Market SquidLoligo opalescens
(1-4: San Carlos Beach, Monterey / 5-6: Monastery Beach, Carmel-by-the-Sea) The squid in the second picture is dead. Live ones zip around like the jet-propelled creatures they are, usually at night, and are very hard to photograph.
Market squid lay large egg masses on the sandy bottom:
(1,4: San Carlos Beach, Monterey / 2: Monterey State Beach, Monterey / 3: Whaler's Cove, Point Lobos)
Red OctopusOctopus rubescens
(1-2,5,7-10: San Carlos Beach, Monterey / 3-4,6: Monterey State Beach, Monterey) This one has caught a crab: (1: Monterey State Beach, Monterey)
Octopus can change color rapidly. At night, they tend to be light-colored. When illuminated in a dive light, they change color back to red. These two pictures are the same octopus, photographed just a few seconds apart:
(1-2: San Carlos Beach, Monterey)
Two-Spot OctopusOctopus bimaculatus
(1: Indian Rock, Santa Catalina Island / 2-3: Goat Harbor, Santa Catalina Island / 4: Hen Rock, Santa Catalina Island / 5: Sea Landing Cove, Santa Barbara Island / 6-8: Golf Ball Drop Off, Santa Cruz Island)
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