THE BIG FAT MONSTER WHO LIVED UNDER THE SEA

This week's journal page finds Mrs. Trowbridge in the middle of her most terrifying undersea encounter ever. This was definitely her last foray into the undersea world.

The slug that Mrs. T painted above is a banana slug (Ariolmax columbianus), a common sight in the rain forest. They come in a variety of decorator colors, ranging from yellow with black spots (hence the name), to solid greenish, olive brown, and even white.
You might think that Mrs. T embellished the undersea terrain just a bit with her bright colors. Actually, her depiction of marine life in Northwest waters is very accurate. As a skin diver, I have explored the colorful reefs of Puget Sound many times. Much of the color in Northwestern underseascapes comes from multi-hued lichen (pronouned "liken") that grows in abundance on the rocks.

The flower-like Sea Anemones are also frequently seen in Washington waters...they add another splash of color to the reef. I have found the white anemones (Metridium giganteum) to be the most common. Did you know that the word "anemone" is one of the top ten most beautiful words in the English language?
Mrs. Trowbridge's "monster" is actually a Wolf eel. They are certainly one of nature's most grotesque looking creatures, easily recognizable by their hideous appearance, and blubbery jowls. In my more "trigger happy" days I speared a wolf eel on a reef in the Straits of Juan de Fuca. He measured in at a whopping six feet! My amazing trophy fish landed me on the cover of the Port Angeles Evening News. Today I would shoot the eel with a camera, not a spear.

Sea slug is the nickname for the beautiful Nudibranch (Dirona albolineata). The Nudibranch that towed Mrs. T is one of a number of species that are found in Puget Sound and Washington coast waters. Their iridescent golden plumes are actually gills.

The little innocent bystander hiding behind the reef is a red rock crab (Cancer productus). They are identified by their dark red spots. A few seconds later, he turned around and discovered what was lurking behind him. Before you could say "crab louie", he beat it for the nearest hole.