This page is a bare taste of what lives hidden, or half hidden, in Aquatic Park’s lagoons. More to come!
Small fish seem to rise, flash, and jump especially near the lagoons’ inflow pipes. Often, they don’t seem to be hunted by birds or fleeing larger fish. Are they newcomers? Trying to escape? Hunting even smaller prey? Breeding?
Topsmelt (a silverside, not a true smelt) is one common species. But there are more!
Mussels boost water quality, filtering out small particles as they feed. Look for their large, dark, somewhat rough shells clinging to rubble — they also live deeper than we can see. Local mussels, a welter of species and hybrids, are dubbed the “blue mussel complex.”
Tiny Asian date mussels also thrive in the lagoon, usually unseen. In dense algae they can float to the top, perhaps seeking oxygen. Their shells are somewhat smooth and shiny, with wavy patterns.
Many creatures are barely large enough to see (images are greatly magnified). Tiny snails (above) graze on algae and other plants. Shrimp-like amphipods (below) graze, scavenge, or hunt. Other animals in turn eat them.
Lugworms live solitary lives, hidden deep in tunnels. Males leave puddles of sperm on the mud (far left). Some washes to female burrows. Females’ protruding egg sacs (center) look like jellyfish — but tethered to the burrow.
Help learn more by making observations with the free citizen-science app iNaturalist.org!