Marine & Freshwater Environmental Education
Horseshoe crabs are an arthropod more closely related to spiders and scorpions than crabs and lobsters. They have a three part body: prosoma (head), opisthosoma (heavy shell with legs under it) and the telson (tail). This amazing body structure has been unchanged for over 200 million years. Interestingly enough, this is this Beach Chair Scientist’s favorite animal and there have been numerous posts about Limulus polyphemus. Read more here.
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No sharks do not have bones. Sharks do have skeletons, but they’re made of cartilage rather than bone. Cartilage is the flexible stuff in the tip of your nose. A cartilage skeleton has its advantages. It’s light, flexible, and it heals faster than bone. In some spots though, sharks need a little extra strength. Their […]
With amazing spring temperatures so early this year, sea turtles may begin creeping out of the sea earlier than usual. If you’re in the southeastern U.S. during sea turtle nesting season (typically May through October) you may have the opportunity in the early morning to stumble across the flipper tracks of a female sea turtle […]
It’s just about time to get back to reality from a weekend, so why not extend the good times and share your beachcomber adventures?Did you find anything interesting? Did you watch any birds swoop down to the sea for food? What was the sunset like? Share your pictures or any fun stories! Here is a […]
Can you identify these different seashells? (Answers as common names in the next post) 1. 2. 3. 4. 5. 6. Images (c) seashells.org Do you have another great question for the Beach Chair Scientist? E-mail info@beachchairscientist.com or just let us know at http://www.beachchairscientist.com.
Ever know instinctively that some animals are ‘related’ and just can’t pinpoint their similarities? On the third day of every month I explain three features that are common among three animals of a certain group. Of course, generally each group has more than three representatives and even many more similarities and then even more differences, […]
Since 2009, during the solstice and equinox of each year a prize for either science, philosophy, politics, and arts & literature is awarded by the esteemed judge brought in by the editors of the blog 3 Quarks Daily. This filter blog, created by founding editor S. Abbas Raza, is a “one-stop intellectual surfing experience by […]
Mole crabs are recognizable decapods with their barrel-shaped bodies and a grey colored exoskeleton and known to many of us as ‘sand fleas’. We often only see them for a wee bit when a wave (or curious hand playing in the sand) dislodges them and they quickly scurry back under the sand. These clawless crabs […]
Remember what I was saying back in January? Science still isn’t scary and still has funny words. Here are a few more that just make me smile. Hopefully they make you smile when you say them or you know a fun science word too. Has anyone taught you a science word you love? If you […]
There is one possible way to tell how old a fish is while it’s still alive. And, at that, – it’s pretty invasive. You need to take some of its scales (see image). The scales are similar to the rings of a tree. Depending on how many dark rings you may see (if you were […]
Bioluminescence means light (as in ‘illuminate‘) from life (prefix ‘bio‘). It is produced by a chemical reaction in many marine or terrestrial organisms. The reaction begins with a chemical called luciferase that catalyzes another chemical, luciferin, to then make oxyluciferin and light. If you see bioluminescence from a boat it is most often tiny dinoflagellates […]
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I’m not rating all of the a-z posts, but I have a soft spot for horseshoe crabs, too! We don’t have them over here on the Pacific side of the country, but I did get to see them on the Atlantic side once.