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Little Black Cormorant

Phalacrocorax sulcirostris

This small cormorant is a mostly uniform grey to black in colour, with a greenish or bronze sheen depending on season, although the margins of some feathers can be darker than the rest of the feather. In breeding season, adults may have scattered white feathers around the head and neck. Its bill is also dark in colour, and it has dark blue-green eyes. The Great Cormorant (Phalacrocorax carbo) has a similar appearance, but can be distinguished by its lighter bill with yellow colouration, particularly around the eyes.

Angas' Murex

Prototyphis angasi

This small snail is a pale and mostly uniform whitish to orange in colour, It has 3 ridges or varices on each whorl, which are tipped with large forward pointing hooks or wings, giving it a rather jagged appearance. This snail is distinctive, but can be mistaken for a small Pterochelus triformis on first inspection. However, P. angasi is usually much less heavily encrusted than that species, and although both species have thin but high varices, P. triformis does not have the terminal wings or hooks.

Acar squamosa

This ark shell is usually found firmly attached to the underside of rocks subtidally, often in groups. It is much wider than it is high, and is whitish to light brown in colour with no significant markings. However, it is heavily sculptured, with radial and concentric lines that intersect and provide a grid like appearance. This roughly sculptured shell helps to distinguish it from other similar species, particularly Barbatia pistachia, which also has a grid-like sculpture, but much finer.

Monk Creeper

Plesiotrochus monachus

Ranging from pale, to brown and orange, the shell of this tall spired snail has convex, angular whorls, which are almost triangular, with distinct undulations. The pattern can vary, from tan spiral lines along the length of the shell, to dashed spiral lines at irregular intervals, and even no markings at all. The strong angular whorls help to distinguish this species from the many similar snails found in SA.

Tassled Crab

Pilumnus fissifrons

Pilumnus fissifrons is a small tan to brown crab that is common in rocky areas. Its body and legs are covered in fine, stiff hairs, and it has three large but blunt spines on the carapace behind the eyes. It is virtually indistinguishable from other pilumnid crabs found in SA, except for the presence of several clumps of long, erect and club-shaped hairs (or setae) on the top of the carapace and between the eyes. These features actually make it one of the easier species to identify from this notoriously difficult genus.

Ulva taeniata

directions_boat Introduced species

This bright green "sea lettuce" is native to the US Pacific coast, but is now commonly found in SA, usually on rocky platforms in moderate to rough conditions. Compared to the better known Ulva lactuca, its thin blades are narrower, around 2-5 cm wide. The blades branch towards the base of the plant and are usually ruffled or twisted.

Burchard's Dog Whelk

Tritia burchardi

This snail can be found in estuaries and lagoons intertidally. It is relatively bulbous and is distinctly ribbed. On the body whorl, the ribbing fades and the dorsal surface is smooth and unsculptured. The shell is a light green to brown, with darker brown colouration between the ribs. This species is native to Australia, but has established in some areas of New Zealand.

Scintillula solida

This tiny bivalve is a brilliant white in colour and globular. It has a smooth and shiny appearance with a very fine concentric sculpture. It can be difficult to distinguish from other galeommatid bivalves, including Lasaea australis, but its lack of purple pigmentation and less obvious sculpture can differentiate it from that species.

Ascidiella aspersa

directions_boat Introduced species

This introduced solitary ascidian is native to Europe, but now spread globally due to shipping. Its test is a cloudy white or grey, flecked with red and covered in white papillae. The relatively short siphons are lobed and can have red stripes inside. This species resembles many others in the Ascidia genus, but in those species there are usually no papillae.

Diala suturalis

This tiny snail can often be found in very shallow tidepools, where it feeds on filamentous algae. It has a moderately tall spire, with slightly convex whorls. The pattern is somewhat variable, but consists of spiral brown bands of varying width, the lines sometimes broken. The aperture is thin and straight-edged, unbroken by a siphonal canal. This species is difficult to differentiate from other small snails and expert examination can be helpful.