Beachcombing is the name for what you are doing when you are noticing or collecting items that have been left on the beach by the waves.
This is an ideal activity for field trips or holidays when we have the time to wander our local beaches and notice what is lying on the sand.
At the New Zealand Marine Studies Centre (NZMSC) we have a wall display of beachcombing findsl
This display is used as part of some of educational programs as well as serving as another way for visitors to connect with marine life whilst at the Centre.
As a marine scientist and a long-time lover of the ocean, I have spent many trips to the beach trying to find shells or other evidence of creatures, I have never found before. I also try to find the same thing in different sizes, trying to find the smallest shells I can, like these two on the NZMSC wall
I have made this display which includes a little bit of information for each species I found.
We at the NZMSC would love it if you could go to your local beach and collect things from the beach that interest you and find a way to display them. How you display them is completely up to you, we’d love to see some creativity.
For some ideas, you could:
- Collect shells or crab moults and make a display for them. You could identify which species you believe the shells or moults belonged to.
- You could make a powerpoint or slide show of footprints in the sand and where you think the footprints may have come from.
- You could create art using your finds like a sculpture or a poster.
Let your inner scientist and imagination run wild with this activity! We are excited to see the results!
Photos of your displays can be emailed to portobello.marinescience@otago.ac.nz don’t forget to tell us what school you go to!