Finding strage things in tide pools

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The photo above might look like a piece of disgusting trash, but instead, it is an egg case. Each of those round bumps you can see is an egg inside the case. Every year thousands of these wash up on our beaches and more often than not are in bunches like grapes. This one would have been originally deposited by a female Market Squid who would have attached it to a rock on the bottom of the ocean, usually somewhere close to shore. When a storm visits our area in the spring, people walking the beach will find them washed up. If someone finds them early enough, meaning soon after being washed up, they might even see the little critters in the eggs swimming around. Unfortunately, they cannot be returned to the ocean because unless they are attached to something heavy, they will simply be washed back on to the shore. But, these squids produce about 200 eggs and there are millions of them in the Pacific Ocean. (The Atlantic has a similar species.) By the way, this particular variety of squid is edible and they are fished heavily. (Calimari anyone?) These eggs and the squid, are a favorite food for fish, bigger squid, whales, dolphins, and many other critters in the ocean. The anemones in the tide pools also love getting hold of them. I am looking forward to being able to get back out in the tide pools. Though it might be a while. (I need a second knee replaced and local hospitals are not doing "elective surgery" right now due to Covid-19 ) But I will probably visit some of the easier ones to reach before that happens. Hope everyone is having a wonderful January. Photo is mine.