(Cabrillo Coastal Area – NPS Photo/Carmen A.) As we prepare to start our tidepool season, here are a few photos from the past few months. You will find some photos of baby gulls that VIP Ben took with his spotting scope. You will see some images that VIP Rick captured (actually his brother), of the Glowing Fireworms at Mission Bay on a tour that VIP … Continue reading What’s in the Tidepools? – Summer 2026
Thanks to VIP Beth G., we now have online newsletters from Cabrillo from the mid 90’s and early 2000’s. Beth, has kept a hard copy of the newsletters that Cabrillo National Monument and the Cabrillo National Monument Foundation published for staff and volunteers. These have now been scanned and you can enjoy learning about Cabrillo’s recent history (last 30 years), on the VIPVoice. You can … Continue reading Step Back in Time
Effects from El Niño are starting to feel like events from Jumanji. With the strongest El Niño on record, southern California is starting to have some unusual observations. Kelvin Waves You may not have heard about Kelvin waves, but the thing to know is they will be bringing higher surf and possibly raising sea level by 6-12 inches. These waves and other effects from El … Continue reading Kelvin Waves, Sea Turtles and Snakes, Oh My!
Perhaps one day soon we can monitor the cliffs at Cabrillo… From kpbs.org – July 10, 2026 Ground sensors can help predict the collapse of cliffs along San Diego’s coast according to research conducted over four years by Scripps Institution of Oceanography scientists. In a study published Thursday, researchers detailed how they used advanced sensors to track and predict coastal cliff erosion at three North County San … Continue reading How researchers are using ground sensors to predict cliff collapse
https://www.theguardian.com/us-news/2026/jul/01/el-nino-birds-california Many seabirds are starving to death as a marine heat wave lingers off California and fish seek deeper, cooler waters. Within minutes of walking on a San Diego beach, marine ornithologist Tammy Russell found the feathered carcasses – one after another. Some were mixed in with washed up kelp. Others were under rocks. Each month, scientists and volunteers conduct surveys of dead seabirds and … Continue reading Scientists fear seabird die-off as El Niño looms: ‘We don’t know how bad this will get’
(Hopkins Rose Nudibranch – NPS Photo/Amy O.) This is a special post about the recent cleanup in the tidepools during June. This was the 1st annual Pauline Geisler Memorial Tidepool Cleanup honoring our friend who suddenly passed away in March. Volunteers, Staff members and friends showed up to participate and we are thankful to everyone. We honored Pauline in the best way possible by protecting … Continue reading What’s in the Tidepools? – Cleanup Edition June 2026
