Megumi Itoh
Social Media Coordinator / Instructor / Illustrator
Location: Temple City, CA
Hometown: Temple City, CA
I got certified in summer of 2008. I started taking pictures underwater to help me remember what I saw on my dives so I can write them down in my dive log. Since then, I've upgraded my camera from a small point and shoot camera to a mirrorless camera with interchangeable lens. Some people want to see the big things like sharks and sea turtles. I delight in looking for small creatures underwater, especially nudibranchs. There are so much colors under the sea!
Trip Report - 3/8/20 Santa Cruz Island
March 16, 2020
Mating pair of Spanish shawls
Spanish shawl laying eggs
A live coffee bean cowrie
Cute and tiny McDonald's dorid
Always bright (and also tiny) Porter's chromodorid
The day started bright (well, it was still dark, but anyways) and early. The sun was just coming up when we left Ventura Harbor aboard the Peace Dive Boat. The crossing was calm, and we could tell we were in for a great day of diving at Santa Cruz Island.
Our first dive was at Scorpion Wall at the north east area of the island. Then we moved to Pink Ribbon Boilers for the second dive. After lunch, we wrapped up our dive day with a dive at Scorpion Rock.
Since I am the resident sea slug geek, I must talk about the nudibranchs (sea slugs) I saw on my dives. At all three sites, there were many Spanish shawls (Flabellinopsis iodinea). They are hard to miss with their vibrant purple body and bright orange cerata (rows of spiky appendages along the back). On all three dives, there were many mating pairs and also many individuals laying eggs on stalks of hydroids (it’s their favorite food). Another notable thing was that there were many large specimens. Usually they are around 2 to 3 inches, but there were several that were at least 4 inches. Just to wrap up on my sea slug report, I also saw a tiny McDoanld’s dorid (Limacia mcdonaldi) and a tiny Porter’s chromodorid (Felimare porterae).
One creature I must mention on this report is coffee bean cowrie or California trivia (Pseudopusula californiana). My dive buddy, Haruka, found a live one at Scorpion Rock. These marine snail are tiny and very well camouflaged so it’s not an easy thing to spot. It is nice to dive with our resident expert on marine life identification!
We saw many other marine life. There were the usual suspects: garibaldi, California sheephead, kelp bass, blacksmiths, and señoritas. we also spotted several young horn sharks and a few giant spined sea stars.
This was another successful OSDT dive trip on the Peace Dive Boat.
