What's Your Water?

Embracing Water (art by Hallelujah Truth)

WHAT'S YOUR WATER?
An intriguing question! I've been contemplating this question since I attended the 100 Miles Second Annual Conference on Jekyll Island, Georgia, USA, last week (January 13th).  The renown marine biologist, movement maker, and visionary, Dr. Wallace J. Nichols, passionately spoke about WATER with an evangelical fervor!

WHAT'S YOUR WATER? The question asked by Wallace J. Nichols at the beginning of his keynote talk at the 2018 100 Miles Conference on Jekyll Island, Georgia, USA. 

Someone a while ago asked me which one of the four elements (Earth, Water, Air, or Fire) I most identified with. The questioned haunted me for some reason. In part, I felt challenged. I had always held all of the Earth to be very dear. Why would I choose one element to embrace in particular?

Then one day when I was hiking with my boon companion, Tony Martin, on Mount Arabia, a national heritage area close to where we live in Decatur, Georgia, I had an epiphany! I was hopelessly and madly in love with ROCKS.

YAY ROCKS! Of the four elements, I have fallen deeply and madly in love with ROCKS. Here I am at Mount Arabia, a granite monadnock, which has its own rich ecosystem. (photo by boon companion, Tony Martin)

For those of you who know me, you know that my boon companion and husband is a paleontologist, and even more importantly, an ichnologist! Since we met in 2001, I have spent innumerable hours out in the world on, at, surrounded by, and embraced by ROCKS. 

These ROCKS have histories! Rich in story, they can tell us about how the earth evolved, rivers that flowed through them in ancient times, fiery powerful forces uplifting them and downshifting them, and life (like dinosaurs) that walked upon them and left their traces.

I adore the smell of rocks, their rough and smooth surfaces beneath my feet, and the vast and various colors! Yay ROCKS! 

So imagine my surprise at being asked to shift my mindset to WATER at this 100 Miles Conference (I have always seen the 100 miles of our Georgia Coastline as an inseparable duality of land and sea). Why should I consider the question: WHAT'S YOUR WATER? Why is this question relevant and why is a research associate at the Academy of Sciences asking it? 

Wallace J. Nichols
#100MilesGA 2018

Because the health of our Earth's waterways and oceans is dependent on each of us connecting with WATER in a personal way! It is not enough for us to "know" the facts that our oceans are at risk from rising temperatures, overfishing, and pollution. We must also "feel" impacted by those negative changes as a result of our relationship to WATER. From connection comes responsibility, and from responsibility, action.

The only way we are going to succeed in engaging ourselves and others in conserving WATER is to get EMOTIONALLY involved. It is not enough to espouse water's value intellectually through education of its economic value and the balance of ecological systems! NO!

We must love WATER wholeheartedly with both our minds and--significantly--OUR HEARTS!

THE FOUR E's! In addition to "knowing" about water through the 3 E's --Ecological, Economical, Educational -- we need to experience it through our Emotions. (This image is a PowerPoint slide from Wallace J. Nichols' keynote talk at #100MilesGA.)

Imagine a scientist inviting us to name our WATER. What is your experience with water? Can you name the body of WATER you first went swimming in as a child? What kind of activities do you do with WATER? How does WATER make you feel? 

Wallace J. Nichols wrote an entire book -- BLUE MIND -- exploring the role WATER plays in our lives. As a scientist, he looks to neuroscience to explain the benefits to us humans at an emotional and health level. In the works is a new book, "The Seven Ages of Water," in which Nichols explores from birth through death the cognitive, emotional, psychological, social, and spiritual benefits of healthy waterways and oceans.

CALLING FOR A SPIRITUAL AND CULTURAL TRANSFORMATION. Asking scientists to shift in how they engage themselves and the general public in thinking about conservation. (Wallace J. Nichols used this in his keynote talk #100MilesGA 2018)

ALWAYS INCLUDE "BLUE MIND." The summary slide of Wallace J. Nichols' keynote talk at #100MilesGA celebrates the role of WATER in our lives. He emphasizes that we all need access to water at every stage of our lives. He also encourages conservationists and scientists to be present to the universal need of humans to connect with water and to share this "Blue Mind" awareness in their public outreach. 

BLUE MIND. For a week, I have been contemplating what my "Blue Mind" might be. Right now, I am dancing with my WATER, open to feeling the connection I know I have. For the past three days, I have been drawing this "Blue Mind" image, meditating on the various water experiences in my life. I am so thankful for this opportunity to expand my heart in connection with the Earth. In a short 7 days, I am thinking differently about WATER. It is almost like I am hearing its pulse. And that pulse is amplifying. In the future, I will write more about my WATER experience. (Art by Hallelujah Truth, aka Ruth Schowalter)

OUR BELOVED GEORGIA COAST. In answering the question "What's Your Water," I can make this claim: My WATER(s) are the coastal waterways along the coast of Georgia and the marshes and fresh waters on its barrier islands. I have had the enormous privilege of spending time up and down the 100 miles of our Georgia coast as Tony Martin researched and wrote his book, Life Traces of the Georgia Coast, and now works with his Emory colleagues the digital project, The Georgia Coast Atlas. Here we are on Ossabaw Island, December 2017. With each visit to the Georgia coast, I fall more deeply in love with what we locals call the Golden Isles. 

That's Coffee with Hallelujah for now! Soul Blog with me. I want to know your answer to the question: WHAT'S YOUR WATER?

DELIBERATING ON RUNNELS: The shortest day of 2015 celebrated and recorded

SUNRISE ON DECEMBER 21, 2015. A first for me—to greet the shortest day of the year with such optimism. My life’s journey has taken me once again to Shell Hammock on Sapelo Island, Georgia, a wonderful place to be DELIBERATE. I am deliberating the end of this year, the start of 2016, NATURE as expressed here on this spectacular barrier island, and my own life’s work. (photo by Hallelujah Truth)

Hallelujah for NATURE and moments to CELEBRATE it and ourselves in relationship. On this shortest day of 2015, my Chiboogamoo and I spent almost the entire day outside along one of Georgia’s most precious natural resources and barrier islands, Sapelo, deliberating on runnels and relict marshes.

Housed at the University of Georgia Marine Institute on the south end of the island in an area near the marsh called “Shell Hammock,” we were up at dawn to witness the sunrise. Then we worked (writer’s retreat) on the sun porch of our marsh cottage surrounded by ancient live oaks and embraced by the golden carpet of winter spartina. Soft light washed over us and we felt as though we were outdoors.

At low tide (late morning), we headed in our field station vehicle, a white jeep Cherokee, to Cabretta Beach on the north end of the island to visit the relict marsh. Chiboogamoo’s writing project, “Sapelo Island: A Sense of Place and Time,” in collaboration with Emory Center for Digital Scholarship, has us reinvestigating places we know well but are viewing again in order for Chiboogamoo to develop explanations and take additional photos. My role? I am his proud field assistant documenting his work!

Arriving at Cabretta Beach, we had such a visual feast displayed before us! After 15 minutes of winding our way through the maritime forest and back dune meadows, where we tracked raccoon and deer, we came upon a vast expanse of beach which is clearly in transition from being a sandy beach. Behind low coastal sand dunes is a “ponding” area, environmentally rich in sediment forming a microbial mat with the assistance of emerging Spartina.

There my Chiboogamoo, my brilliant ichnologist, grew happily energized! We studied and photographed the tracks imprinted by shore birds such as plovers and sanderlings, punctuated with the larger heron footprints. We saw raccoon and deer sign in these thick microbial layers comprised of filamentous algae and encrusted with sand baked by wind and sun.

Expanding out to the north was a terrifically long and deep runnel. Curiosity drew us along its ridges in the opposite direction of the relict marsh (which we studied later after lunch). Ichnology continued to be the focus of our examinations until mine wandered wildly into the visual as I took one photograph after another.

Today, for economy of time, I will share three of the visual feasts I embodied in the photographs I took during this field investigation conducted on the shortest day of the year, December 21^st, 2015. And an added bonus to my images? The ichnologist I cohabit with will provide the scientific explanations.

RUNNEL, EDGE LINED WITH SPARTINA. The water to the left is filling a runnel, which is a temporary channel scoured on a beach by the tides. Next to the runnel are algal mats that trap and bind the sand next to the runnel. Above the mat is dead plant matter, all Spartina, which was washed out of salt marshes and left there by the receding tide. Above the Spartina is the highest edge of the runnel, where shore birds foraged for clams, snails, and other food that was left behind the tide. (photo by Hallelujah Truth, caption by Chiboogamoo, aka Tony Martin)

RUNNEL BANK, RUNNEL WATER. The viewer is looking down on the edge of a runnel with an angled cut through the layers of sand forming the lines. Ghost shrimp burrows breaking up their symmetry interrupt these lines. The water shows the lowest extent left by tide and overlies rippled sand. (photo by Hallelujah Truth, caption by Chiboogamoo, aka Tony Martin)

A SNAIL GRAZED ALGAL MAT. An algal mat along the edge of a runnel provided much nutrition for grazing snails. Their trails meander and crisscross the surface. Then later were filled with white wind blown sand forming a macaroni-like pattern. The bigger filled holes are more than likely eroded fiddler crab burrows. (photo by Hallelujah Truth, caption by Chiboogamoo, aka Tony Martin)

That’s Coffee with Hallelujah! The relict marsh must be explored in another blog post, another day. SOUL BLOG with me and share your meanderings on the shortest day of 2015. What did you do?

 

SUNSET, WINTER SOLSTICE 2015. The blues of this photo capturing the marsh at sunset resonates with the drawing, “Wholeness,” that I posted yesterday as part of my 2016 Manifesto. Funny, how I “efforted” to capture the subtle reds of the sunset and what emerged were these subtle soft blues. One of my goals as the new year ushers in is to EMBRACE what is. And aren’t these BLUES something deserving of a hug? (photo by Hallelujah Truth)

Acknowledgements: Thanks to my darling ichnologist and boon companion for his knowledge, patience, collaboration, and joy that he perpetually brings me. Thank you to UGAMI for such an amazing facility—especially the bikes! Gratitude to MOTHER NATURE and the awesome world that surrounds us!

BICYCLING AT SUNSET. Melancholia was absent on this bike ride made as the sun set on the shortest day of the year! Exhilaration replaced any fear as the longest night of darkness approached and Chiboogamoo and I on our two-wheeled cruisers sped to Nanny Goat beach. UGAMI’s sturdy bicycles insured our speedy ride through the marsh to the rising moon and tides at the beach. (photo by Chiboogamoo, aka Tony Martin)

PALEONTOLOGIST BARBIE’S PASSION FOR MODERN AND ANCIENT TRACES: INVESTIGATING REPTILE BURROWS ON THE GEORGIA COAST

REPTILES ROCK!: Paleontologist Barbie loves the adventure of studying both modern and fossil reptile traces, as well as thinking artistically about the intricacies of her observations. (Photo by  Hallellujah Truth)

In July 2011 Paleontologist Barbie accompanied my brilliant Chiboogamoo to the Georgia coast to investigate modern alligator dens and gopher tortoise burrows on St Catherines Island. I was happy to interview Paleontologist Barbie about her interest in reptiles, modern and ancient traces, and her ongoing interests in the visuals arts that complement her scientific inquiries (To learn more about Paleontologist Barbie's rasion d'etre being art and science, read an earlier blog) .

ALLIGATOR DEN ENTRANCE. Paleontologist Barbie, in a quest to better understand the fossil record of reptiles, decides to investigate some of the traces made modern alligators and sea turtles on St. Catherines Island, Georgia. “Why not take on the biggest and most dangerous reptiles first?” she asks, while checking out an alligator-den entrance. (Photo and caption by Anthony Martin)

HALLELUJAH: Why study reptile burrows?

PALEONTOLOGIST BARBIE: First of all, because they are really cool! There are some burrows from almost 250 million years ago, for example, from South Africa made by synapsid reptiles that look like they lived in colonies underground. These synapsid burrows are complicated. Yet, when most people hear the word “reptile,” they don’t think “complicated.” Reptile burrows say otherwise.

HALLELUJAH: Could you define “burrow”?

PALEONTOLOGIST BARBIE: That’s a great question! You’d think it is straightforward, but it’s not. Because you can say “to burrow,” and that is a verb. But “a burrow” usually means it is an open structure made by an animal by digging in the ground.

HALLELUJAH: Yes….

PALEONTOLOGIST BARBIE: But digging in the ground doesn’t necessarily make a burrow.

HALLELUJAH: Can you explain that?

PALEONTOLOGIST BARBIE: Your dog can bury a bone in the backyard by doing just a little bit of digging, but that’s not a burrow. A burrow usually means it is going to be home where an animal lives.

HALLELUJAH: So as a paleontologist, you are mostly interested in ancient burrows or fossil homes?

PALEONTOLOGIST BARBIE: It is ALL good! I’m interested in both modern and ancient burrows. That’s why I went to St. Catherines Island. I wanted to learn about modern reptile burrows so I could compare them to ancient ones. Reptile burrows are documented for close to 250 million years from the geologic record.

HALLELUJAH: Can you explain why paleontologists study modern traces to interpret fossil ones?

PALEONTOLOGIST BARBIE: There is a principle in geology, and it’s  a really long word but it’s worth knowing. It is called “uniformitarianism.”

HALLELUJAH: Okay….

PALEONTOLOGIST BARBIE: It means that what we see today may be applied to what has happened in the past.

HALLELUJAH: Can you give an example?

PALEONTOLOGIST BARBIE: Sure. On the Georgia islands, alligators make wide deep burrows that they use as dens. When we look at those modern burrows, we can use them as examples to compare to burrows made by animals similar to alligators in the fossil record. 

OBSERVING THE EPEHMERAL. “Well, this den looks occupied, judging from these fresh tracks and tail dragmark,” she points out, using her characteristically keen observation skills. She notes (with some sadness) that such traces are much less likely to be preserved in the geologic record as trace fossils, whereas the den, as a deep burrow, has a much better chance of making it into the fossil record. (Photo and caption by Anthony Martin)

HALLELUJAH: Why conduct your studies about reptile burrows on the Georgia coast?

PALEONTOLOGIST BARBIE: First of all, Georgians are really lucky to have the barrier islands! Many of them still have their natural environments, which really help us paleontologists study living reptiles in their modern habitats.

HALLELUJAH: Isn’t there something special about the Georgia coast barrier islands that make them unique to the other islands along the eastern coast of the United States?

PALEONTOLOGIST BARBIE: Yes! Geologists call them “composite islands” because they’re made up of both modern sand and mud from two different time periods. The Pleistocene sand and mud was left more than 10,000 years ago. Then the Holocene deposits were made only in the past few thousand years. Of the more than 2,000 barrier islands around the world, this composite geology of both the Pleistocene and Holocene makes the Georgia barrier islands one of a kind.

HALLELUJAH: In geologic time, 10,000 years seems fairly  recent…but then barrier islands are constantly forming, shifting and changing. I’m sure paleontologists will keep looking at our Pleistocene-Holocene barrier islands and learning new and relevant things! 

What can you tell me about the alligator dens that you were looking at on St. Catherines Island with my Chiboogamoo?

MOTHER ALLIGATOR.  A good mother dens with her young in a burrow on St. Catherines Island, Georgia. Notice the baby to the left of the photo! (Photo by Anthony Martin)

PALEONTOLOGIST BARBIE: What’s really neat about these burrows is that they demonstrate family values. The mother alligator uses these burrows to protect the baby alligators. The dens are used as places where the babies can hide from predators, and the mother can stay in the den with them to ensure their safety.

HALLELUJAH: What’s significant about the alligator dens on the Georgia barrier islands?

PALEONTOLOGIST BARBIE:  This is a very exciting research question that I am pursuing with your husband Chiboogamoo.

ANOTHER ALLIGATOR DEN. A dried-out pond on St. Catherines Island, Georgia, gave my Chiboogamoo and Paleo Barbie an opportunity to further investigate alligator burrowing. (Photo by Hallelujah Truth)

CONTINUING THE INVESTIGATIONS. Another alligator den beckons, its entrance obscured by tall grass. Does this stop Paleontologist Barbie? No! You might say she’s the honey badger of paleontologists. Stopping suddenly, Paleontologist Barbie hears the high-pitched grunting of a hatchling alligator nearby. “Whoa,” she says, but with much more feeling than Keanu Reeves. “This den is being used for brooding young! I’d better respect Momma Alligator and not spend much time here,” she says, neatly demonstrating that ethical concerns are often a part of scientific decisions. (Photo and caption by Anthony Martin)

HALLELUJAH: Can you say something about your innovative research techniques?

PALEONTOLOGIST BARBIE: I can’t reveal that information yet because it hasn’t gone through peer review yet. I can say that we are applying cutting-edge, state-of-the-art technology that is going to kick butt—I hope you don’t mind that expression of enthusiasm!

USING CUTTING EDGE TECHNOLOGY. Satisfied that this alligator den is worth further study, Paleontologist Barbie begins a cooperative research project with Sheldon Skaggs (left) and Kelly Vance (right) of Georgia Southern University. Here they are preparing to use ground-penetrating radar to make images of the alligator den. (Photo and caption by Anthony Martin)

YAH! “Let’s roll!” she says with her trademark enthusiasm for scientific endeavors. Sheldon and Paleontologist Barbie start the imaging of the alligator den by pushing the ground-penetrating radar device on the area that probably overlies the den. “If it weren’t so cliché to say so,” she says, “I would call this cutting-edge, state-of-the-art research.” Nonetheless, she makes a mental note to use those words in a grant proposal, knowing that no granting agency will fund her unless she uses those descriptors. (Photo and caption by Anthony Martin)

THE EXPERIMENT IS A SUCCESS! “Nice parabola!” she exclaims. The ground-penetrating radar unit, which emits high-frequency microwaves to reflect off produce its data, makes profiles based on differences of electrical conductivity just underneath the ground surface. In this instance, the higher parabolas (“bumps”) on the profile indicate the probable location of the alligator den. (Photo and caption by Anthony Martin)

HALLELUJAH: I know that you are also looking at burrows of the humble gopher tortoise. Why?

PALEONTOLOGIST BARBIE:  Well, the gopher tortoise may look humble, but their role in a longleaf pine—wire grass ecosystem is anything but humble.  I caution you to remember that appearances can be deceiving (As Paleontologist Barbie winks, her long lashes flutter and she flicks her long curly black hair over her lean, attractive shoulders). That’s why I really identify with the gopher tortoise and am enjoying studying its burrow system. People often underestimate my intelligence because of my feminine appearance.

THE LANDLORD OF THE LONGLEAF PINE FOREST: A gopher tortoise out of its burrow. See the gopher tortoise blog written and posted by my Chiboogamoo on his website, Life Traces of the Georgia Coast. (Photo by Anthony Martin on Jekyll Island at the 4-H Center.)

MEASURING THE SAND APRON. In January 2011, my Chiboogamoo began his investigations of gopher tortoise burrows with Kelly Vance and Sheldon Skaggs on St. Catherines Island, Georgia. (photo by Hallelujah Truth)

HALLELUJAH: Paleo Barbie, you are certainly helping us change our perceptions of what it means to be a “girl”!

Well, can you briefly tell me about the gopher tortoise’s role in the ecosystem is?

PALEONTOLOGIST BARBIE: They are like the landlords of their ecosystems, but they don’t charge rent. Their burrows can hold more than 300 species of animals, including many rare ones like the indigo snake and the gopher frog.

HALLELUJAH: What are you learning about gopher-tortoise burrows through your investigations?

PALEONTOLOGIST BARBIE: Earlier, I said reptile burrows are thought to be simple but are actually complicated. We are finding that gopher tortoise burrows connect with one another, forming complex systems. See your husband's comments about these burrows in his blog, "Gopher Tortoises, Making Deep and Meaningful Burrows."

HALLELUJAH: Talk to me about your decision to work with my Chiboogamoo and Professors Sheldon Skaggs and Kelly Vance.

PALEONTOLOGIST BARBIE: They are fun guys and easy to work with. They love having somebody like me work with them. I’m fearless and unafraid of doing fieldwork. I jump into alligator dens and gopher-tortoise burrows with both booted feet. The advantage of my size permits me to do in-depth burrow research! Plus, it is great working with Sheldon, Kelly, and Chiboogamoo because they have done so much research on the Georgia coast.

HALLELUJAH: What kinds of precautions did you take while you were investigating the alligator dens and gopher tortoise burrows?

PALEONTOLOGIST BARBIE: You have to approach alligator dens very carefully. Fortunately, I’m very light footed, so they don’t usually detect me. Then gopher tortoises aren’t dangerous at all, but you still want to respect them and the animals that live in the burrows with them. That’s one of the reasons why we used new, non-invasive technology to study their burrows without disturbing them.

HALLELUJAH: Were there any other precautions necessary while you were out doing field research in this longleaf pine-wiregrass ecosystem?

PALEONTOLOGIST BARBIE: Yes! Protection against ticks, mosquitoes, gnats, and worst of all—chiggers! The female archaeologists there on St. Catherines were duct-taping their jeans around their ankles just to deter chigger bites! We all still wear sundresses in the evening at happy hour, so we all look festive while we discuss our findings, despite the horrible devouring of our flesh in the name of research! We also do regular tick checks!

HALLELUJAH: Finally, what do you hope to accomplish from these investigations?

PALEONTOLOGIST BARBIE: We hope to know more about the lives of alligators and gopher tortoises and how similar or different these lives were compared to reptiles of the ancient past. Investigations like these help us to better understand evolution!

HALLELUJAH: I know that in addition to your interests in science, you also like to go deep into the psychological realm because it informs your understanding of art. What kind of insights did you take away from your research about reptiles on St. Catherine’s Island?

ALLIGATOR ART. While on St. Catherines Island, Georgia,  Paleo Barbie  purchased a hand-built clay plate by Elizabeth Halderson, who grew up on the island because her father is the island manager.  Elizabeth sells her work on an Etsy site. (Photo by Hallelujah Truth)

PALEONTOLOGIST BARBIE: Because the alligators and gopher tortoises makes such intriguing forms and architectures with their burrows, I am inspired artistically to imitate or elaborate these forms in future artworks, so stay-tuned!

HALLELUJAH: Can you tell us the meaning that Native Americans assign to alligators and turtles?

PALEONTOLOGIST BARBIE: When I want to know the symbolic significance of an animal, I delve into Ted Andrew’s “Animal Speak” and recommend that everyone get a copy to deepen her connection with nature.

Briefly, the alligator, a symbol of power and fertility, represents primal energy and knowledge on two levels, both land and water. That’s awesome!

Then—about the gopher tortoise—well, turtles are ancient vertebrates that exist in mythologies around the world. The turtle, like the alligator, connects to a primal energy. For now, l will just say that the turtle should remind us of our connection with MOTHER EARTH. As the turtle inhabits its shell, we inhabit the earth. We have all we need right here, right now!

A SHOUT OUT FOR GOPHER TORTOISE ART. Paleo Barbie loves Elizabeth Halderson's hand built clay works! (Photo by Hallelujah Truth)

HALLELUJAH: Yes, Paleo Barbie! Thank you for that—“We have all we need right here, right now!”

Will you be returning to the Georgia coast and St. Catherine’s Island?

PALEONTOLOGIST BARBIE: I hope so! This island is a fantastic natural laboratory for understanding how nature works, and it is a peaceful place. I get inspiration for both my science and art here!

ACKNOWLEDGMENTS: Great appreciation to my collaborator in LIFE, ART, and SCIENCE--Chiboogamoo! See his blog on our collaborative piece of art, "Abstractions of a Rising Sea," that we are exhibiting at the Fernbank Museum of Natural History through January 1, 2012. How fortunate we are to know and work with the naturalists and scientists along the Georgia coast! In this case, thanks to the magnificent staff of St. Catherines Island.

DISCOVERING THE TRACE MAKER.  Tracking is especially exciting when you venture upon the animal that made the trace! (Photo by Hallelujah Truth)

UNITING SCIENCE AND ART. Chiboogamoo and Hallelujah Truth at an alligator pond on St. Catherines Island, Georgia, in July 2011. (Photo by Sheldon Skaggs)

PALEONTOLOGISTS AT WORK! Paleontologist Barbie provides scale for David Varricchio and Chiboogamoo as they photograph the mold of the sea turtle nest. (Photo by Hallelujah Truth)

SEA TURTLE NESTS. Switching her research interests from alligator traces on the inland environments of St. Catherines Island, Paleontologist Barbie checks out some sea-turtle nests. Because sea turtles have been around for more than 100 million years, their nests could show up as trace fossils in rocks from that time span. Working cooperatively with colleagues from Montana State University - David Varricchio, Frankie Jackson, Dan Lawver, and Mike Knell – they used polyurethane foam to cast a loggerhead sea-turtle nest. “So this is what it would look like in the fossil record!” she says with more than a little wonder in her voice.  (Photo and caption by Anthony Martin)

BABY SEA TURTLES! Some of the sea-turtle nests had been hatching their eggs, but not all of the baby sea turtles make it out of the nest without human help. This is where Gale Bishop often comes to their rescue, saving baby sea turtles wherever he goes on St. Catherines Island (St. Catherines Sea Turtle Conservation Program). In this case, it meant Paleontologist Barbie got to spend some quality time with a few loggerhead hatchlings and observe some of their trackways associated with their body movements. “They’re cute AND fantastic tracemakers!” she says. “I’ll definitely be back to do more research!” (Photo and caption by Anthony Martin) To read more about sea turtle nests and hatchinglings, read my blog: Sea Turtles Need Us: Relocating Nests on St. Catherines Island, Georgia.

LIFE CYCLE of MOONSNAILS: LIONS of the TIDAL FLATS

Dear PILGRIM! How fortunate I feel, how exuberantly thankful to witness the mesmerizing cycle of LIFE in the form of the MOONSNAIL along the Georgia coast in the middle of March!

My Chiboogamoo and I (along with my sister-in-law Liz) left Atlanta with the Japanese magnolias weeping pink petals on the ground waking from winter. Other trees stood by ready to exhale life into budding leaves and blooms. We headed to Jekyll and Sapelo, beautiful barrier islands along the coast of Georgia.  One of the most exciting aspects of visiting undeveloped coastal islands is that you never know what you will discover in the vastness of their overflowing LIFE.

To my surprise and delight the glorious carnivorous, and yes—cannibalistic—MOONSNAIL dominated the shore from surf to the dunes! How exciting to see

thousands of “sand collars”—the nickname for the MOONSNAIL egg case—thrust everywhere on the beach’s surface. These sand collars were still wet and sparkly at the shoreline, dry and dusted with a fine white sand above the sea.

Moonsnail eggcasings at the surf zone.

Moonsnail eggcasings at the dune zone.

Art by Hallelujah Truth

This funny grayish brown collar, smooth on the inside part of the circle and ruffled on its outside, is formed by a complex process. For anyone unfamiliar with snails, it must seem a bizarre one. 

Observe this moonsnail in action on a Sapelo beach. Although it is not forming an eggcase here, you can see how its  foot engulfs its shell as it moves in the sand. Notice the similarity in the  shape of the foot to the eggcases shown in the photos above. Photo by Chiboogamoo (aka Anthony Martin)

The snail’s foot comes out of the shell and completely engulfs itself. After the cilia on its foot collect numerous sand grains, the MOONSNAIL emits mucous and coats this sand layer before laying thousands of eggs onto it. Then the same process of collecting sand and emitting mucous is repeated to seal the eggs in. The MOONSNAIL then escapes this egg casing by digging downward, leaving the trace for us beachcombers to find! For the moonsnail eggs to make it to the next stage of life, they will need to hatch in the water and be planktonic until they form shells.

Because the sand collars were the largest and most apparent, we “discovered” them first. Yet rapidly scanning the beach, we then saw numerous MOONSNAILS at the water’s edge appearing to peak up from the sand as the receding tide was revealing them in their burrows.  It is in this stage of life that the MOONSNAIL is acting out its name—THE LION of the TIDAL FLATS—by feeding.

According to my Chiboogamoo (who has researched coastal ichnology for his forthcoming book, Life Traces of the Georgia Coast), the MOONSNAIL is the TOP PREDATOR of the sandflats. Unaware humans who might be fortunate enough to be strolling along these undeveloped beaches may or may not be aware that a terrific amount of predation is occurring underneath their feet.

By inhaling and exhaling water through its mucous-coated foot, many LIONS of the TIDALS FLAT are hungrily pulling themselves toward their prey—anything slower and smaller than themselves such as the dwarf surf clam and even other MOONSNAILS! As it approaches its victim, the MOONSNAIL engulfs it in entirety with its mucousy foot. Then through a method that could have only evolved over millions of years, the MOONSNAIL follows an exacting procedure of steps. It emits a substance that weakens the shell of its imprisoned meal and then drills a hole in it with its secret weapon—teeth called a “radula,” which miraculously regenerates if damaged by the drilling. Finally, it inserts it foot into the little clam or snail and eats it—yes, before it has died! Yowl!

A lone Moonsnail eggcasing rests among numerous clam shells, many of which bear the predation trace of the mighty Lion of the Tidal Flats!

Often the casual stroller who leans down and scoops up the numerous shells with holes drilled neatly and precisely in them gives little thought to how they occurred! But I know, and now you do too—it is a result of the LION of the TIDAL FLAT—Neverita duplicata, commonly and affectionately called “moonsnail” because of its beautiful round shell—like the shape of the moon! My Chiboogamoo has wittily called the adornments made from the shells of these MOONSNAIL victims as “necklaces of death.” Thanks for that phrase, Baby!

This is no casual beach stroller! She is my sister-in-law, Elizabeth Schowalter, who is collecting shells that have been drilled by the Lion of the Tidal Flats. The perfect holes in the little clams will make it easy for her to sew them onto one of her pieces of fabric art.

Because of the vastness of these tidal flats on Sapelo and Jekyll, you must walk and walk to move from the surf zone where we found the live MOONSNAILS, which were actively burrowing and feeding to the dunes, to where we witnessed numerous abandoned MOONSNAIL shells crusted with sand, many displaying the now familiar MOONSNAIL drill hole. Cast among the emptied shells were MOONSNAIL eggcases that more than likely would dry out, break, and disintegrate without successfully contributing to the MOONSNAIL’s life-cycle.

Hallelujah for the abundance of life even in a creature as small and obscure as the MOONSNAIL! Forever more elevated in my mind—and perhaps in yours too! Hallelujah to the LION of the TIDAL FLATS!

Sunrise at Sapelo, Nanny Goat Beach, March 2011

ACKNOWLEDGMENTS: With careful attention and wonder, we PILGRIMS can find meaning in unexpected places. Yet it often requires a wise guide. In my case, I thank my dear companion Chiboogamoo for all of his knowledge and patient teaching! 

Chiboogamoo!

Another companion, Elizabeth Schowalter, was invaluable to me on this coastal venture because of her ability to see deeply into her surroundings and translate them into her own artistic vision (see her website: Liz Quilts: Kapa Kuiki Collection). I look forward to seeing future work of hers’ reflecting this trip.

Finally, being HALLELUJAH allows me to be a gracious visitor filled with wonder appreciating all that my new environment bestows upon me.  It can be recorded that in the middle of March of 2011, on Sapelo island along the Georgia coast, the ocean, the tidal flats and dunes offered me this LION of the TIDAL FLATS roaring silently and unheard but observed.

Fellow PILGRIM, share your observations of the world around you by SOUL BLOGGING with me at Coffee with Hallelujah.