Tuesday, February 9, 2010

Estuary Exploration

By Joshua Hunt
Students of Outdoor Family Adventures had an amazing experience in the shallow waters of Dauphin Island's Estuaries. Their time there included studies like testing the amount of salinity in the estuary water, learning to identify the different types of swamp marsh snails, and using seine nets¹ the catch and observe the local estuary wildlife.



An Estuary is a body of water partly surrounded by land where fresh water from rivers and streams mix with salt water from the ocean. Along with other coastal waters, they provide about 75% of commercial fish catch. They are also an excellent " nursing ground " habitat for young and vulnerable fish.


The student's enjoyed exploring the natural and beautiful habitat we are surrounded by. The wonderful day of enlightenment was finished off with a nice meal in the Dauphin Island Sea Lab cafeteria.
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¹A large fishing net made to hang vertically in the water by weights at the lower edge and floats at the top.

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