one answer and lots of questions

Last night I asked Georgia a question. She is helping me understand the beach and marshes. On Thursday, I saw a wave wash across the sand. When the water was there, I saw bubbles coming from holes in the sand. So I took a video and posted it so she could see it. I asked my question. What is this?

Georgia tells me they are Ghost Shrimp. Now that makes sense.

At a teacher's workshop a few years back Georgia was able to dig one up for us.

Here is a ghost shrimp. The other thing is a fancy tube a worm built to decorate it's tunnel.

Here is what is looks like up close.

I looked up Ghost Shrimp in Georgia's Amazing Coast. I found out it is a subterranean animal. It tunnels under the sand on our beaches. To quote the book. "It extracts bacteria and detritus from the mud for nurishment."

My goodness, there is so much to learn and understand.

I love watching shorebirds. They are the ultimate travelers. Dunlins and Western Sandpipers along with other shorebirds winter along our Georgia coast. In April and May, they change from brown things into stunning birds. About that time, they leave. They are on amazing flights over the continent to their nesting grounds. How do they do that flight? What on our beaches & marshes sustains them? I have so many questions. I hope you all don't mind if I throw them out every once in a while. Let's see if we can learn more together.