Beside The Seaside

Those of you who know me of old, are fully aware that I'm rarely happier than when I'm beside the seaside. Particularly when there are rock pools involved. Today we're off to Lowca beach where marine molluscs and crustaceans await us, plenty of birds on the shoreline, and some interesting plants to observe and maybe eat later on.

Let's start with the molluscs. Collecting seashells is a worldwide hobby, there's even an International Seashell Collectors Club. Most of these are Gastropods, as are the slugs and snails that you find on land. The exception is the mussel which is a bivalve, as are oysters, clams and scallops. These have two half shells joined with a hinge. Besides the mussels, we have limpets who's claim to fame is their teeth (of which they have 100 rows) that are the hardest known biological substance on earth. We also have some Common Periwinkles, Atlantic Dogwhelks and even a little Top Snail.

There are quite a few crab carcases on the tide line too. Despite its deep orange colour this one is known as the European Green Shore Crab, or variations on that name. Here in the UK, for example, we refer to them simply as shore crabs. This is a very invasive species. Native to the European and North African Atlantic coasts, including the North and Baltic Seas, it has now spread as far as the Pacific coast of North America and the coasts of Australia and New Zealand.

As we've been walking along we've had a couple of Sand Martins darting about which have arrived from their overwintering grounds in southern and east Africa. Our friends the Oystercatchers are patrolling the shore line whilst, rootling about on the tide line is a Ringed Plover with his distinctive bright orange legs. There's a small stream running down ont the beach where a Common Sandpiper is investigating. You can tell that ity's a Common Sandpiper because the white breast feathers extend all the way up to the shoulder. We also have a Rock Pipit, obligingly standing on a rock, and in the hinterland behind us, a Linnet is surveying the ground from his vantage point atop a woody shrub.

Looking behind us, there is a great swathe of greenery which will be very pretty later in the year as it is all Japanese Rose. Unfortunately, this is another of those invasive species, which you may remember, we discussed up the coast at Siddick Ponds, earlier in the year. There are also some edible plants down here. There is Rock Samphire growing on the back wall (not to be confused with Marsh Samphire which is entirely different). For my thoughts on the edibility of Rock samphire see Snakeless in Sisi. We also have some Sea Kale. The blanched shoots of these were a Victorian delicacy and one of the most expensive vegetables around at the time. The leaves are also edible but they are very strong in flavour, to the point of being almost unpalatable in the case of the larger leaves. The smaller leaves can be cooked the same as you would for curly kale. Despite their names, Sea kale is more closely related to cabbage and chard than to Curly kale.

It looks like Jack has found a Sea Slater and isn't quite sure what to do with it. These are common inhabitants of the littoral zone (the beach and the hinterland behind it) and, as you can see, it looks like a woodlouse, to which it is closely related. The term louse is a misnomer as they are not lice at all (which are insects) but isopods which are a type of crustacean, the same as crabs and lobsters. (Woodlice and Sea Slaters are covered in pages 56-57 of The Quick Guide to Creepy-Crawlies)

That about wraps it up for today. Oh, I do love to be beside the seaside.

See you next week

Steve

#CumbriaNature

Steve's Books

The Quick Guide to Creepy-Crawlies All you need to know to identify any type of insect, spider, worm or snail very simply and find out more about it. Yvonne: This was a gift for a family so that the children can understand what they see on days out. The second was for me. Logical and easy to use. If you know anyone who likes nature you can be confident that gifting this book will give years of pleasure.
The Eggs of Saramova A science fiction novella for those who don't like science fiction. A fast-paced thriller that is, literally, out of this world (and it starts right here in Crete). Too new for reviews yet!	£7.50 Paperback edition
Not Just For Twisted Women by Steve Daniels  A light-hearted look at life through the eyes of the fairer sex. Janet: If you are short on time but enjoy reading and are maybe not into long extended novels then Not Just For... Twisted Women provides readers with concise stories that stand alone and most certainly entertain with their ultimate twists. Loved it. Helen: A very good read! Well written and entertaining! Margaret: Each quick tale gives a glimpse into a character's life and has an often humorous twist at the end. I would love to read more. Yvonne: These days many people find it hard to find the time to read a novel, so this book of short stories is ideal to dip into. It is also makes a good gift.	£4.99 Paperback edition

See sample pages of all my books and latest blogs, and keep abreast of latest publications here: http://author.to/SteveDaniels

Crete Nature Catch-up
Series 1 - Welcome to Lasithi	Series 2 - The Rhythm Of Life	Series 3 - A Journey Begins
Series 4 - The Milonas Valley	Series 5 - This Is Ferma	Series 6 - Upland Villages
Series 7 - The Forty saints	Series 8 - Sunday Strolls	Series 9 -Stormy Weather

*********************************************************************

LINKS:

Share your nature thoughts, photos and comments on Naturalists (the facebook page that accompanies this blog)

Life on the Littoral

One of the major ecotourist attractions on the south east coast of Crete is Red Butterfly Gorge which we visited back in February 2014. Much less visited, but still worthy of our attention, is the narrow strip of land opposite the gorge entrance, between the road and the sea. The sea shore, the cliffs and the cliff tops constitute a habitat called the littoral zone and today we are going to look for life on the littoral.

This is one of the hottest and driest areas on the island, the ground is stony and the vegetation is sparse; hardy pines, mastic bushes and thyme predominate but, here and there, sunshine yellow Fumana flowers burst through. It is also a favourite haunt of grasshoppers, such as this Calliptamus (he of the rear end pincers for use in mating) which we met in the Uplands in October 2016.

That isolated beach down there is where we want to get to next, and there would appear to be no obvious route. We did, however, cross a tiny gully a little while back, which would seem to be a good place to start. If you want to get to the sea; follow the water course. Some very spiny and scratchy plants on the way through but, not to worry, the blood will wash off in the sea and we have loads of rock pools to explore.

OK, so we burnt our feet on the sand, the rock pools were alternately razor sharp then smooth and slippery, and we only found a few Sea Slaters. Life’s like that sometimes. Thalassotherapy time - we’ll sit and watch the waves crashing in for a bit and then try further down the coast.

What a difference a few hundred yards makes. That, and the fact that the stream which flows through Butterfly Gorge reaches the sea at this point, means that there is a lot more going on here. We have some beautiful Silverleaf Nightshade, Solanum elaeagnifolium, and exploring the leaves, a Blister Beetle, Mylarbis kodymi. Interestingly, both the plant and the beetle can be poisonous to horses. I wonder if there’s a connection?

Moving on, and we have a marvellous spread of Globe Thistles, Echinops spinosissimus. These are really attracting the Hymenopterans this morning, in particular, Honey Bees, Apis melifera, and Mammoth Wasps Megascolia maculata. These are well named; worker bees are 10-15mm long, Mammoth Wasps are 4 to 6 times bigger at 60mm! I have read that they have a sting to match, but like most animals; ‘you leave them be and they’ll leave you be’, as my grandmother taught me.

Note: If you do get stung, the Hymenoptera page of The Quick Guide To Creepy-Crawlies has a medical treatment section. What do you mean, you haven’t bought a copy yet? Come along, come along, what else are you going to do with all that money you’ve saved over the last three months?

As it is now getting extremely hot, I suggest that we sit in the shade of this Tamarisk tree and explore the world at our feet. The most obvious thing is this mat of red foliage, giving the landscape a somewhat Martian appearance. It is the Slender Iceplant, Mesambryanthemum nodiflorum. Wikipedia declares this to be “native to Israel, Palestine, and Jordan, as also endemic to southern Africa.” This confuses me a bit because, to the best of my knowledge, a native plant exists naturally in the named areas (e.g. Israel, Palestine and Jordan) whereas, an endemic plant exists naturally only in the named area (e.g. southern Africa). By my logic a plant cannot be both endemic and native to different areas. Thoughts and clarification from any etymologically inclined botanists please. 

And on that little puzzler we’ll make our way back to the car as we have a lunchtime get together to attend in order to celebrate the re-opening of tavernas, post lockdown. Do not confuse the little bottles of hand sanitizer with the little bottles of raki.

And finally… I’ve had a lot of correspondence recently from people discovering giant spiders in their houses. I too, have had one as a house guest recently. They are Huntsman spiders, Eusparassus walckenaeri. Firstly, they are totally harmless to us humans so don’t throw your slipper at them. They are useful in the house because they eat insects and are particularly partial to the odd cockroach. If you have an inherent abhorrence of spiders this is a good one to get to know. It likes to live high up on walls and on the ceiling (so you always know where it is and it is not going to surprise you by suddenly appearing from under a cushion, or running across your feet). It is also large enough to be regarded as a small pet, like a mouse. Say hello and then leave it be, it will leave you be, in return.

See sample pages of all my books and latest blogs, and keep abreast of latest publications here: http://author.to/SteveDaniels

Steve's Books

The Quick Guide to Creepy-Crawlies All you need to know to identify any type of insect, spider, worm or snail very simply and find out more about it. Yvonne: This was a gift for a family so that the children can understand what they see on days out. The second was for me. Logical and easy to use. If you know anyone who likes nature you can be confident that gifting this book will give years of pleasure.
The Eggs of Saramova A science fiction novella for those who don't like science fiction. A fast-paced thriller that is, literally, out of this world (and it starts right here in Crete). Too new for reviews yet!
Not Just For Twisted Women by Steve Daniels  A light-hearted look at life through the eyes of the fairer sex. Janet: If you are short on time but enjoy reading and are maybe not into long extended novels then Not Just For... Twisted Women provides readers with concise stories that stand alone and most certainly entertain with their ultimate twists. Loved it. Helen: A very good read! Well written and entertaining! Margaret: Each quick tale gives a glimpse into a character's life and has an often humorous twist at the end. I would love to read more. Yvonne: These days many people find it hard to find the time to read a novel, so this book of short stories is ideal to dip into. It is also makes a good gift.

Crete Nature Catch-up
Series 1 - Welcome to Lasithi	Series 2 - The Rhythm Of Life	Series 3 - A Journey Begins
Series 4 - The Milonas Valley	Series 5 - This Is Ferma	Series 6 - Upland Villages
Series 7 - The Forty saints	Series 8 - Sunday Strolls	Series 9 -Stormy Weather

*********************************************************************

LINKS:

Share your nature thoughts, photos and comments on Naturalists (the facebook page that accompanies this blog)

Explore the region with the #CreteNature interactive Hiking and Nature Map

Cretan Flora Flowers of Crete BIRDS OF CRETE Crete Birding

Greek Butterflies and Moths Aquaworld Aquarium

Visit Greece (National Government Tourist Office)