I saw plenty of seals playing in the ocean at Coast Guard Beach on Cape Cod the other day. I know they are the primary food for the Great White Sharks, so I kept my eye out for that prominent “fin” in the water.
There were some boogie boarders who thought it was cool to paddle out to try and get closer to the seals. I don’t think they know that a Great White Shark was spotted there several days ago. That would not be cool!
When the tides get low, you can see Fiddler Crabs swarming the little ponds at the salt marshes on Cape Cod. I was walking home the other day when I saw hundreds of Fiddler Crabs coming out of their little holes in the salt marsh.
“Fiddler crabs are found along sea beaches and brackish inter-tidal mud flats, lagoons and swamps. Fiddler crabs are most well known for their sexually dimorphic claws; the males’ major claw is much larger than the minor claw while the females’ claws are both the same size.
Like all crabs, fiddler crabs shed their shells as they grow. If they have lost legs or claws during their present growth cycle, a new one will be present when they molt.”
We looked out the window the other morning and caught a bit of movement in the yard. But it blended in so well to the background of wood chips. And there was a Common Box Turtle sauntering across our yard, headed for the woods across the way.
A Common Box Turtle is a little more than 5″ with a high-domed shell. It is dark brown with intricate, variable orange and yellow patterns. It loves to live in the woods and meadows.
Our neighbors have talked about Box Turtles in our neighborhood, so they will be so excited to see this new one!
Beautiful coloring, don’t you think?
We were driving home the other day when this car in front of us stopped and was waving for others to stop. There was a Snapping Turtle crossing the road. I didn’t get to snap a photograph of it until it was almost by.
There are many different species of turtles here from Snapping Turtles to Terrapins to Box Turtles to Leatherback Turtles to Painted Turtles and many more. The Audubon Sanctuary in Wellfleet works very heavily with turtles.
Snapping Turtles are large turtles of about 15″. They have a massive head and a long neck. Their powerful jaws can give a serious bite, so don’t ever get near one.
I took a walk along the beach the other day at high tide and there were Horseshoe Crabs everywhere! I counted 55 in one little area. I contacted the expert at the Massachusetts Wildlife Sanctuary in Wellfleet to tell him what I had seen. He said that with the warmer weather now, the Horseshoe Crabs will be very active.
Did you know that Horseshoe crabs are an ancient group of arthropods whose bodies are encased in a hard, oval shell? They have a long, rigid tail and five pairs of legs that they use for crawling, swimming, and gathering food.
It was really quite a site to see!
