Maryport Aquarium
Wildlife of The Solway Firth [96] – The Beadlet Anemone
Wildlife of The Solway Firth [96] The Beadlet Anemone (Actinia equina) by Mark Vollers, The Lake District Coast Aquarium, Maryport This has to be one of the hardiest of our native anemones, up to 5 cm in diameter and generally bright red, sometimes brown or green and with numerous tentacles. Many also have bright blue […]
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Wildlife of The Solway Firth [95] The Breadcrumb Sponge
Wildlife of The Solway Firth [95] The Breadcrumb Sponge Halichondria Panicea by Mark Vollers The Solway Firth has remarkable biodiversity and this includes numerous species of invertebrates we call sponges. One of these is the Breadcrumb Sponge which colonises rocky surfaces from extreme low water mark down to 550m and may be found throughout the […]
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Wildlife of The Solway Firth [94] The Plumose Anemone
Wildlife of The Solway Firth [94] The Plumose Anemone Metridium Senile by Mark Vollers This anemone is quite rightly often described as being one of the most beautiful of all native anemones, found on rocky coasts around the UK and Ireland, Western Europe and North America from low tide mark down to at least 100 […]
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Wildlife of The Solway Firth [93] The Butterfish (Pholis gunnellus)
Wildlife of The Solway Firth [93] The Butterfish (Pholis gunnellus) by Mark Vollers This small fish (rarely above 20cm) is found on rocky ground from low tide level down to 40m all around the British coast and much of the North Atlantic. Why the name? Quite possibly because it is extremely slippery should you attempt […]
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Wildlife of The Solway Firth [92] – The Blue Rayed Limpet
Wildlife of The Solway Firth [92] – The Blue Rayed Limpet Patella pellucida by Mark Vollers These small molluscs are rarely seen because they make their home almost exclusively on Kelp, the large brown seaweed which is found on rocky reefs below the low tide mark all around the British coastline. They reach a maximum […]
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Wildlife of The Solway Firth [91] The Estuary Ragworm
Wildlife of The Solway Firth [91] The Estuary Ragworm (Hediste diversicolor) by Mark Vollers Worldwide there are hundreds of species of marine segmented worms and classifying them all is still an ongoing debate! The estuary ragworm most sea anglers are familiar with is certainly present in The Solway Firth and other estuaries around the UK, […]
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Wildlife of The Solway Firth [90] The Sea Vase, by Mark Vollers, Lake District Coast Aquarium
Wildlife of The Solway Firth [90] The Sea Vase (Ciona intestinalis) by Mark Vollers, Lake District Coast Aquarium These beautiful animals are one of a group known as sea squirts, so named because if moved out of their element they will often spurt out a stream of water! They are widespread around the British […]
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Wildlife of The Solway Firth [88] The Lugworm
Wildlife of The Solway Firth [88] The Lugworm (Arenicola marina) by Mark Vollers, Lake District Coast Aquarium Everyone who enjoys a stroll across a sandy Solway Firth beach when the tide has retreated will have observed the little squiggly pyramids of sand which indicate the presence of a lugworm in it’s burrow beneath. This worm […]
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Wildlife of the Solway Firth [85] The Common Mussel
Wildlife of The Solway Firth The Common Mussel Mytilus edulis by Mark Vollers This distinctive blue bivalve shellfish is native to the North Atlantic and can be found all around the UK on intertidal areas that allow settlement and the Solway Firth is no exception. Where there is not too much exposure to wave action, […]
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Wildlife of The Solway Firth #83: The Broad Nosed Pipefish
Wildlife of The Solway Firth #83: The Broad Nosed Pipefish (Syngnathus typhle) by Mark Vollers There are several species of pipefish native to Britain, this one is less commonly found but is widespread from Scandinavia down to the Mediterranean in sheltered estuaries, particularly if there are beds of Sea Grass present as are found on […]
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