Frilled Dogwinkles?  An article in the Kitsap Sun on Wednesday caught our eye when it mentioned "frilled dogwinkles."   A few years ago our neighbor was cleaning his garage and was going to throw out a box of old frilled dogwinkle shells.  

Were They From Illahee?  We questioned our neighbor whether the frilled dogwinkle shells had come from Illahee because they didn't look like any snail shells we have seen around here.  The frills on the shell extended out and they looked so nice that you would possibly want to display them.  He said he and his brother collected them from the Illahee shoreline when they were kids in the 1950's.

Questions Raised Last Year.  Last year we brought some of these shells to a beach watchers class to see if there was anyone who could explain why we don't see these intricate frilled dogwinkles on our beaches anymore.  We only see a few snail shells out there now, but they are without the raised frills.

The Answer?  Which brings us back to the Kitsap Sun article, as it explained that the changing chemistry of Puget Sound was increasing in acidification such that the "shells of marine snails called frilled dogwinkles get thinner."  Is this the answer to our question?  

Shellfish Expert.  We hope to ask the dogwinkle question of Betsy Peabody, a shell fish expert, who is being asked to be in the Illahee film project and to comment about possible reasons for the diminishing shellfish in Illahee and the fouling of the shellfish beds from excessive sedimentation.  

The Kitsap Sun Article.  The title and link to the Kitsap Sun article is:  Scientists checking changing Puget Sound chemistry http://www.kitsapsun.com/news/2011/apr/12/scientists-checking-changing-puget-sound/

Piebald Deer Question.  We asked the question of whether the piebald deer north of Illahee had migrated to the area south of Illahee State Park.  From the response below, the piebald deer by the park has different markings:

I can confirm that the piebald I saw last week was not the one in the photo below.  The individual I saw was cream colored and only had a few spots, which were along its haunches and lower parts of the leg, similar to what the writer described as potential offspring of the male in pictures. The individual I saw was also quite small.  I do not know what sex it is.  

Black Deer Pictures.  These photos (from near Beamsville, Ontario, Canada) were sent in by a resident who noted a black deer is even more rare than piebald or albino deer.

Earthquake Fault Lines.  We still get comments regarding the Updates we sent out regarding the fact the we have earthquake fault lines running through Illahee and whether residents should have earthquake insurance.  Attached is a map showing just the Illahee area fault lines, that was taken from the county's website.  The link to the county map is:  http://kitsapgov.com/dcd/gis/maps/Standard_Maps/Environmental/FAULTS_DEC2006.pdf