The Environment: Shell Island

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Shell Island is an undeveloped island, which lies between the Gulf of Mexico and St. Andrews Bay. It is located in Bay County, Panama City Beach, Florida. It is where the dolphin swim programs take place. The island's pristine beauty and marine environment make Water Planet's expeditions an enjoyable and exciting way to experience dolphins in their natural habitat. If you wish, you will have the opportunity to explore the Island and the back bay, where you will be able to wade or snorkel on the shoals where most grass beds are. The seagrass beds are where most marine life starts. It is the bottom of the food chain. You will be able to collect seashells and to watch wild birds and game.

In the emerald warm waters of Shell Island natural reserve, dolphins initiate contact with humans. These marine mammals are wild and free and have established a privileged relationship with human beings.

Environmental awareness is one of Water Planet's wild dolphin encounters programs' main objectives. Dolphins and other marine life, the fauna and flora found on Shell Island form what is called an ecosystem. Each organism has its own specific place and function in the environment as a whole while interacting with the other elements. The good health of one is dependant of the good health of the other. Dolphins are at the top of the food chain and are a good indicator of the health of their environment and therefore of ours as well. Understanding and respect are the corner stones of wild life protection and conservation. Respect is letting grow and letting be; from the smallest and seemingly most insignificant to the largest manifestation of nature. And that includes respecting oneself as well. During the course of our "expeditions", we will do our best to introduce you to the animals and to the plant life that live on and around Shell Island.

THE BLUE CRAB (Callinectes sapidus):

Derived from the Latin and the Greek: Calli, beautiful; nectes, swimmer; and, sapidus, savory. Literally: the beautiful, savory swimmer. It is the most common edible crab in Florida. It can be found in bays and estuaries in shallow brackish water between the tide line and about a 100 feet of depth. Males have blue tipped claws and females orange tipped claws. You can also tell a male from a female by the shape of their abdomen (skinny and obelisk shaped for males and domed shaped for females). They have 4 pairs of legs and 1 pair of sharp claws. After mating with the male, the female crab will fertilize her own eggs and spawn. To learn more about blue crabs, visit the Blue Crab Links.

Is called ghost because its sandy colour makes it difficult to see. It is very fast, feeds at night, seems to appear out of nowhere and vanishes all of a sudden. Ghost crabs live in burrows on the beach. They stay in their holes for the winter months. They become active at nightfall and run along the beaches to wet thier gills. Though they live in the sand out of the water, they don't breath air directly and need access to the seawater in order to survive. They can produce 3 sounds: a rapping of the claw on the substrate, a rasping stridulation of the legs, and a bubbling sound presumably produced from the gill chamber. Combat between males is highly ritualized and rarely ends with contact.

THE HORSE CONK (Pleuroploca gigantea):

Has been Florida's official state shell since 1969. It is not a conch but belongs to the tulip family. It is the largest conch in the world (sometimes reaching 26 inches long). The Horse Conch will eat any mollosk including ita own kind, but it especially likes to feed on pen shells. Horse conchs live in sandy grass flats where pen shells are numerous.Mature Horse Conchs are very popular with shell collectors. A large shell can fetch up to $100.00. Needless to say that these animals are subject to persecution because of the market value of their shells.

THE SAND DOLLAR (Phylum Echinodermata):

The sand dollar is a hard shell with very little live tissue. The five small holes around the center on the top side are called "gonopores". The live animals emit sperm or eggs into the water through these holes. The flower pattern on the top sideis created by a series of very small slits more clearly visible on the dead shell. When the animal is alive, tiny appendages extend through the small openings to exchange gases with the water. This is how it breathes. The five large slots are called "lunules". They help with burrowing by letting the sand go through. They also allow food particules settling on top to be passed down to the mouth. The teeth are arranged in a starlike pattern and guard the mpouth opening. This chewing system is called "Aristotle's Lantern". Just like the top, the underside of the sand dollar is covered with small spines moving together in a wave-like pattern. They are used to move around and to dig into the sand. Alive, sand dollars are dark brown or purple in color. When they die, the tiny spines fall off and the dead shell turns white. Sand dollars, sea urchins and starfish all belong to the family of Echinoderms.

THE STARFISH (Asteroidea):

The starfish's body is built around 5 points like all the other echinoderms. Starfish have neither head nor tail; neither right side nor left side. they can move in any direction without turning. Most of them have 5 arms or a number of arms multiples of 5. On the inside of the arms are tube like feet ending in tiny suction cups. They feed on mollusks like oysters, clams and other shellfish, which they pin down until the shell opens up. Then the starfish stomach comes out of its mouth and penetrates its victim's shell. The starfish digest its prey on the spot then its stomach retracts back inside through the mouth.

THE SEA HARE(Aplysia brasiliana):

Sea hares look like the big slugs we find in the garden but they live in seawater. Their shell is small and internal. You can often see them by the breakwaters, rocks or seawalls where they graze on seaweed and algae. They swim gracefully with their undulating "wings", which are in reality the extension of their feet. When upset, sea hares release a jet of ink like the octopus or squid in order to escape under the cover of this dark purple cloud.

JELLYFISH:

Several types of jellyfish can be found in Florida waters. Most of them will cause a stinging or burn sensation by accidental contact with your skin. Jellyfish are not looking for people to sting them. It is a defense mechanism and you can avoid contact by steering clear of them in the water. Should you get stung, ammonia, vinegar or meat tenderizer will usually diminish the pain. Antihistamine may be necessary to keep the swelling down if you have allergic reactions.

• -Moon Jelly (Aurelia aurita):

  It is one of the most common jellyfish found on the beach after a high tide or a storm. They can also been seen drifting in the water. They are shaped like a saucer, transparent, white in color with sheens of purple or pink. Moon Jellies are not dangerous for humans though you may experience a sensation of burn or sting for several hours after contact

• -La Cannonball Jellyfish ou Boulet de cannon (Stomolophus meleagris):

  De forme hémisphérique, épaisse et résistante. Elle a une couleur légèrement bleutée ou jaunâtre avec de petites taches brunes le long de ses bords. Elle n'a pas de longues tentacules, et la partie bombée et solide ne pique pas, l'autre bien. Des petits poissons trouvent souvent refuge dans la partie intérieure de la méduse, se protégeant ainsi des prédateurs.

• -Le Comb Jelly (Bolinopsis infundibulum):

  Cet animal n'est en réalité pas une vraie méduse. Il ne pique pas. On le trouve souvent échoué le long des plages ou flottant à la surface. Ils sont petits, fragiles, allongés et ovales, presque totalement transparents et iridescents. Lumineux, ils brillent dans la nuit, dans l'eau ou sur le rivage.

• -Le Portuguese man-of-war (Physalia physalis):

  De couleur bleue pale et rose, iridescente, cette méduse flotte à la surface au moyen de " flotteurs " en forme de ballons remplis de gaz, qui changent de forme selon la direction du vent. Elle possède des tentacules de longueurs différentes, certaines atteignant 18 mètres de long ! Ses tentacules contiennent un des poisons les plus puissants connus parmi les animaux marins et peut causer des brûlures sévères et des cloques, même après la mort de l'animal !

• -Le Lion's Mane (Cyanea capillata):

  C'est la plus large méduse du monde. Des spécimens atteignant presque 3 mètres ont été trouvés ! Le contact avec les tentacules de cette méduse provoque des brûlures sévères et des cloques. Un contact prolongé peut causer des crampes musculaires et des difficultés respiratoires. En forme de cloche, la couleur varie en fonction de l'âge et de la taille de la méduse : rougeâtre à jaune-brun jusqu'à 46 cm, rouge-brun foncé lorsqu'elle devient plus large.

LE PELICAN BRUN (Pelecanus occidentalis):

Larges oiseaux dont l'envergure des ailes est de 2m50, ils sont trapus avec un corps brun foncé, un bec massif et une gorge en forme de poche. La tête des adultes est blanche, celle des jeunes est brun foncé. On le voit souvent reposer son bec sur sa poitrine. Ces oiseaux sont silencieux, à part les colonies de jeunes pélicans dans leurs nids, qui émettent des cris et grognements. Contrairement au Pélican Blanc, c'est un expert en plongée : la plupart du temps il plonge spectaculairement à la poursuite de poissons. Sa poche ne sert pas à stocker ou transporter du poisson mais bien à séparer les poissons de l'eau !

L'ARMADILLO OU TATOU:

Il existe 20 espèces d'armadillos regroupées en 9 " genres " distribués de l'Argentine au Sud-Est des Etats-Unis, l'espèce la plus connue étant le " nine-banded armadillo ".Beaucoup d'armadillos sont nocturnes, ils vivent dans des terriers, parfois solitaires, parfois en groupes. Son nom est dérivé du mot espagnol " armado " qui signifie " arme ". En effet, son corps est fait d'une armure composée de plaques d'os. Sa mâchoire est puissante. Ce sont des mammifères omnivores qui se nourrissent de plantes, insectes et autres invertébrés, ainsi que de petits vertébrés tels que lézards et serpents. Ils nagent très bien et peuvent même marcher dans le fond de l'eau. Lorsqu'ils ont besoin de flotter, ils utilisent leurs intestins comme bouée en les remplissant d'air. La période de reproduction de l'espèce la plus connue est juillet-août. Un seul œuf est fertilisé (mais le développement de l'embryon ne se fait pas immédiatement) et la gestation dure 120 jours. Ils donnent naissance (sauf exception) à 4 jeunes. Tous les jeunes sont absolument identiques car issus du même œuf, et le cordon ombilical de chacun est relié au même placenta!

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