you will feel it push backward trying to
dig between your fingers just as it would
do in sand. Mole crabs are equipped with
scurrying little legs and a pair of feathery
antennae that sweep water for microscopic
plants known as diatoms. When waves
recede, mole crabs burrow in loose sand to
hold them in place while feeding, and also
to hide from predators, including fish and
birds.
A small mollusk — a member of a group
of animals that includes clams, snails and
squid — is the fleet-footed coquina clam.
It uses its rubbery foot to pull itself into
loose sand to stay in place and to escape
predators, and extends its long hose-like
siphon used to vacuum up diatoms and
other tiny bits of organic matter on the
sand surface.
While you are at the beach you may see
flocks of small birds running up and down
the beach as if they are chasing waves.
These are shorebirds, and what they are
doing is chasing amphipods, mole crabs
and other small creatures to eat. Shorebirds
including plovers, sandpipers and their
larger cousin, the willet, work the surf zone
because that is their restaurant, and while
these birds may be small, they have a big
appetite because they are always on the
go. They spend much of the year migrat-ing
from wintering grounds as far away
as South America, to summer breeding
grounds in northern Canada, and back
again. Like a highway rest area for people,
the beach is a rest area for birds to find
food and catch some sleep before resum-ing
their travels. For this reason, it is best
to watch the birds from a distance as they
work or rest, and never chase or frighten
them.
Standing in the surf zone of a barrier
island, beachgoers can see energy flowing
all around: Waves breaking on the shore
have their origin in winds blowing over the
sea surface; bluefish swimming under those
waves are energized by a diet of smaller fish
that in turn are powered by the rich collec-tion
of tiny creatures dwelling amid sand
and surf swirling around our feet.
h i l e I b o r r o w e d
k i t c h e n i t e m s a s a k i d
t o a i d m y e x p l o r a t i o n
o f w a t e r y e n v i r o n s , i t i s e a s y
e n o u g h t o d a y t o a c q u i r e s m a l l n e t s
a n d b u c k e t s t o h e l p w i t h f i n d i n g
i n t e r e s t i n g t h i n g s t o l o o k a t .
T h e b e a c h i s a w o n d e r f u l c l a s s r o o m
w i t h m a n y p l a n t s t o o b s e r v e i n t h e
d u n e s a n d s w a l e s , a n d m a n y s m a l l
c r e a t u r e s t o f i n d i n w r a c k l i n e s
a n d s u r f z o n e s . A c u r i o u s o b s e r v e r
w i l l l e a r n t h e b e s t t i d e s f o r b e a c h
e x p l o r i n g , d e p e n d i n g o n w h a t y o u a r e
l o o k i n g f o r , a n d a c a r i n g o b s e r v e r
w i l l b e s u r e t o r e l e a s e w h a t e v e r l i v e
t h i n g s a r e f o u n d , b a c k i n t h e p l a c e
w h e r e l i v i n g t h i n g s b e l o n g .
30
WBM september 2012
ALLISON POTTER
ALLISON POTTER