Salt marshes are found around the world, but the one you are about to tour can be found right here in South Carolina on the North American continent. Salt marshes are located only along the coast. This is because a salt marsh is an area that is flooded by saline (salty) water. The salt marshes are better developed as you move farther south in South Carolina.
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The tricolored heron is bluish on the back and wing, white on its belly and throat, and reddish-brown on the back of its neck and head. This medium-sized heron is the most common heron of the salt...
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Boldly patterned in black and white, the stocky American oystercatcher is hard to mistake. It has long red legs and a large red bill. As the name suggests, they feed mainly on oysters, although they...
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Several different annelids are associated with the oyster reef, but the spaghetti worm is one of the largest and most spectacular. The spaghetti worm lives in a burrow of mud that it builds among the...
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The sun sponge is named for its unusual lifestyle. It is one of the very few sponges that can tolerate exposure to the sun and air. Nearly every other sponge will die when air gets into its body. Most...
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The Eastern oyster occurs along the entire East Coast, from Canada to the West Indies. It varies somewhat in habitat along this area. Oysters build reefs because the young oysters, called spat, are...
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The most abundant animals in the plankton are copepods, such as the one pictured. As adults, they are less than 1 millimeter in length. The abundance and diversity of plankton species are highest in...
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Fungi are the only kingdom of life not represented in the plankton. Bacteria have only recently been demonstrated to exist in great abundance as our sampling gear has improved enough to capture these...
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Snowy egrets are smaller versions of the great egret. They have white feathers, black legs with yellow feet, and a black bill. Snowies sometimes wade slowly through shallow water, stirring the mud...
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Detritus is the collection of dead stems of Spartina and other things that float. This combination of materials floats up in the marsh during high tides, and winds often drive it ashore, where it...
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The bay anchovy is the most numerous fish in the estuaries of South Carolina. They are food to larger fish and to many birds. Anchovies are specialized to feed on plankton. They have a huge mouth and...
