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As you know, we survived the Great Vicious Fish Attack of 2012, but I have more to share with y'all from that Sarasota, Florida trip. And no, it's not pictures of me in a bikini, I won't traumatize you with that image. Just picture a pasty Shamu in hot pink and you'll have an idea.
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After Himself saved the toadfish from certain death by herding it away from the crushing waves, we had to amuse ourselves on the beach while the vindictive toadfish went back to be among his/her own kind.
Normal people would have walked the beach, but that's too much like exercise for me, so we did what we always do: dug holes in the sand.
I don't know what it is about digging in the sand, but I find it very relaxing.
We were at Turtle Beach, where the shore is coarse and not "sandy" at all. A close look at a handful reveals gazillions of small, various colored shells.
But less than 10 miles up the coast, on the north end of the same key, the sand is totally different. There, on Siesta Beach, the sand is pure white and powdery. A fact that the city never tires of touting.
I like the rough feel of the sand at Turtle Beach better and it's also less crowded and has vindictive fish and stuff, so that's where we go.
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I didn't take the pictures of these fellas because neither I nor Himself wanted to quit digging for them, wipe off our hands, and fish the camera out of the bag. We were having too much fun catching them. (Yes we have the maturity of 11 year-olds.)
Sand fleas burrow just under the sand and they do it very quickly. They're fun to catch and their little feet tickle when they crawl around in your hands.
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Sand fleas don't bite and have no claws. That pointy thing on its underside isn't used for digging either, it's used to protect its tender belly and as an anchor while feeding. It's called a telsor and on the female it also hides her eggs.
And now you can
They would be kind of cute if the word "flea" wasn't in their name. Of course I thought the toad fish was cute too, so maybe my standard of cute is too low?
ReplyDeleteNothing wrong with low standards, especially when it comes to cuteness!
DeleteI'm afraid I can't muster up any affection for the sand flea, or her telsor. I've probably been scarred in regard to insectoids by my high school guidance counselor, who strongly suggested a career as an exterminator due to a love of animals uncovered in my aptitude tests. He also recommended "bus driver," due to my love of people, which is a crock because I hate people. I think maybe he was trying to get fired.
ReplyDeleteI'm glad I didn't post the pictures from the recipes I found online for them!
DeleteAlso, it sounds like we may have gone to the same high school.
i haven't seen these little guys...since i was a kid...frantically digging them up on the beaches of long island, NY.
ReplyDeletedig...wave in...look for bubbles...dig again...put in pail...
aaaaah. but i don't remember the name sand flea...i'm pretty sure we just called them sand crabs.
i guess FLEA is a southern thing...like, uh, no-see-ums and chiggers!! :)
The Bizzare Foods tv guy did a show in Thailand where he ate them fried, and they called them sea cicadas.
DeleteI'll stick with sand crab!
I use my left arm to protect my tender belly and as an anchor while feeding but you don't see me going around giving it some fancy name like "telsor". These sand fleas are kind of full of themselves aren't they?
ReplyDeleteP.S. I too can use my left arm to hide eggs so no big deal their either female sand fleas.
Ha! And where do they get off with a name like telsor? It sounds like the alien king of a hostile planet.
DeleteI am TELSOR, pitiful humans, and I will crush you!
Nature is getting a little too uppity, if you ask me.
We don't have sand crabs in WA, but we did find them on the Oregon coast. They looked similar, but were more grayish - really very prehistoic looking. I like to dig, too, so guess I'm also in the 11 yr. old category... what's a beach for, after all, if not to get all wet & dirty?
ReplyDeleteExactly. You get sandy, go for a swim and rinse it out of all your crevices and then dig some more!
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