Yaquina Head

Yaquina Head ONA https://www.blm.gov/visit/yaquina-head-outstanding-natural-area Yaquina Head is a narrow, coastal headland extending one mile into the Pacific Ocean. Formed by ancient lava flows, Yaquina Head’s hard basalt cliffs and coves have endured the pounding ocean surf for 14 million years. Abundant wildlife such as whales, harbor seals and seabirds can be viewed from the many breath taking vantage points around the 100-acre site. Explore tidepools, listen to nature's music and see Oregon's tallest lighthouse - all at Yaquina Head.

WILD ROGUE Welcome to Yaquina Head Outstanding Natural Area Tidepool life, nature’s music and Oregon’s tallest lighthouse can all be enjoyed at Yaquina Head. The 100-acre site also includes an interpretive center, wildlife viewing, short trails and incredible views. Know before you go hours: Yaquina Head is open year-round; times vary by season. lighthouse: Open only for ranger-led tours as staffing and weather permit. fees: Passenger vehicles $7; buses $25/$50 depending on capacity. “National Park and Federal Recreation Lands” and “Oregon Pacific Coast” passes are accepted and available. interpretive center: Open 10 a.m. – 4 p.m. Tidepools at Cobble Beach: View sea stars, anemones, urchins and more! Be sure to check a local tide table for the best time to view tidepool creatures. directions 3.5 miles north of Newport, off Hwy 101 on the central Oregon Coast. Keep Yaquina Head Safe and Scenic Cliffs and unstable areas abound. Walk on maintained paths and remain behind fences and other barriers. Waves and surf are unpredictable. Always keep an eye on the surf; keep small children within arm’s reach. Seals live here; stay 50 yards away and use soft voices. Keep pets on a 6-foot leash and clean up waste. Pets are not permitted near lighthouse, in buildings or in tidepool area. Leave rocks, shells, flowers, sea life and other natural objects in place. Kites, model airplanes and drones are not permitted. Contact info point of interest 750 NW Lighthouse Drive Newport, Oregon 97365 541-574-3100 blm_or_no_yhona_comments@blm.gov Peregrine falcons and thousands of seabirds raise young at Yaquina Head. Chicks are often visible from late spring through mid-summer. Whales may be seen year-round. Bring binoculars for best viewing. 

Brown text indicates animal. Green text indicates plant. 18. Feather Boa Kelp 10. Black Leather Chiton 17. Purple Sea Urchin 9. Hermit Crab 8. Rough Keyhole Limpet 5. Rockweed 7. Ochre Sea Star 4. Black Turban Snail 2. Ribbed Limpet 6. California Mussel 3. Purple Shore Crab 1. Acorn Barnacle Mid-Tide zone High Tide zone spray zone 13. Giant Green Anemone 25. Black Oystercatcher 16. Blue Top Snail 12. Surfgrass 21. Sea Palms 15. Red Sea Cucumber 11. Gooseneck Barnacles 24. Western Gull 20. Sunflower Sea Star 14. Giant Pacific Chiton 23. Pigeon Guillemot 19. Nudibranch (Sea Slug) 22. Peregrine Falcon Low Tide zone Birds 15 20 19 sub-tide zone 17 21 13 16 8 18 14 Low tide zone 9 10 11 12 Mid-Tide Zone 7 23 5 4 3 6 higH tide zone 2 1 spray zone 24 22 25 Tidepool animals can withstand the force of large waves, but are easily damaged by human visitors. Please: • Walk carefully—watch where you step. • Touch animals gently. Don’t pull or pry them from the rocks. This can kill them. • Don’t move animals from one place to another. Each one is specialized to live in a certain location and may not survive in another place. • If you move rocks or plants to see animals, replace them to protect the animals. Avoid moving large rocks, and replace small rocks carefully. Carelessness can destroy animals both atop and beneath these rocks. • Check before you collect. Tidepool animals are protected by Oregon Department of Fish and Wildlife sport fishing regulations. Check the regulations to find open areas and catch limits. • Best idea: take only pictures and leave the wildlife for others to enjoy. Tidepools are divided into several zones. Animals such as acorn barnacles can exist out of the water for long periods and are found in the spray zone. Other animals like purple sea urchins prefer to be covered by water and are found in the low tide zone. Start your exploration in the low tide zone and work up the beach toward the spray zone. This plan will help you avoid being stranded by the incoming tide. Welcome to Our Home The Tidepools are ALIVE! Oregon’s 362-mile coastline is a place of wonder and fascination. At first glance, it is a series of sandy beaches. A closer look reveals a mixture of sand and rocky headlands. If you take time to explore, you will find the coastline home to a rich mix of extraordinary animals revealed by retreating tides. Tidepools attract thousands of visitors each year. But too many visitors can damage these areas. Tidepool animals can be trampled by a careless step. If you remove them from their homes, they will be exposed to predators and the hot sun. We must treat tidepools gently if they are to remain alive for others to enjoy. Harbor seals rest on the rocks. Tips for Visiting a Rocky Intertidal Area Oregon’s Rocky Intertidal Areas • Travel slowly and carefully. Many animals hide under marine plants such as seaweed to avoid the hot sun and predators. Also, rocks and marine algae can be slippery. • Always stay on marked trails. Many tidepools are located near unstable headlands and bluffs. • Always keep one eye on the ocean. If a big wave heads your way, pretend you’re a sea star. Lie flat on the rocks and hold on tight. Exploring a tidepool places you near the waves. Tidepools are ALIVE! • Expect to get wet. Wear appropriate clothing. If you get soaked, dry off soon. Hypothermia sets in quickly. • Never pull or pry an animal from a rock. Animals in the tidepools stick to rocks because of the waves and strong currents that wash against them. • Consider the challenges each organism faces. Please return any animal you pick up to the exact spot you found it. • Look at and in and under and around to discover hidden gems. After looking at animals under rocks and seaweed, re-cover them to prevent drying by the air and sun. • Bring your binoculars – harbor seal pups often use rocks and beach areas as resting places while their mothers feed offshore. Seabirds also use rocks for nesting and rearing their young. Please enjoy these animals from at least a 50-foot distance. • Tides of 0.0 feet and lower are best for visiting tidepools, but tides up to two feet high can still provide good viewing when the ocean is calm. • Visit the tidepools at least one hour before low tide. Walk to the tidepools closest to the ocean and work your way back with the incoming tide. Get a tide table at state parks or local businesses. • Know the rules before you go. Oregon Department of Fish and Wildlife regulations protect tidepool animals. Check the Oregon Sport Fishing Regulations (free at most stores selling sporting goods) for rules about collecting animals. Please leave plants and animals just as you found them. State parks are nature preserves, where all living things are protected for others to enjoy. www.oregonstateparks.org http://oregontidepools.org Printed on recycled paper All information or fees subject to change without notice. This brochure is available i

Sea Lions and Seals in Oregon C hances are, if you’ve spent much time at the Oregon coast, you’ve spotted a sea lion or a seal. Sea lions found on the Oregon coast include the California and the Steller sea lions; the seals you may have seen are most likely harbor seals, although elephant seals are also seasonally present. California Sea Lions (Zalophus californianus) California sea lions are found from Vancouver Island, California sea lion British Columbia, to the southern tip of Baja Califorat Newport’s bay front. The current population along nia in Mexico. They are known for their intelligence, the Pacific coast is approximately 200,000. playfulness, and noisy barking. Their color ranges from Sea lions occasionally get a bacterial infection called chocolate brown in males to a lighter, golden brown in leptospirosis, which affects their kidneys, causing them females. Males may reach 1,000 pounds and seven feet to seek fresh water and come ashore in unusual areas in length; females, which are rarely found in Oregon, as they rest to recover. In 1998 and again in 2000, grow to 220 pounds and up to six feet in length. They large numbers of sea lions were treated for domoic acid have a dog-like face, and at around five years of age, poisoning, a condition caused by harmful algal blooms, males develop a pronounced forehead, a bony bump which causes the animals to have seizures. Other probon top of their skull called a sagittal crest. The top of a lems for California sea lions involve humans. Sea lions male’s head often gets lighter in color with age. These have been found illegally shot and also caught in drift members of the otariid or walking seal family have external ear flaps and large flippers that they use to “walk” or gill nets and other marine debris. on land. The trained “seals” in zoos and aquariums are usually California sea lions. California sea lions are very social animals, and groups often rest closely packed together at favored Steller, or Northern, sea lions are sometimes conhaul-out sites on land or float together on the ocean’s fused with California sea lions but are much larger and surface in “rafts.” They are sometimes seen porpoising, lighter in color. Males may grow to 11 feet in length or jumping out of the water, presumably to speed up their swimming. Sea lions have also been seen “surfing” and weigh almost 2,500 pounds. Females are much smaller, growing to 9 feet in length and weighing up to breaking waves. California sea lions eat squid, octopus, 1,000 pounds. Steller sea lions are light tan to reddish a variety of schooling fish, rockfish, and an occasional brown in color. They have a blunt face and a boxy, salmon. In turn, sea lions are preyed upon by orcas bear-like head. Adult males do not have a visible sagit(killer whales) and great white sharks. tal crest (the bump on the top of their heads) like that California sea lion pups are born south of Oregon of adult male California sea lions. Male Stellers have a on offshore islands in June or July and weigh 13–20 bulky build and a very thick neck that resembles a lion’s pounds. They nurse for at least five to six months and mane, hence the name “sea lion.” up to a year. Mothers recognize pups on crowded rookStellers, named for German naturalist George Wileries through smell, sight, and vocalizations. Breeding helm Steller, are found throughout the north Pacific takes place a few weeks after birth. Males patrol terRim from Japan to central California. Unlike California ritories and often bark during the breeding season to sea lions, Stellers are not often seen in bays or rivers. maintain territories. Steller pups are born on The California sea lion offshore islands from midpopulation has grown during Marine mammals are protected by federal May to mid-July and weigh the 20th century, and the law. It is illegal for unauthorized persons 35–50 pounds. Mothers stay animals can be seen in many to disturb, handle, or feed them. with pups for one to two coastal spots such as the docks Steller, or Northern, Sea Lions (Eumetopias jubatus) Continued weeks before hunting at sea. Then they spend roughly equal amounts of time hunting and nursing pups on land. Pups usually nurse for a year, but some in Alaska continue to nurse for up to three years. Mating occurs 10–14 days after the pups are born. Dominant mature males maintain territories for one to two months and mate with many females. During the breeding season, males do not leave their territories, so they cannot eat. Steller sea lions eat a variety of fishes and invertebrates. Known predators are killer whales (orcas), white sharks, and walrus. The current population of Steller sea lions is about 40,000 along the entire Pacific coast, with about 2,000 in Oregon. There is great concern about this species. The western Aleutian stock has dropped by 80 percent in the last 30 years. In 1997, the western stock in Alaska was listed as endangered and the eastern stock of the continental United

recovered sufficiently to be removed from the Endangered Species List in 1994. At that time, the population was estimated at 23,000, which is thought to be close to the prewhaling population. A quota of 176 whales a year is harvested along the Siberian coast. That number was determined by the average number that had been taken throughout the last 20 years of the recovery period, during which the population continued to grow. Gray whales are protected under the Marine Mammal Protection Act by National Marine Fisheries Service guidelines that require boaters not to approach within 100 yards of the animals. Inappropriate tourism can be a harassment that affects the animal’s use of important habitats. Industrial development in some of the breeding, calving, and migration areas may be the greatest threat to the gray whales’ future. The only natural predators of gray whales are killer whales and large sharks. Killer whales tend to show up along the Oregon coast during late April and May and may target females and calves migrating north. Gray Whales Gray Whales (Eschrichtius robustus) T he gray whale is the most common large whale seen from shore along the west coast of North America. Gray whales are found off the Oregon coast all year. They feed in shallow water near shore during the summer and fall, migrate south for breeding and calving during the winter, and migrate north in the spring. The gray whale gets its name from its blotchy color pattern. Some of this pattern is present at birth, but most of it is caused by barnacles growing in the skin or by depigmented areas where barnacles have been. Gray whales reach 45 feet (14 meters) in length and weigh 35 tons (31.5 metric tons). For comparison, a cross-country bus is 40 feet (12 meters) long. Adult females on average are larger than males. Whales are mammals. They are warm blooded, breathe air, have hair (single hairs around the front of the head that are visible on calves), and give birth to live young that suckle on milk from their mothers. Feeding M This publication was funded in part by the National Sea Grant College Program of the U.S. Department of Commerceʼs National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration, under NOAA grant number NA76RG0476 (project number A/ESG-4), and by appropriations made by the Oregon State legislature. Additional funding is from the Oregon Parks and Recreation Department, through its volunteer program, Whale Watching Spoken Here®. For information about the program, phone (541) 765-3304 or see http://whalespoken.org. Oregon State Universityʼs whale research, based at the Hatfield Marine Science Center in Newport, is supported in large part by private and corporate donations to the OSU Foundationʼs Endowed Marine Mammal Program. See http://marinemammalprogram.org. Gray whale facts Length: 45 feet Weight: 35 tons Migration: Bering Sea to Baja California, Mexico, and back, up to 10,000 miles. Southbound migrating whales move past the Oregon coast Dec. through early Feb. Northbound whales pass by in late Feb. through early June. Whales may be seen off the Oregon coast any time. Time of round trip: approximately 3 months ORESU-G-05-002 Oregon Sea Grant Revised April 2005 idspring to midfall is the gray whales’ feeding season. Most of the population spends this time in the Bering and Chukchi Seas off Alaska, although every summer some whales are observed feeding from British Columbia to Mexico. The summer population off the Oregon coast often numbers 200 to 400 animals, with many of the same individuals returning year after year. Summer feeding is better at higher latitudes because the long days produce lots of phyto-plankton (small marine plants), which are eaten by zooplankton (small marine animals). Together, these are the basic food for all ocean life, stimulating Bruce R. Mate, Extension Sea Grant marine biologist, Oregon State University. Illustrations by Pieter Arend Folkens the growth of the marine food web, including bottom-dwelling amphipods, the primary prey of gray whales. There are two basic types of whales: toothed and baleen. The gray whale is a baleen whale. Instead of true teeth, a row of 138–180 baleen plates grows along each side of the upper gum line. The baleen is made of material like a human fingernail. Appearing quite stiff and solid at its outer edge, each piece of baleen is “fringed” inside the mouth and tapers from 3 inches wide at the gum line to nearly a point at its bottom. These plates are separated by approximately 1 /3 inch (6 to 10 mm) inside the mouth, where their fringes overlap to form an effective screen. Gray whales feed primarily on benthic (bottom-dwelling) amphipods (shrimplike animals). They go to the seafloor and suck up an area of the bottom about the size of a desktop and a foot deep. Sometimes this makes conspicuous pits on the bottom. The amphipods are trapped on the baleen filter inside the mouth, while mud, sand, and water pass between the baleen plates. This is the way the