Dear Peggy and Art,
I agree that beach renourishment may well be a problem for intertidal
creatures. But this is not an example of governnment regulating us. It
would be an example of government serving the needs of real estate and
business interests and not the general public or the environment. I would
suggest that perhaps more regulation on the side of the PUBLIC interest is
warranted.

There's a provocative book called The Corps and the Shore by Orrin Pilkey
and Katharine Dixon (Island Press, 1996) that explains that beaches don't
disappear, they are moving landward as sea levels rise. (Pilkey has also
produced some videos, including one that helps seaside homeowners cope with
having vulnerable property). But hotel- and home-owners and real estate
folks insist on having buildings where the shorelines are inevitably
creeping (actually the change occurs not so gradually when there's a
hurricane or nor'easter). So jetties and groins are built and millions are
spent for temporary fixes like "renourishment." Pilkey and Dixon argue that
these measures are destructive of the shoreline and they provide
illustrations.

Art: Pilkey and Dixon focus an entire chapter on Folly Beach as a prime
example of the consequences of seawalls, jetties and beach replenishment.
I'm curious about your before-and-after dates for the changes you've
noticed. P & D say that by the mid-1980s the Army Corps of Engineers
estimated that over 50% of Folly Beach erosion was due to Charleston Harbor
jetties and therefore replenishment was owed to Folly Beach.

For people that care about beaches, The Corps and the Shore is well worth
reading. (In the interests of full disclosure, Kathy Dixon is a friend of
mine).

--David K., finding fewer micro shells these days
Durham, NC




>I wouldn't be surprised if beach renourishment is the problem with the
>olives and coquinas, especially in urban areas like Jacksonville Beach.
>Just think of all the littoral species (olives, coquinas, olivellas, etc)
>being covered up by all that sand, never to emerge. They have to have some
>time to recover by recruitment, but by the time they've started, the beach
>is eroded again and the city decides it needs more sand and the process
>begins again. It bugs me that people think shell collectors are to blame
>when wholesale destruction like this is caused by the government that wants
>to regulate us!
>
>On to low tides. I had a small group shelling west Florida these past few
>days, and saw more exposed flats than I have ever seen. We went to Cedar
>Key, the Sunshine Skyway at St Petersburg, Sarasota Bay, and Goodland (near
>Marco) and were exhausted covering the areas. However, I wouldn't say there
>were more shells collected than usual or more species uncovered. I was a
>little disoriented, expecting certain species such and such a distance from
>the water, when the water was farther away from their territory than usual,
>so I was actually looking in the wrong places.
>
>By the way, there were plenty of olives (in the bays, where no one places
>extra sand) and an unusual abundance of baby's ears in St Pete.
>
>We did have wonderful weather, however, mostly warm (except this morning,
>and that wasn't bad). Though the earliest tides were before dawn, we
>enjoyed watching the sun come up while we walked. The bird watching was
>superb, too. What a hobby!
>
>Happy holidays to everyone
>
>Peggy
>
>>I've notices that in the 12 years that I have been collecting shells along a
>>stretch of breach along the Florida east coast (between Cape Canaveral and
>>Sebastian Inlet) that there are almost no olive shells (Oliva spp, esp.
>>Oliva syana) anymore.  You can rarely find a fresh specimen and what does
>>wash up is old.  It does not appear to be related to an increased collection
>>rate (i.e. from more people picking them off the beach), because I have
>>access to beaches on Cape Canaveral Air Station which is off limits to the
>>public and has equally low numbers of olives.
>
>                     Visit my website at http://www.shelltrips.com
>                                  Peggy Williams
>                                   Shell Elegant
>                                    PO Box 575
>                                Tallevast FL 34270
>                                   (941) 355-2291
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