Shore Signs Point Way to Nature Observation
by Jane Kirkland
Those of us with childhood vacations “down the shore” remember how beach life was so different than today. We didn’t know much about how to care for our beaches and we didn’t know what we know today about caring for ourselves.
Today we’re a wiser and more ecology-minded nation. We take better care of ourselves, too. So why not show how smart you are this summer by using the beach as a great outdoor classroom for your kids? Start with simple sign reading to initiate lively discussions about laws, rules, regulations, and why we have them. Then use the manmade signs as a springboard for nature observation on the beach.
Stay Off the Dunes!
You have to pass the dunes to get to the beach. Signs warn you to stay off the dunes. Do you know why? The dunes protect the land from erosion and walking on them causes the dunes to erode. They are also important habitats for plants and some animals. They might also be nesting places for some birds or reptiles. Talk about this with your kids.
Let the dune discussion evolve into a science lesson by taking the time to observe — without disturbing or walking on the dunes — the plants, animals and insects you see. Look for butterflies and rabbits. Check out the plants. You might see different plants on the seaward side (where salt and wind and shifting sands make it difficult for plants to survive) then you find on the top of the dunes (where it is dry and windy), or on the back side (where plants are protected from wind and sea spray).
Don’t Feed the Birds!
You see this sign everywhere — at the beach, bistros and picnic areas. Feeding the birds only perpetuates a bad situation. But what’s so bad about it? Ask your children what they think about this. If we didn’t feed the birds, where and how would they get their food? What might happen to the birds as a result of our feeding them table scraps?
Use this discussion to invite your kids to observe the gulls and see if you can find at least three species (and you thought all gulls were the same!) Many people call these birds “seagulls”— but there is no such species.
In just a few minutes of observation you’ll realize that not only are there many species of gulls on the beach but some gulls are not gulls at all. They might be oystercatchers or skimmers.
How can you and the kids tell the difference? One clue is in the way the birds find food. Terns, which look like gulls, dive for fish over the ocean. Oystercatchers use their long beaks to forage for mollusks in the sand. Skimmers skim the water’s surface with their beaks open, using their lower mandible to find food. Gulls are the scavengers looking for handouts on the beach. Here are three of our most widespread and common gulls to look for:
• The laughing gull. It’s not the biggest gull, but is the bossiest when it comes to taking food from humans — even when humans aren’t offering! The adult has a black hood and red beak.
• The ring-billed gull. Probably our most commonly seen gull, this bird has a black ring around his yellow beak and a small red eye ring. Ring-bills can be found in many of our cities and city dumps, so once you learn how to recognize them, watch for them back home in the parking lot of your local strip mall.
• The herring gull. A “giant” among the gulls, it is much larger than the ring-billed or the laughing gull. It has pink legs, a large yellow bill with a red spot on the underside. Like the laughing gull, it’s a scavenger and, thanks to humans, a beggar.
Kids love observing bird behavior and they find bird identification a fun challenge. Keep in mind that juvenile birds often have very different plumage than the adults. To keep your gull-watching lesson simple, stick to observing the three species of gull that match the three descriptions above: laughing gull: black hood red beak; ring-billed gull: black ring around his yellow beak; and herring gull: huge gull with pink legs.
If your kids are up for a bigger bird-challenge, offer bonus points for finding red and orange-billed birds. One such bird is the black skimmer. A gull look-alike, it is black on its back, wings, and top of its head. It has a huge orange beak with a black tip. Another is the American oystercatcher. It looks like a gull too, has a black hood and a long, long, skinny, bright red-orange bill. It also has red eye rings!
Signs and Symbols
There are many signs at the beach. Some are permanent, others used as needed. Signs might give warnings about currents, sharks, jellyfish and rough surf, and in many cases symbols are used to represent these warnings.
Do you know and recognize the symbols you see? If not, ask a lifeguard. Help your children to recognize, understand and respect the signs and talk about the implications of ignoring them.
For example, how are rip currents formed and how can you survive them? Why is swimming off limits at certain sections of beach and what possible harm could come to even the strongest of swimmers who choose to ignore the signs? You get the picture — read and understand the signs, and use them to raise questions, spark discussions and trigger exploration and observation on the beach. When this summer is over, you and your kids will be even wiser and more ecology-minded than you are today.
Jane Kirkland is a Downingtown PA speaker, naturalist, photographer and author of the Take A Walk nature books for kids. Her latest book, Take A Walk With Butterflies and Dragonflies, is now available. Learn more at www.takeawalk.com