Coastal Guardians Wild on Water

We're down here today to do some rock-pooling.

-So, Jack, what have you found?

-We have found a pie crust crab,

which can grow to an unbelievable size and can also be eaten.

Oh, look, there he is! We've actually got two in there!

So, you can see there, Karen, the pie crust shape on the shell.

-And that's what's Jack's talking about.

-Just like a Cornish pasty!

Exactly right. And they also do grow really, really big

and that's why we eat them - because their claws are full of flesh.

So, they're very popular round here and all around the world to eat.

Nola, what have you found? What did you like?

Well, one of the best things is the butterfish, which is hard to find.

-But it's pretty fun to watch it swim around so fast.

-Which one?

-Have we got one in there?

-Yeah, we've got a couple in here.

There's one absolutely gorgeous orange-coloured one.

They get their name because they're really slippery, like butter.

But they're very special because they can survive

on the coastline here without water for quite a long time.

So, the slimy coating over their skin actually provides moisture

for their gills,

which helps them breathe when they're in the dry.

And they're always mistaken for eels.

So, if you find what looks like an eel,

but has spots on its side, it's definitely a butterfish.

-OK, what else have we got?

-OK, so we've got lots of limpets.

We've got some anemones.

But I'm actually going to have a wee go myself.

-And maybe get your hands a bit dirty?

-Absolutely!

-If you want to help me move back some of this seaweed?

-Uh-huh.

-And see what we can find... Let's see what we've got.

-Oh, look!

Yeah, we have a starfish.

So, this is a common starfish.

They are absolutely common here.

You'll probably find one nearly every time you come down

to the beach. They get a lot bigger than this

but the shoreline is a perfect spot for finding baby starfish.

-They're quite rough little suckers on there, yeah?

-Yeah.

-I'll just pass it over to you. And I can turn him over.

-Oh!

So, underneath here we've got hundreds of little feet

and they move around individually and have little suckers on the end.

So, that's how starfish can stick to rocks.

But it also helps them when they're feeding.

So, what they do is they find a piece of food, like a shellfish,

or a piece of fish, anything they can find,

that's usually quite smelly, and they sit on top of it

and pull the shellfish open with these sticky feet.

And then they do something pretty gross.

-They spit their stomach out on top of their food.

-Ah!

There's not much room in there,

which means they have to digest all the food outside of their body.

-Not such a pretty starfish.

-No.

And when they're finished, it turns into a big fish soup

and they suck it all back in again. So, it's not very pleasant

but it's the way they have to do it to survive.

-He has terrible table manners!

-Yes!

Well, Lewis, what have you found?

-I found a sea anemone.

-A sea anemone?

Very good. And he's stuck to the rock. That's what they do, isn't it?

So, a sea anemone is basically an upside-down jellyfish.

And, you know when they're under the water, all their red tentacles come out.

This one's called a beadlet anemone.

And all around the outside, he's got little blue tentacles,

which he uses for fighting with other anemones.

And I see you've got a limpet here as well?

And these are also stuck to the rock.

So, did you know that limpets actually leave their little spot

in the rock whenever the tide comes up?

And when they go away, they leave a little trail of scent behind,

so that they can find their way back when the tide goes out again.

And that means they always stay in the same spot.

So, if you see a rock with a dark circle in it,

that's called a limpet scar - and that's where the limpet lives.

So, he always comes back.

Jen, Lewis and David are loving all of this.

And we've got to remember, haven't we,

-that this stuff can be found on any rocky shore?

-Yeah.

And every rocky shore will have a different set of animals.

So, you'll never get bored!