The Beach

Black Skimmer

While many love the allure of the beach to watch the ocean, tan, or swim, I find inspiration from watching the animals. Sometimes you would never know some creatures are there until you walk along a beach at dawn or dusk. I really love Margate for these purposes because it is not overly populated with people much of the time. Last summer, we came upon a Searobin trapped in the surf and were able to save it before it died out of the water. Being an amateur photographer, I often bring my Rebel to the beach even though this is a bit unnerving. This past weekend was particularly fruitful in the nature discovery area of things. Of course, I caught an Atlantic Mole Crab burrowing in the sand. They are so cute, it is just about irresistible to pick them up!

Striped Burrfish

Atlantic Needlefish

This crab, however is normal to find at the beach. I was particularly excited about the Striped Burrfish and Atlantic Needlefish that we found on the shore. The Burrfish was quite easy to identify, but the other one took hours to name. I had to search many ways online in order to even get on the right track for identifying this fish! Apparently, the Needlefish, though small, is more dangerous than sharks to fishermen. They can jump out of the water at 30mph and impale people, commonly at night! Their mout can break off and leave a person impaled. This is a small specimen for the species, so they can grow much larger and can be even fatal.

The picture of the bird at the top is my favorite find for the trip. Called a Black Skimmer, this bird spends the mornings and nights flying up and down the beach in the surf "skimming" for food. This is an endangered bird in New Jersey, and so was a great find! The first night we were there, there were about ten, but by the time I brought my camera to the beach there was only one left in the area. These majestic birds are threatened throughout the Atlantic coast, however, because they are beach-nesting birds and so many beaches have been destroyed by tourists. These birds probably live in the swampy area on the other side of Margate and travel each day to the beach. They are supposed to stay in the same location each season, so I hope to see more of them over the summer!