Hold Them in Your Tiny Hand, Then Let Them Go Again!

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hold them in your tiny hand, then let them go again
Keyhole Urchins http://www.follybeach.com/seashells.php

During nature classes we seek adventure and spend some time examining what we happen to come upon that day. Our group of giddy, silly, inquisitive toddlers explore outside together and encounter a variety of life along the way.  While curiosity leads these tiny pioneers to run wild and free, it also presents a lesson of respect and responsibility.  “Never squash a bug; they’re mother nature’s friends; hold them in your tiny hand, then let them go again.” It has come to my attention that this is no silly toddler chant.  Adults and other children might need to pick up this catchy, mindful tune.

Over the last decade, while living in the Charleston area, I have seen countless families visit and fall in love with the beauty of the unique Lowcountry environment.  Shelling is a popular activity, especially at the beach, to bring back keepsakes of summer days spent in the sunshine.  With each trip to the beach, it became apparent that those buckets were not just filled with toys and shells.  On several occasions, I have seen both parents and kids piling live keyhole urchins, starfish and burrowing clams into their buckets and cheerfully trotting off the beach! Keyhole urchins and starfish are usually somewhat hairy (or have tube-like feet) and are brownish in color.  The burrowing clams are closed and will be seen burrowing in the surf or tidal pools on the beach–THEY ARE SOMETIMES ALIVE. Many of them may be doomed, but it is not our place to take a creature out of it’s environment and suffocate it in our hot car, which, I might add, would also smell badly–very badly.  I have a childhood memory of some sand crabs secretly tucked away in the backseat of our car.  I learned the hard way that leaving creatures in their natural environment is best for everyone.

If I see live creatures leaving the beach….should I say something? I am not exactly one for conflict, but it kept bothering me to see so many of them taken from their home. I decided to comment on one woman’s findings during my last beach trip.  I just casually mentioned how cool it was that we were able to see these LIVE creatures right here on the beach. The woman was surprised; she had no idea. I later watched her put them back, which made me feel like I did the right thing.

Last month on Isle of Palms, hundreds of starfish washed up, and so many of them were alive. I made it my personal mission to return as many as possible to deeper waters, so when high tide came they might have a chance. However, I am sure oyster farmers might have a few words for me.

hold them in your tiny hand, then let them go again
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