HUNTINGTON BEACH & BROOKGREEN (Day 3 - part 4)

We went out the Nature Center and walked to the end of the long boardwalk.

Satellite view of the boardwalk through the marsh

More fiddler crabs

Eastern Oysters have a lumpy, irregular oval shell that is smooth and shiny on the inside. They average around 3-5 inches long.

The Eastern Oyster is a filter feeder. It pumps water through its gills, trapping particles of food like algae and plankton, then spits the water back out. This essentially cleans the water, making oysters an important keystone species in many environments. One oyster can filter up to 50 gallons of water per day. In brackish and salt marsh ecosystems, they grow in huge clusters known as oyster reefs, with hundreds or thousands of individuals.

Blue Crabs have walking legs but also a rear pair of swimming legs that act like paddles. These can rotate at 20 to 40 revolutions per minute, allowing the crab to dart away.

Blue Crabs will eat whatever is most available... fish, oysters, clams, shrimp, worms and also other crabs (such as fiddler crabs). Sometimes they hide in the mud and wait for a meal to pass by, but they will also swim into the salt marsh at high tide to grab snails from the tall grass.

(right) Mummichogs ...

Mummichogs are common along the muddy bottoms of brackish estuaries and salt marshes. The name is derived from a Narragansett term meaning "going in crowds". They are known by many other names as well, including Atlantic killifish, mummies, chubs, mud dabbler and marsh minnow. The species is very hardy and able to tolerate high fluctuations in temperature, oxygen levels and salinity. They serve as food for many birds and larger fish.

... and what hunts them! A juvenile Little Blue Heron

Adult Little Blue Herons are a greyish-blue with a purplish neck and head. Juvenile birds, however, are all white their first year, gradually molting into a mixture of white and blue as they mature. This interesting early coloration may help them blend in with larger groups of Snowy Egrets, offering them greater protection against predators.

To differentiate them from Snowy Egrets, look for their grey black-tipped bill (versus an all black bill) and their dull yellow-green legs (as opposed to black legs)... even when caked in thick mud!

What's the difference?

Herons and egrets are not biologically different from each other. They all belong (along with bitterns) to the same family, Ardeidae, with 74 species. A heron is a long-legged, long-necked, freshwater and coastal bird with a long beak. An egret is essentially just a heron with white or decorative breeding plumage. So all egrets are herons, but not all herons are egrets.

They are, however, different than storks and cranes, which leave their necks outstretched when they fly. Herons pull their necks tightly in.

Little blue herons will stand still and wait for their prey to pass by, rather than chase after it. They slowly stalk the water in search for fish and other prey.

A massive oyster reef

Another Great Egret

(right) An adult Laughing Gull undergoing the head molting process. Non-breeding adults have a mostly white head with a black bill while breeding adults get a full black head and red bill.

Heading back...

The Great Blue Heron is the largest heron native to North America. This juvenile lacks the striking patterns and colors as well as chest and head plumage of an adult.

These trails and lumpy bits of mud (called casts) are caused by worms. Casts are made when the worm expels mud from its burrow.

return • continue