Photo
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...
Video
The great egret is a large white wading bird. Unlike the snowy egret, the great egret has a yellow bill and black legs and feet. This bird is the symbol of the National Audubon Society. Their long...
Photo
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...
Photo
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...
Photo
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...
Video
The mud snail is black, with a very strong shell, and is about 1/2 inch in length. It is an effective scavenger and hundreds of snails will collect around a dead fish or shrimp bait until they...
Photo
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...
Photo
Spot and croaker are closely related fish. They look alike, with light vertical bands, but the spot is named for a dark spot just behind its gill cover. All members of this group of fish make noises...
Photo
Three different species of shrimp are collected commercially from offshore and from the salt marsh. They are the pink shrimp, the brown shrimp, and the white shrimp. They are large, up to 10 inches in...
Photo
Blue crabs are active predators and effective scavengers. They occur throughout the estuary. They can swim by using their last pair of legs, which have been modified into paddles instead of walking...