Our people at the Richardson Bay Audubon Center & Sanctuary are serious about their invertebrates. While pulling in oyster bags for some of our restoration work, they came upon a nudibranch that they had not seen in the Bay before, and shared the news.

The spotted triopha (Triopha maculata) lives in rocky tidepools, the intertidal zone, and subtidal waters from Bodega Bay to Baja. It is most often seen during the summer months. Its normal length is about 2 inches although animals up to about 7 inches have been reported. This species has three very distinct color forms. Young individuals (12mm or less) are red with whitish spots. These are usually found in rocky tidepools. The most common form (15-40mm) is dark or reddish brown with bluish-white spots. (See picture) They feed on bryozoans. The largest form is yellowish brown with bluish-white spots. It is most often seen on coastal kelp and in estuaries and mud flats. It is commonly found on eelgrass (Zostera marina). They lay white coiled egg ribbons on eelgrass and kelp.