wildlife
Friday the 13th Cleanup
Pine Knoll Shores Aquarium
Shackleford Banks
BEACH KEEPERS BEACH CLEAN-UP
FRIDAY MAY, 13
Help keep the Crystal Coast pristine on Friday, May 13 during a public Beach Keepers beach clean-up event. Spend the day removing marine debris from Shackleford Banks with Cape Lookout National Seashore, the Crystal Coast Tourism Authority, Island Express Ferries and the Aquarium. Advance registration is required and participants need to provide their own food, reusable water bottles, and other beach necessities. This free event begins at 7:30 a.m. in Beaufort and will last approximately seven hours, including transportation to and from Shackleford Banks. For those on Instagram, the event will also include an InstaMeet – an opportunity for Instagrammers to come together, share photos, and tell stories about the day.
Help keep the Crystal Coast pristine on Friday, May 13, in a public Beach Keepers clean-up on Shackleford Banks. Join us at 600 Front Street, Beaufort, and spend the day removing marine debris from Shackleford Banks. For those on Instagram, the event will also include an InstaMeet. This is a great project for families or groups with children and is appropriate for anyone ages 8 and up. Be prepared to get wet and dirty!
What to Bring:
Water Shoes
Sunscreen
Lunch and Reusable water bottle
Ages 8 and up, maximum 60 participants
This activity is free
REGISTER HERE:
https://reservations.ncaquariums.com/pineknollshores/Info.aspx?EventID=1015
Ocracoke Island Camping with Drew
My sister, @nelizadrew (www.nelizadrew.wordpress.com) traveled here to the NC coast for a visit. We decided to go camping in Ocracoke for the weekend. Above is a short vid of our journey.
…more to come.
9th Annual Earth and Surf Fest
Keep Onslow Beautiful and several sponsors are gathering to host the 9th Annual Earth & Surf Fest at North Topsail Beach July 4 rain or shine. The event aims to promote waste reduction, litter and marine debris prevention and a healthy lifestyle. This is an environmental awareness event.
Festivities begin with a 7 a.m. registration for the 5K beach run and surf contest. The 5K race on the beach will award prizes to the top overall male and female runners and the first and second place finishers in each age group. The course is an out-and-back course that is run completely on the beach. The start and finish of the race is on beach in front of Onslow Public Beach Public Access #2. Runners will head north about 1.5 miles before turning around and heading back south. T-shirts are available for runners and surfers registered for the event and some will also be available for purchase until supplies run out.
Surf and stand-up paddle boarding contests are being coordinated by On Shore Surf Shop and other sponsors. Registration is available online at http://www.earthandsurffest.com/-surf–sup-registration.html or at the store in Surf City.
Free stand-up paddle board demonstrations plus kayak and canoe demonstrations will be on the sound side and are coordinated by Surf City Paddle Club and the New River Foundation.
A beach yoga class will be at 10 am by Keep Onslow Beautiful committee member and registered yoga teacher, Christina Lewis
A beach cleanup for the entire section of North Topsail and Surf City beaches is also scheduled. A sign up tent (aqua blue/green tent that says “Keep Onslow Beautiful”) will be located at the event. Sign up, pick a location to clean up and venture out. Buckets, gloves, and other materials will be provided. SAT credit hours for high school students will be recorded. Don’t forget to bring forms!
Free live music from Trevor Harris and the Birds, and Pamlico Joe will be featured. WRMR 98.7 Modern Rock and DJ Christine Martinez will also be on-site for a live broadcast and giving out Modern Rock 98.7 coolers until supplies last (mid day).
This is a waste-free event. Everything will be either recyclable or compostable. Recycle and compost bins will be conveniently located. Guests are encouraged to bring reusable water bottles for use at refilling stations located throughout the festival. All activities will also be completely solar powered in keeping with the theme.
It’s all taking place at Beach Access #2, 2950 Island Drive in North Topsail Beach. Additional information is available at: Earth and Surf Fest
Make plans to enjoy the holiday at the Earth & Surf Fest.
Salty Saturday with the Priechenfried Crew
Had a lovely day on the water with the Priechenfried’s (Amy, Carl, and my fav misfit crew of mini pirates) today. Weather was a wee bit windy, but the temp was perfect. We made our way to a little island just North of Bear and just South of EI. It was a very small piece of real estate that we made our home for several hours of grilling and chilling, SUPing, kayaking, and other salty hair and sandy feet activities.
Here is a snippet of our day:
Until next time…
Wishing you all Blue Skies and Calm Seas,
Tangled Up
A few years ago, as seen in this photo, I was doing a beach cleanup at the South end of Topsail Island and came across this Common Loon that was hooked, tangled, and emaciated. I was able to grab him, remove the hook and line, but he was still in bad shape. I took him to Possumwood Acres Wildlife Rehab in Hubert where he recovered and was released. This is not all that uncommon and happens from time-to-time when surf and pier fishing.
This summer, while attending the Southeastern Marine Debris Consortium Workshop in Charleston, I got a text message from a friend, who was pier fishing, with a photo of a Loggerhead Sea Turtle entangled in his line. I immediately sent him a text back asking him not to cut the line, but it was too late.
This is a common problem with fishing, catching something that you don’t intend to. There are few things you can do to avoid catching something you don’t intend to catch when it comes to pier fishing, unless you avoid fishing all together, but you can take steps to save the creature you accidentally captured and prevent future entanglements with the same line (monofilament line doesn’t biodegrade so it is in the marine environment forever) and that line can become a future death trap for even more creatures.
Here are some steps to take if you ever find yourself in this predicament.
1. Don’t PANIC!!
2. Don’t cut the line!!!
FOR BIRDS:
1. Slowly reel the bird in and do not shake the bird loose.
2. Call a local Wildlife Rehabilitation Center.
3. Wear Sunglasses and gloves if you have them to prevent injury – birds are feisty!
4. Tightly grab the bird behind the eyes and hold it’s legs – you may want to fold the wings and straddle the bird with your legs to get him/her under control.
5. Cover the bird’s head. This will to calm him/her down in case you are going to remove the hook yourself, but you can also rely on the Wildlife Rehab Center to do this for you.
6. If the bird is entangled, cut the line only when you have full control of the bird.
7. If you remove the hook and line and the bird looks healthy, release him/her carefully. If the bird looks unhealthy or tired, call the Wildlife Rehab Center.
8. Don’t forget to recycle the line!
FOR OTHER MARINE LIFE including SEA TURTLES:
1. If there are surfers in the water, yell down to them and ask for their help. Most surfers are eager to do so and would be thrilled at the chance. Surfers are already in the water and depending on the size and type of marine life you captured, they can unhook and you are back to fishing in no time.
2. If there are no surfers in the water, simply walk the pole and line down the pier until whatever you caught is on the beach, then have someone help you remove the hook.
3. If it is a Sea Turtle, call the closest Sea Turtle Hospital or Wildlife Rehabilitation Center
4. Report what happened with the local Marine Fisheries Department. They might be interested in the data.
For more information about entanglements, monofilament recycling, and marine debris, please contact the NC Marine Debris Symposium at RidTheSeaOfMarineDebris@gmail.com or go to http://www.ncmarinedebrissyposium.com
Coastinista 