iiinova — where your digital self keeps evolving

Nudibranch Nerd @nudibranchnerd.bsky.social · 15/08/2026

since it's been awhile since I was active, I don't think I posted my first enteromorpha-eating sapsucker found during a sea slug bioblitz for @calacademy.bsky.social back in may 🌿🌊🦑🐙🌎

080

Nudibranch Nerd @nudibranchnerd.bsky.social · 11/08/2026

for weeks, I've been watching the western gull chicks around town growing up on roof tops, dilapidated boats, & breakwater walls but it's fledging time & soon there will be no more cute chick calls to greet me in the morning 🌿🌊🪶

041

Nudibranch Nerd @nudibranchnerd.bsky.social · 07/08/2026

sorry I haven't been super active on this account in awhile, it's been a rough & busy 2026 for me but my friend Nick Ta of @reefrenders.bsky.social asked me to paint his 3D printed sunflower star & california sea hare models for an exhibit he designed & the models recently came home with me ❤️ 🌿🌊🐙🦑

my 3D printed and painted California sea hare model hanging on a picture frame with an image of a scuba diver taking a picture of a real California sea hare in the wild with a descriptive label on the frame

my model on it's frame surrounded by artwork and posters of sea slugs including one of California sea hare and their role as model organisms in neuroscience

050

Nudibranch Nerd @nudibranchnerd.bsky.social · 09/12/2025

it was wild moving to california & learning that many of the monarch butterflies migrate east to west, not north to south like they do east of the sierra nevadas this is a cluster of overwintering monarchs on a eucalyptus in pacific grove's monarch sanctuary (sorry it's backlit, early morning) 🌿🐛🦋

082

Nudibranch Nerd @nudibranchnerd.bsky.social · 07/12/2025

a little more tidepooling to find my favorite squishies 🌊🌿🐙🦑

a hilton's aeolid crawling on a rock in a tidepool

a yellow-lined cadlina nudibranch on the sandy bottom of a tidepool

an orange white-speckled sea goddess nudibranch crawling over a mussel in some sea grass

a sea lemon dorid exposed to the air on some red seaweed

0234

Nudibranch Nerd @nudibranchnerd.bsky.social · 06/12/2025

10/10 would recommend bringing a dark UV light nighttime tidepooling 🌿🐙🦑🦀

a fluorescing porcelain crab in a tidepool

a fluorescing flame-lined chiton in a tidepool

1398

Nudibranch Nerd @nudibranchnerd.bsky.social · 07/06/2025

oh no! landlocked! there are quite a few nudibranch species in the North Sea & Mediterranean, in fact, @inaturalist.bsky.social says there are hundreds of species around the European coastlines, so if you ever get a chance to tidepooling, snorkeling, or diving, you can probably find some!

a screenshot from the inaturalist app showing almost 60,000 observations of 595 species of nudibranchs around the European continent's coastlines

130

Nudibranch Nerd @nudibranchnerd.bsky.social · 04/06/2025

found some sexy yellow-spotted millipedes amongst the redwoods 🌿

040

Nudibranch Nerd @nudibranchnerd.bsky.social · 04/06/2025

it's been a minute but the spring was bustling with great tidepooling! I found my first Olive's & Hilton's aeolid nudibranchs 🌊🌿🐙🦑🌎

a pair of Hopkins' rose nudibranchs in a clear observation dish

a Hilton's aeolid nudibranch in a clear observation dish near a bright orange red sponge-eating dorid

a large white-speckled dorid next to a red sponge-eating dorid in a clear observation dish

a small Olive's aeolid nudibranch in a clear observation dish

1435

Nudibranch Nerd @nudibranchnerd.bsky.social · 18/04/2025

silly bee, that's not a real sunflower, it's my sunflower star model 🌊🐙🦑🌿🌎

a honey bee crawling on my painted model of a sunflower sea star

1556

Nudibranch Nerd @nudibranchnerd.bsky.social · 11/04/2025

I caught a pair of velella to show guests on our boat what they look like before they wash up & dry up on the beach, but I think the crew was even more obsessed because they even named them I released the velella back into the ocean at the end of the trip 🌊🐙🦑🌿🌎

top view of a pair of Velella velella in a clear bowl with sea water

a side view of the Velella velella in a clear bowl with sea water

1171

Nudibranch Nerd @nudibranchnerd.bsky.social · 30/03/2025

while I love the invertebrates I find in the wild, this is my invertebrate at home having one of his no bones days (which is every day for this 17 y/o senior) 🐱🐈

my orange tabby cat lay between my partner and I's legs with his body pointed in one direction, but one leg and his head bent in the opposite direction

092

Nudibranch Nerd @nudibranchnerd.bsky.social · 28/03/2025

the absolute gayest chiton, ancient greek fashion had nothing on these mollusks iykyk 🌊🐙🦑🌿🌎

a flame lined chiton, Tonicella lokii, in an aquarium exhibit

1312

Nudibranch Nerd @nudibranchnerd.bsky.social · 11/03/2025

had a fabulous time tidepooling recently! found some new lifer nudibranch species! 🌊🐙🦑🌿🌎

a red aldisa dorid nudibranch next to a mussel in a tidepool

a super tiny Cockerell's dorid nudibranch missing a rhinophore in a mussel shell with some sea snails in a tidepool

a bright yellow Doriopsilla dorid nudibranch in a tidepool

a tiny red sponge Doris nudibranch, Rostanga pulchra, in a tidepool

0220

Nudibranch Nerd @nudibranchnerd.bsky.social · 09/03/2025

echinodamn! look at these beauties! when I first lived in Monterey, it was 2015 & I had to watch sea star wasting syndrome wipe out our local ochre stars as well as other species of sea stars, but the ochre stars have slowly been recovering in Monterey from the devastation 🌊🐙🦑🌿🌎📷

a bright orange ochre star on a bed of mussels attached to a rock

a pair of ochre stars, one light red, the other a darker red, on rocks covered in kelp

a thick red ochre star on a bed of mussels, probably having a delicious meal

a trio of ochre stars together on a rock coated in mussels, one red, one orange, and one purple

0527

Nudibranch Nerd @nudibranchnerd.bsky.social · 03/03/2025

friends: staring at the different rockfish an the exhibit at @montereyaq.bsky.social me: staring at the nudibranchs on the sponges in the same exhibit 🌊🐙🦑🌿🌎

a tiny san diego dorid nudibranch on a white sponge in an aquarium exhibit

0151

Nudibranch Nerd @nudibranchnerd.bsky.social · 02/03/2025

hello sweet little chonk 💛 I wonder if the feeding barnacles tickle their foot, assuming nudibranchs are ticklish 🌊🐙🦑🌿🌎

0234

Nudibranch Nerd @nudibranchnerd.bsky.social · 16/02/2025

mid-February means it is time for the western monarch migration! it's been a rough year as the population overwintering in California has been devastatingly low, but they are capable of rebounding if the next generations have a better summer this year 🤞 🦋🐙🌿🌎📷📸 #wildlife #wildlifephotography

a small cluster of a couple dozen western monarch butterflies in a cypress tree with lace lichen draping from the branches

0121

Nudibranch Nerd @nudibranchnerd.bsky.social · 07/02/2025

I love this shop I found on etsy called Sunshine & Sea, they make the cutest nudibranch-themed items! I bought some sea lemon earrings & a necklace from them awhile back & now I have this gorgeous dirona magnet featuring the most adorable barnacles! 🌊🐙🦑🌿

a mini sculpture of a frosted dirona nudibranch on a rock with a cluster of four barnacles with their little feeding feet

0194

Nudibranch Nerd @nudibranchnerd.bsky.social · 03/02/2025

here's one of the releases, I hold the bowl up to some kelp growing from the docks, wait for one of the nudibranchs to grab on, gently pull the bowl away, & with them luck! 🌊🐙🦑🌿🌎

2162

Nudibranch Nerd @nudibranchnerd.bsky.social · 03/02/2025

I posted this on my other account, but obviously it needs to be here: opalescent party! a friend was cleaning the underside of his neglected skiff & he lets me relocate invertebrates 🧡 🌊🐙🦑🌿🌎

1322

Nudibranch Nerd @nudibranchnerd.bsky.social · 13/01/2025

look at this pair of cuties 🤍 when epiphytes & hydrozoans coat the kelp, it can be tricky finding dendronotid nudibranchs that are normally tiny & cryptic, but these were some large chonks! 🌊🐌🐙🦑🌿🌎

1241

Nudibranch Nerd @nudibranchnerd.bsky.social · 11/01/2025

it's been awhile since I've hopped on this account, but I wanted to share that one of my favorite swimming predatory slugs is back on exhibit at the @montereyaq.bsky.social 💙 I always love seeing the sea angels, they are truly vicious little predators, well adapted to pelagic life 🌊🐌🐙🦑🌿🌎

611827

Nudibranch Nerd @nudibranchnerd.bsky.social · 25/09/2024

hello tiny slimy friend 🧡 I enjoy the challenge of finding super small nudibranchs while dockfouling 🌊🐙🦑🌿

1121

Nudibranch Nerd @nudibranchnerd.bsky.social · 24/09/2024

it's freaking bats, I love Halloween 🦇 🎃

a fruit tart with a white chocolate bat candy on top

030

Nudibranch Nerd @nudibranchnerd.bsky.social · 23/09/2024

when your favorite local bakery makes spider loaves for Halloween season 🍞 🕷️ 🎃

a bakery display with spider shaped bread loaves stacked on a black tray

150

Nudibranch Nerd @nudibranchnerd.bsky.social · 20/09/2024

a snail veliger, very wiggle, very plankton 🌊🐌🐙🦑🌿

0170

Nudibranch Nerd @nudibranchnerd.bsky.social · 19/09/2024

scaled worm snail nomming 🌊🐌🐙🦑🌿

081

Nudibranch Nerd @nudibranchnerd.bsky.social · 17/09/2024

there's been a strong shift from classically orange cerata to brown cerata in the opalescents I've been seeing on the docks this summer, which I find fascinating & wonder if it's genetic? environmental? dietary? a combination of factors? 🌊🐙🦑🌿🌎

0193

Nudibranch Nerd @nudibranchnerd.bsky.social · 16/09/2024

🎵 peanut worm, peanut worm, eats like a sea cucumber🎶 but peanut worm, peanut worm, you're not a sea cucumber 🎵 you're an annelid! 🎶 *sung to whatever Legend of Zelda tune is stuck in my head* 🌊🐙🦑🌿🌎

060

Nudibranch Nerd @nudibranchnerd.bsky.social · 16/09/2024

probably my favorite thing about @montereyaq.bsky.social is in many of the native habitat exhibits, if you look long enough, you will find a microcosm of life fills every exhibit beyond what the signs describe like this tiny white sea cucumber in a "sculpin" exhibit

a tiny white sea cucumber, Eupentacta quinquesemita, on a piece of red kelp in an aquarium exhibit

120

Nudibranch Nerd @nudibranchnerd.bsky.social · 13/09/2024

slug cuddles! (they're definitely gonna do it) 🌊🐙🦑🌿

a pair of noble dorid nudibranchs, "face-to-face" in an aquarium exhibit

0122

Nudibranch Nerd @nudibranchnerd.bsky.social · 08/09/2024

just got back from a Reef Renders hosted event & won 2 raffled nudibranch plant holders then bought a 3rd one (the sea lemon) for $20 & they have holes on the underside that allow them to be hung on a wall! 🌊🐙🦑

a purple dorid shaped plant holder with a succulent, a white sheep nudibranch shaped plant holder with a succulent, and a yellow dorid plant holder that is empty

1202

Nudibranch Nerd @nudibranchnerd.bsky.social · 08/09/2024

Reef Renders makes the most incredible models including these 7 California nudibranchs! 🌊🐙🦑🌿

a photo featuring 7 models of nudibranchs: Hopkin's rose nudibranch, California blue dorid, Clown dorid, Spanish shawl nudibranch, Opalescent nudibranch, Monterey sea lemon dorid, and a Branched dendronotus nudibranch

25510

Nudibranch Nerd @nudibranchnerd.bsky.social · 06/09/2024

everyone say hi to my new super tiny friend!

a super tiny spotted dorid on a giant kelp stipe

1152

Nudibranch Nerd @nudibranchnerd.bsky.social · 05/09/2024

after what happened at no mercy, I had to check on little Joe this weekend, but this little star still believes in their star daddy, Joe Hendry, despite Ethan Page's low blow

a small saltwater bin with a label that says "Joe Hendry" with a small, juvenile sunflower sea star in it

a close up of the same sea star as they are eating a sea urchin

000

Nudibranch Nerd @nudibranchnerd.bsky.social · 03/09/2024

I bet that pipefish didn't expect to be in a rodeo as this dirona nudibranch tried to wrangle them 🌊🐙🦑🌿🌎

an orange colorful dirona in a sea grass exhibit with pipefish

the dirona crawling onto the tail of a hapless pipefish

the dirona riding away on their new pipefish steed

071

Nudibranch Nerd @nudibranchnerd.bsky.social · 02/09/2024

🎵lovely nudi friend, lovely nudi friend🎵 🌊🐙🦑🌿🌎

an opalescent nudibranch (aka sea slug) on a dock rope overgrown with algae and other invertebrates

0213

Nudibranch Nerd @nudibranchnerd.bsky.social · 05/05/2024

just a sea cucumber out here, flashing me with their anus after having a nice poop beach bum life 🌊🥒🐙🦑🌿🌎📷

an orange california sea cucumber on a sandy seafloor, surrounded by various seaweeds and a pile of its own poop

same image of a california sea cucumber with the anus and poop circled in red

0171

Nudibranch Nerd @nudibranchnerd.bsky.social · 30/04/2024

this handsome nudi wasn't clowning around 🌊🐙🦑🌿🌎

a sea clown droid nudibranch in an aquarium exhibit among kelp, brittle stars, and sea anemones

0111

Nudibranch Nerd @nudibranchnerd.bsky.social · 24/04/2024

what's up #invertefest from sunflower star lab! 🌊🌿🌎

super tiny settled sunflower sea stars in a dish for growing

052

Nudibranch Nerd @nudibranchnerd.bsky.social · 22/04/2024

hello little albino redwood! & happy earth day! 🌿📷🌎

a completely white albino redwood next to another regular redwood that the albino redwood has likely grafted its roots with so it can absorb resources from this other redwood since it can't photosynthesize

081

Nudibranch Nerd @nudibranchnerd.bsky.social · 15/04/2024

it is the season of the Spanish shawl nudibranch, found 18 on the marina & 14 on the wharf 🌊🐌🐙🦑🌿🌎

a Spanish shawl nudibranch, Flabellinopsis iodinea, which is a brightly colored sea slug with a purple body, red rhinophores, and orange cerata

0338

Nudibranch Nerd @nudibranchnerd.bsky.social · 13/04/2024

albatrosses are one of my favorite birds to see out on the water! each year, they travel thousands of miles between california's coast & the northern islands of hawai'i where they have their nests, working hard to feed their growing chicks 🌊🦑🪶🌿📷

a black-footed albatross taking off from the water with another black-footed albatross resting on the water behind them

0152

Nudibranch Nerd @nudibranchnerd.bsky.social · 13/04/2024

Booth the Goose, just doing sea goose things (they're named after this beach, Booths Cannery Beach, where they often hangout) 🌊🪶🌿

062

Nudibranch Nerd @nudibranchnerd.bsky.social · 08/04/2024

🎶velella🎶velella🎶 it is truly spring time in Monterey Bay when we are swarmed by these drifting blue beauties 🌊🪼🐙🦑🌿🌎

dozens of drifting hydrozoan jellies known as by-the-wind sailors, or their scientific name Velella velella, swarming around dock pilings

hundreds of drifting hydrozoan jellies known as by-the-wind sailors, or their scientific name Velella velella, under our docks

1166

Nudibranch Nerd @nudibranchnerd.bsky.social · 04/04/2024

found a squishy friend while sleeping some lettuce & the person with me freaked out like sorry, y'all wanted organic lettuce, this is what you get with organic lettuce, now excuse me while I prepare this friend for the terrarium 🐌🌿

a tiny brown slug, just living their best life

062

Nudibranch Nerd @nudibranchnerd.bsky.social · 02/04/2024

snapped a quick picture this morning & I feel for the pelagia jellies this larva keeps trying to ride because they are too small to support this tiny monster 🌊🦀🦑🐙🌿

a giant slipper lobster larva, phyllosoma, that is too big to ride the pelagia jellyfish in our deep sea exhibit

071