Ireland Day 3 - Shores
Day 3 in Ireland was a comparison between the Rocky and Sandy shores that outline the Dingle Peninsula.
We began at the rocky shores.
After a treacherous decent down the edge of a cliff we hobbled across the rocks (trying to avoid the barnacles, mussels and snails) towards the edge of the water.
It is amazing how many different creatures were within each step! Pictured above are species of Snail and limpet (gastropods) and Mussels (bivalves) which are in the same family as a squid and an octopus (Mollusca)!
The Barnacles (tiny yellow dots) are actually crustaceans which make them part of the crab family.. Weird!
The sandy shores went on for miles. .... .!
On the left of the picture you can just make out the beginning of the dune system, whereas on the right side you can just about see the waters edge. Lucky for us it stayed sunny because we had a long way to run to find shelter if it started raining!
We dug deep holes into the sand and sifted through different layers, contrasting its composition and the creatures we found in each. I felt 5yrs old again and we inevitably built castles and threw sand at each other! We tried to swim in the sea but though it was 10degrees Celsius it felt like -10 and our feet went numb within minutes!
This didn't stop some people who squeezed into wetsuits and took surfing lessons!
Questions:
1. How do the animals found in the rocky shores differ from the sandy shores?
2. Are the conditions in the rocky shores more or less extreme than at the sandy shores?
3. Are there more animals and plants in the rocky shores than in the sandy shores?
Regards,
Elleni - East African Student Ambassador
We began at the rocky shores.
After a treacherous decent down the edge of a cliff we hobbled across the rocks (trying to avoid the barnacles, mussels and snails) towards the edge of the water.
The Barnacles (tiny yellow dots) are actually crustaceans which make them part of the crab family.. Weird!
The sandy shores went on for miles. .... .!
We dug deep holes into the sand and sifted through different layers, contrasting its composition and the creatures we found in each. I felt 5yrs old again and we inevitably built castles and threw sand at each other! We tried to swim in the sea but though it was 10degrees Celsius it felt like -10 and our feet went numb within minutes!
This didn't stop some people who squeezed into wetsuits and took surfing lessons!
Questions:
1. How do the animals found in the rocky shores differ from the sandy shores?
2. Are the conditions in the rocky shores more or less extreme than at the sandy shores?
3. Are there more animals and plants in the rocky shores than in the sandy shores?
Regards,
Elleni - East African Student Ambassador
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