Janelle Adams, far left, and her two sons Nate, age 10, and Ashton, age 2, play on the beach at Golden Gardens Park in Seattle on Wednesday, May 28, 2008.
Winona Azure and her daughter Kateri Azure, age 6, stroll for sea shells at Golden Gardens Park in Seattle on Wednesday, May 28, 2008, while visiting from Albuquerque, New Mexico.
The Seattle Aquarium invites you to join beach naturalists to explore the intertidal community at low tide. Dress for the weather; waterproof footwear recommended.
In the Seattle area
WHEN: Noon-3 p.m. June 21, 12:30-3:30 p.m. June 22.
WHERE in the Seattle area: Constellation Park, 1702 Alki Ave. SW, Seattle. Lincoln Park next to Fauntleroy Terminal, 8011 Fauntleroy Way SW, Seattle. Golden Gardens, 8498 Seaview Pl. NW, Seattle. Carkeek Park, 950 NW Carkeek Park Rd., Seattle. Ed Munro Seahurst Park, SW 140th St., Seattle. Richmond Beach Saltwater Park, 2021 NW 190th St., Shoreline.
In the South Sound
WHEN:12:30-3:30 p.m. June 22.
WHERE: Des Moines Beach Park, 22030 Cliff Ave. S, Des Moines.
All-ages low-tide beach walk led by a ranger-naturalist. 1:30 p.m. June 22. FREE. Brackett's Landing Beach, foot of Main St., Edmonds waterfront. 425-771-0227. www.ci.edmonds.wa.us
Celebrate life at low tide with People for Puget Sound, 11 a.m.- 3 p.m., June 21, Carkeek Park, Seattle. The low tides of late spring reveal the living beach. On this summer solstice, the longest day of the year, enjoy learning “Best Beach Behavior,” explore with a beach naturalist guide, and save a life on the beach. Displays, guided walks, crafts, touch tanks, stories and gyotaku or fish printing. Contact: Daoud Miller, (206) 382-7007 ext. 217, dmiller@pugetsound.org for details.
Low tides in mid-July:*
• 11:05 a.m. on Thursday, July 17 • 11:42 a.m. on Friday, July 18 • 12:18 p.m. on Saturday, July 19 • 12:54 p.m. on Sunday, July 20
Low tides in late July and early August:
• 8:48 a.m. on Tuesday, July 29 • 9:42 a.m. on Wednesday, July 30 • 10:33 a.m. on Thursday, July 31 • 11:21 a.m. on Friday, Aug. 1 • 12:06 p.m. on Saturday, Aug. 2
*All times are for Seattle. They happen a bit earlier or later elsewhere in Puget Sound, depending on the location.
If you missed the lowest tide of the year – which happened at 11:48 a.m. on Wednesday, June 4 in Seattle – you’ll have other chances this summer to get an up-close look at sea creatures that rarely see the light of day.
The low tide on Saturday, June 7, was the last one that was low enough to be worth schlepping out to see for a couple weeks.
Some more good low tides in June:*
• Noon on Thursday, June 19 • 12:38 p.m. on Friday, June 20 • 1:15 p.m. on Saturday, June 21 • 1:55 p.m. on Sunday, June 22
Low tides in early July:
• 9:56 a.m. on Tuesday, July 1 • 10:45 a.m. on Wednesday, July 2 • 11:34 a.m. on Thursday, July 3 • 12:22 p.m. on Friday, July 4 • 1:09 p.m. on Saturday, July 5 • 1:54 p.m. on Sunday, July 6
*All times are for Seattle. They happen a bit earlier or later elsewhere in Puget Sound, depending on the location.
Keep in mind that the creatures you’ll see are accustomed to the protection of the water and, when exposed, are particularly vulnerable. Tread lightly on the lowest regions of the beach, and if you touch anything, Daoud Miller, an education coordinator the environmental advocacy group People for Puget Sound, advises that you do so gently with wet fingers.
Here are some creatures you might find:
Geoduck
Pronounced “gooey-duck,” this is the largest burrowing clam in the world. To find them, look down when you are walking along sandy tidal flats when the tide is at its lowest. Geoduck necks (called siphons) protrude above the sand to probe for plankton and retract quickly when touched. If you find your knees squirted repeatedly out on the tidal flats, the geoduck is a prime suspect. On average, they weigh between one and three pounds, but specimens up to 15 pounds have been recorded.
Cool fact for the young ones: These clams also have a lifespan that can exceed one hundred years.
Red Rock Crab
While you’re more likely to see a geoduck in sandy tidal flats, the red rock crab is prolific on rockier beaches. If you unearth a rock near the water, you might see one of these skittish creatures dart back under the sand in a mad dash for cover. If you’re daring, you can pick one up by grasping the carapace (the body) behind the back legs.
Cool fact: Male and female crabs can be distinguished by looking at the underside of the body – a phallic pattern means it’s a male crab, a more circular pattern means it’s a female.
Gumboot Chiton
You might walk right past the humble gumboot chiton, thinking that the brown sole of a shoe has been left on the beach and has curled up around a rock. Unlike other mollusks, such as clams and mussels, this understated creature doesn’t secrete a shell. Gumboots have leathery bodies that feel a bit like sea stars.
Cool fact: The gumboot isn’t the only mollusk without a shell. Two other shell-less mollusks: the squid and the octopus.
Sunflower Star
The sea star you’re most likely to spot on the beach is known simply as the common star. It comes in many colors, most often purple, pink and orange, and almost always has five legs. The sunflower star is much more rare. It is a carnivorous sea star and boasts 20-24 legs. They are brilliant in color – a truly amazing find on a beach walk. Like other sea stars, the sunflower star essentially “barfs” out its stomach, then wraps around and digests the body of its prey. It then pulls the full stomach back inside its body.
Cool fact: The sea star grows back limbs that have been severed from its body.
Sea Cucumber
The sea cucumber is a close relative of the sea star, but is more elusive. Because they have few defenses against birds and other predators, they carefully hide themselves. To identify a sea cucumber, look under rocks at the very low edge of the beach. Instead of finding the entire body of this animal, you will most likely see the flower-like orange tentacles of the sea cucumber protruding from under a rock or other shelter. These tentacles entrap small prey, bringing them into the stomach to eat.
Cool fact: Many sea cucumber species can control their own buoyancy so they can move back and forth between the surface of the water and the ocean floor.
Aggregating Anemone (Elegant Anemone)
This beautiful creature lives in both sandy and rocky beaches and can make up vast colonies of anemones that can go unnoticed underfoot. Underwater, their beautiful pink-tipped tentacles extend to “sting” and consume prey. When exposed, the tentacles retract and the animals appear to be completely green or brown. They are usually small, up to several centimeters in diameter.
Cool fact: While these guys have stinging cells (nematocysts) on their tentacles, these do not harm humans. They don’t distinguish between humans and their food, however, so they will do their best to hold on to a finger if touched.
Steve Lewis is director of YMCA Camp Colman on the Kitsap Peninsula. Camp Colman offers Outdoor Environmental Education programs in the spring and fall featuring marine biology classes, beach walks and lots of opportunities to find beach creatures.
CORRECTION: This story has been updated since it was first published on June 1 to correct that the lowest tide on the year fell at 11:48 a.m. on June 4, not 6 p.m.
