Robert Burn is both an amateur seashore naturalist and internationally respected authority on nudibranchs and related molluscs--an encouraging example showing that anyone with sufficient interest and enthusiasm can make a valuable contribution to scientific knowledge.
Our observations in 2014 and early 2015 of nudibranchs and other sea slugs in long-term intertidal study sites in southern and central California, combined with dive reports from southern California, and posts on various photo and observation-sharing websites, indicated that similar range shifts and increases in abundance of southern species of sea slugs were occurring again in California.
Home to a marine extravaganza as diverse and vibrant as it is unique, the Inner Islands boast an abundance of marine life including butterflyfish, angelfish, soldierfish and squirrelfish among others and reefs that feature octopus, spiny lobster and a plethora of nudibranchs.
Countless organisms--mollusks, crustaceans, worms, fish, starfish, jellyfish, sluglike nudibranchs, algae, anemones, urchins and many more--flourish within an environment enriched by oxygenated water and literally awash in food; each species is both predator and prey.
A giant stride from the dive centre, the house reef is teeming with macro life, including ghost pipefish, seahorses and psychedelic nudibranchs (sea slugs).