, layer upon layer of astoundingly adapted life.

I value your comments but please, as always, do NOT reveal the location of the fish so that others can enjoy the search too. I will post the answer on Monday.

Thank you!
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Pygmy Rock Crabs to 5.3 cm across the carapace (Glebocarcinus oregonensis).

Giant Acorn Barnacles are the world's largest barnacle species at up to 15 cm at the widest part (Balanus nubilus).

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Photo: February 12, 2022, near NE Vancouver Island, Territory of the Kwakwa̱ka̱’wakw ©Jackie HIldering, The Marine Detective

08/28/2026

Port McNeill's hairiest resident.
Using humour to hopefully also increase awareness to be alert for this Sea Otter near the marina and breakwater and to reduce disturbance.
Photos taken and post made in my role with the Marine Education & Research Society

08/27/2026

Stars!
It's difficult to express the depth of meaning and feeling of connecting with younger biologists and educators.

Yesterday, into the Ocean we went, sharing the joy of finding a Sunflower Star, rockfish, and so much more - my three colleagues with the Marine Education & Research Society who are the MERS Summer Team.

Yasmine, Sarah, and Hannah.
They are a force.
A force for the good that helps whales, sea stars, the ocean, and the generations of little humans that will follow them on this path of depth and meaning.

This filled my heart, Yas, Sarah, and Hannah.
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This is the first Sunflower Star I have documented at this site since 2022. It was the largest one these younger human stars have seen.
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Photos: August 26, 2026 near Port McNeill and the traditional Territories of the Kwakwa̱ka̱’wakw (the Kwak̕wala-speaking Peoples).

08/25/2026

Today: blue, upon blue, upon blue.
Glorious conditions for our Marine Education & Research Society Humpback fieldwork.
Have I mentioned recently how much I love this place and the depth of learning?
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Photo: August 24, 2026, Territory of the Kwakwa̱ka̱’wakw.

08/24/2026

Here's your Find the Fish answer, in which I accidentally did a terrible thing. I initially posted that there were three fish here, but then realized I had cropped the photo to make the search easier and inadvertently cropped out one of the fish! Sorry!
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Information provided with the challenged included:

"Here's your Find the Fish Friday, dear Community.
There are TWO fish to find [corrected]. They are Scalyhead Sculpins.

But also try to find at least three Three-Lined Nudibranchs and at least three Lined Chitons. The Lined Chitons are feeding on the species of coralline algae (the pink patches).

There is also a brachiopod here, also known as a "lampshell". These look like clams, but they are in a completely different phylum and have a stalk. It looks like they have a little tray or shelf between their two shells. You can't see the stalk of the brachiopod in this photo, but you can see the shelf-like structure between the two shells.
I promise I will soon do a post on brachiopods!

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Photo: March 14, 2026, Territory of the Kwakwa̱ka̱’wakw ©Jackie HIldering, The Marine Detective."

08/23/2026

Not a clam species!
Lampshell species also have two shells, but they are in a completely different phylum than clams (Brachiopoda vs. Mollusca). They have a stalk, and orient themselves upside down. Also, see that structure inside the shells? They have a lophophore with which they respire and pump water into their mouths to filter-feed.

Lampshells are ancient. They were on Earth 5 to 15 million years before the first clams. Lampshell fossils have been found that are 520 million years old. 🤯 They are one of the first organisms that evolved to have tissues harden with minerals. This is why there are so many fossils of them.

But they are not "living fossils" which would mean they have not evolved since their ancient ancestors. While they look the same, genetic research supports that they have evolved (Luo et al., 2015).
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The species in my photograph is a North Pacific Lampshell (aka Transverse Lampshell). Note the smiley face-like way the shells come together. It is the most common lampshell species in the northeast Pacific Ocean.
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From Marine Life of the Pacific Northwest (Hanby and Lamb):
"...Oddly, a lampshell often rotates upon its stalk, orienting itself “upside down” so that the ventral shell [lower] is uppermost... a brachiopod’s internal anatomy is based on a large filter-feeding organ called a lophophore. This structure, powered by the movement of cilia (hairs), rests on a delicate calcareous “tray” supported by the ventral shell."
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The inspiration for the name "Lampshell" is easy to see when you look at the shells at the end of the stalk. They look like a lamp.

But why "Brachiopod," which translates into arm foot?!
- Brachium - Latin for arm
- Pod - Greek for foot

Apparently "Brachiopod" was inspired by the two arm-like branches of the feeding structure (the lophophore) and its calcareous support structure.
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Another difference between species like clams and mussels and brachipods/lampshells is how the shells are oriented around the animal's body.

In clams and mussels, the two shells are on the left and right sides of its body. The two shells are bilaterally symmetrical. They are the same shape / mirror images.

left shell | ANIMAL | right shell

In brachiopods, the shells are above and below the animal. The two shells are NOT bilaterally symmetrical with one another. Rather, the two halves of a single shell are bilaterally symmetrical. Imagine drawing a line down the middle of one shell. You would get two matching halves.

dorsal shell
ANIMAL
ventral shell
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If your head hurts, I understand.
Most importantly, know and care that these astounding, ancient organisms are your neighbours.

If you want to see more photos and learn more, I have a blog about Lampshells at https://themarinedetective.com/2026/08/23/lampshells-not-a-clam/

08/22/2026

Raven calling. Human listening. Ocean beckoning.
The beauty of this yesterday when we were filming with Let's Talk Science. A Raven calling atop the U'mista Cultural Centre in Alert Bay/ 'Yalis. Below the Raven - the Thunderbird. Held in Thunderbird's talons - whale. All facing the sea.

Raven - g̱wa'wina
Thunderbird - kwa̱nkwa̱nxwa̱lige' said to be for the way it makes thunder (kʷənxʷa) lightweight (kʷəs) by pounding (ləka).

For the pronunciation in Kwak̓wala see https://www.firstvoices.com/kwakwala

Design by Doug Cranmer.
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Photos: August 20, 2026 in Na̱mg̱is Territory, ©Jackie Hildering, The Marine Detective

08/21/2026

Update August 21. I accidentally did a terrible thing! I cropped the photo so that there are only TWO Scalyhead Sculpins here, not three! I am so sorry for the frustration this may have caused some of you. I cropped the photo to make it easier but now the third fish is JUST out of frame.
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Here's your Find the Fish Friday, dear Community.
There are TWO fish to find. They are Scalyhead Sculpins.

But also try to find at least three Three-Lined Nudibranchs and at least three Lined Chitons. The Lined Chitons are feeding on the species of coralline algae (the pink patches).

There is also a brachiopod here, also known as a "lampshell". These look like clams, but they are in a completely different phylum and have a stalk. It looks like they have a little tray or shelf between their two shells. You can't see the stalk of the brachipod in this photo, but you can see the shelf-like structure between the two shells.

I promise I will soon do a post on brachiopods!

As always - ENJOY! Search. Absorb. Marvel. 💙
But please do not reveal the location of the fish so that others can enjoy the search too. I will post the answer on Monday.
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Photo: March 14, 2026, Territory of the Kwakwa̱ka̱’wakw ©Jackie HIldering, The Marine Detective.

08/19/2026

This is what I was doing last week.
Such a valuable, intense period of fieldwork.
Post made in my role with Marine Education & Research Society

We are back from 5 days of fieldwork on the Central Coast – Cape Caution to Burke Channel in Fitz Hugh Sound. Here’s our first update for you.

This work was planned for:
- Identification of individual Humpback Whales and their behaviour in the southern Fitz Hugh area, which has less survey coverage than other northern areas that are surveyed by colleagues.
- Our preliminary count for Humpbacks identified in Fitz Hugh Sound alone is 57 during this fieldwork. We will update this number when we have fully processed our data.

- Collection of Humpback environmental DNA (eDNA).

- Identification of individual Grey Whales, with there being great concern about their wellbeing and needing protection under the Species at Risk Act. We will report on the number and identities of individuals (if previously documented) once we have processed the data and share it with our Grey Whale research colleagues.

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We had already planned this fieldwork before the collision between a DFO vessel and a Humpback on August 9th in Fitz Hugh Sound, for which DFO reported that two people were injured.

We did not document any Humpbacks with new, visible, severe injuries. Know that vessel struck whales could have internal injuries or be dead at the bottom of the ocean. Because Humpbacks do not organize themselves in families (other than mother and first-year calf), it is often not possible to know that they are missing/dead.

Fitz Hugh Sound is an area with a high concentration of vessel traffic and Humpbacks with behaviours that make them particularly vulnerable to vessel strike.

The Humpbacks in this area:
• Feed at depth and can suddenly surface.
• Can be resting right below the surface.
• Are sometimes in large socializing groups in which their behaviour can be more unpredictable.
• And/or can be bubble net feeding along the shoreline.

Please take the online course at www.WhaleSafeBoating.org

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Great thanks to:
- The Haíɫzaqv and Wuikinuxv Nations.

- All who supported our “Float Our Boat” campaign in 2024 whereby we have our vessel Megaptera to significantly expand the reach of our work, and our safety.

- The Hakai Institute for all they made possible in supporting this fieldwork.
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All photos taken with a telephoto lens under Marine Mammal License MML-57.

08/18/2026

Among the stars.
Dive buddy Amanda with two Painted Stars, a Blood Star, and so much more, just below the surface. Representative of the life on our coast where the water is cold and there is a lot of current.
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Dive buddy: Amanda Zielinski during my spring dive trip to God's Pocket Resort.
Photo: April 6, 2026, Territory of the Kwakwa̱ka̱’wakw ©Jackie HIldering, The Marine Detective.