Sea Wall Wipe-out!

Last week, I visited my Aunt and Uncle.  They live on the inter coastal in North Palm Beach, Florida. As we were walking down to the point, I saw that part of the sea wall was washing out. There was a sign that said "DANGER STAY BACK"

 I felt scared so I asked my Aunt why the sign was there.  She told me that it wasn't like that when they first moved there.  She said it was caused mostly by the wakes from boats going too fast. The seawall is in a "No wake zone".  A no wake zone  means that boaters should slow down. 

When boaters drive too fast they cause large wakes to splash up onto the seawall and wash it away a little at a time.  After awhile the seawall gets almost disintegrated.   Boats going too fast could also hurt manatees and other creatures that might be living close by.

That's why it's important for boaters to be careful and follow the rules.  The oceans are not just for us to play in, the oceans are for the creatures that call it home.  So remember when you're playing in the ocean you're really at someone's home. 

 Please make the Janie's Ocean Life Responsible Boater Promise.  

I, (Your name) promise to be a responsible boater.

Thank you for stopping by and have a Happy New Year!

Sea Anemones

This week’s topic is Sea anemones close relatives to corals and jellyfish. They look like beautiful flowers on the bottom of the ocean floor, but they are actually real live animals.The sea anemone eats small fish and shrimp. They also sting their prey and predators; however it doesn't bother the Anemone fish or better known as the Clownfish. In fact the Clownfish calls the Anemone its home.

They are some of the prettiest things that I've ever seen. They have many beautiful colors and they flow with the underwater currents. That's me at Harbor Branch on National Estuaries Day last year, standing next to a tank with a Sea Anemone in it. Well that's all for now thanks for checking out my blog. I hope everyone has a Happy and safe New Year! Bye.

 You can see some really beautiful Sea Anemone pictures at http://deepbluehome.blogspot.com/2011/09/sea-anemones.html

Plants and Red Water

Yesterday was my first day volunteering with the Florida Oceanographic Society.  I was invited by a Marine Biologist named Hilde that I met at my church. My mom and my brother Michael came with me. 

We planted Cordgrass and Red Mangrove seeds, actually called propagules, along the shoreline in Stuart Florida. That’s my brother Michael in the picture with me. 

I forgot to mention when we got there the water was actually red.  Want to know why? Because plants have this thing called tannin in them so when it rains a lot, the rain washes the tannin off the plants and into the ocean causing the water to turn a red orange color.   

Thank you for taking the time to read my blog.  Please, stop by again. I'll be posting a new story once a week about my exciting ocean life experiences.  Bye.