all about the water
December 2016
Merry Christmas!
Merry�Christmas!
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I n the T ides
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05 Editor’s Note 06 Community Updates 08 Ebb & Flow 09 Taste of the Tides 10 Gray’s Reef 11 Did You Know? 12
Lowcountry 101
16
The Season of Giving
18 New Black Gill Research 20 River of Words 22 The Bitter End
I asked Erin Weeks, with the SC DNR, for an idea for our Did You Know? feature that had a Christmas feel. She suggested the Christmas tree worm. I’d never heard of such a critter and when I looked it up, I knew I wanted to put one on the cover! We prefer to use photos by local photographers throughout the magazine and don’t normally purchase images from “stock” photo sites. But this colorful little guy was too cute, and too fitting, not to. To learn more, check out Did You Know? on page 11. Photo by John A. Anderson/Shutterstock December 2016
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Captain Tripp Lang’s Charters Staff Publisher/Editor – Amy Thurman amy@southerntidesmagazine.com Assistant Editor - Amelia Dence amelia@southerntidesmagazine.com The Bitter End Columnist - Captain J. Gary “Gator” Hill jgaryhill@gmail.com
Inshore Fishing & Sightseeing Cruises 912-674-1085 or 912-674-0838
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Gray’s Reef Contributor - Michelle Riley michelle.riley@noaa.gov Ebb & Flow Columnist - Trey Leggett info@southerntidesmagazine.com Taste of the Tides Chef - Forrest Westendorf info@southerntidesmagazine.com Contributing Writer - Dorothy Ingram doryingram@gmail.com Writing & Photography Contributors - John and Lisa Holden jpholden56@gmail.com Many thanks to Ray Sawyer for proofing multiple pages in this issue. If you still find mistakes, the fault lies with the editor, not with Ray!
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Copyright © 2015-2016 All content herein is copyright protected and may not be reproduced in whole or part without express written permission. Southern Tides is a free magazine published monthly and can be found at multiple locations from St. Marys, GA, to Beaufort, SC. PO Box 30724 Wilmington Island, GA 31410 (912) 484-3611 info@southerntidesmagazine.com www.SouthernTidesMagazine.com Visit us on Facebook at facebook.com/pages/southern-tides-magazine Follow us on Instagram at southerntides_mag Follow us on Twitter at Tides_Magazine Southern Tides Magazine is printed by Walton Press, Monroe, GA
To subscribe, mail check for $25.00, payable to Southern Tides Magazine, to the address above. Subscription is for one year/12 issues. Thank you for your support! 4
SouthernTidesMagazine.com December 2016
E ditor’s N ote
Instead of going to a department store to get a new dress for an occasion, you go to a privately-owned shop. Instead of going to the large chain retailer for boat parts or fishing gear, you go to the local boating supply store. This isn’t an effort to put big chains out of business. They have a place in the community too, in providing employment for local residents, providing choices, and that $.14 still feeds local coffers. And I’m a firm believer in capitalism! But I’m also a firm believer in supporting each other and taking care of our own communities first. So, as you head out shopping this holiday season, ask yourself if any of your purchases could be made at local, privately-owned stores and shop locally. And speaking of supporting each other and taking care of our own communities, let’s not forget that this is the season of giving. In today’s materialistic world, it’s become almost second nature to spend a ton of money on things to give our family and friends. But there are other gifts that can be beneficial, such as contributing to a friend’s favorite charity in his or her name, giving a family member a membership to an organization that has special meaning to that person, or even getting together with your family or a group of friends and volunteering your time. There are countless organizations in our coastal communities and even nationally to choose from. We’ve put together a list of not-for-profit organizations (see page 11) to give you ideas. From all of us at Southern Tides, we wish all of you safe, happy and peaceful holidays.
W
hile driving home the other day, I heard a spot on SC 103 radio that made my jaw drop. It was a promotional spot for shopmorelocal.com, a Beaufort, SC, based non-profit initiative set up to “help local businesses to recover from the impact of Hurricane Matthew.” This particular radio promo stated that if every household in Beaufort County were to divert $20 of their regular spending from a national chain to a local business once a week, it would mean a $67.7 million per year impact on the community. Yep, you read that right. $67.7 MILLION. Another radio spot by the Jasper County Chamber of Commerce stated that $.70 of every dollar spent at local businesses stays in the community, as opposed to only $.14 of every dollar spent at national chains. That’s also incredibly significant. Although I haven’t heard any information about shopping local in Georgia (I mostly listen to SC 103 because they play music from my generation, what you young folks refer to as “oldies” but those of us in my age range refer to as 80s music), I’ve learned that the $.70 to $.14 ratio is fairly standard across the board. And the $20 per household is easy enough to calculate. County
Households
Weekly Impact
Annual Impact
Beaufort
65,054
$1.3 mil
$67.7 mil
Bryan
11,231
$225 k
$11.7 mil
Camden
18,560
$371 k
$19.3 mil
Chatham
103,807
$2 mil
$108 mil
Glynn
31,743
$635 k
$33 mil
Jasper
8,749
$175 k
$9 mil
Liberty
22,863
$457 k
$23.7 mil
4,991
$99 k
$5.2 mil
McIntosh
Merry Christmas & Happy New Year!
$20 per week, per household adds up to serious revenue for our local businesses and in turn our local communities. Household data from www.census.gov
But what does that really mean? It doesn’t mean you need to go spend more money just to support your local economy. What it means is that instead of going to a national chain book store to pick up a gift for a friend, you go to a local bookstore. December 2016
SouthernTidesMagazine.com
Amy Thurman
Editor-In-Chief
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amy@southerntidesmagazine.com
Community Updates Southern Tides Welcomes New Contributors
You may have noticed some new names in this, and recent, issues of the magazine. Trey Leggett (pictured at right) joined us with the October issue and shared his love for kayak fishing in Ebb & Flow (page 8). This Army Veteran and law enforcement officer loves to fish – for stress relief, as well as for the challenge and excitement. A lifelong fisherman, he’s thrown a line in the water in many different locations but finds Coastal Georgia the most challenging. He’s a member of Georgia’s Finfish Advisory Panel, fishes for the Hobie Fishing Team, and has a deep respect for our sustainable fishery. While Ebb & Flow will mostly pertain to fishing, he’ll occasionally wander off the path and share other thoughts and musings with us. Looking forward to it! You might recall three stunning photos of shore birds in the table of contents last month, by John Holden. This 32-year career Marine (retired) and his wife, Lisa (pictured at left), residents of Beaufort, SC, have agreed to join Southern Tides as regular contributors. As LowCountry Institute-trained Master Naturalists, they look forward to sharing their appreciation of the lowcountry with articles and photographs on the South Carolina end of our coast. With Lisa serving as spotter and John as the shutter man, and their combined voices that are both easy to read and entertaining (as you can see from their article on page 12), we look forward to more great content from them! Forrest Westendorf (pictured at right) joins us this month in the new “Taste of the Tides” (page 9). He’s currently the kitchen supervisor at the Savannah Yacht Club and prior to that, was the lead grill chef at the Mansion on Forsyth. An impressive resume from this young man who obviously loves to cook. He’s agreed to bring us a new seafood recipe, and occasionally other traditional Southern fare, each month. If there’s anything you’d particularly like to try, let us know! All of our writers and photographers work all water hard to bring you interesting and informative content each month. Please let them know E when you particularly enjoy a piece by sending them an email – their addresses can always be found on page 4. Everyone needs a little positive feedback on occasion! Lastly, it is with regret that we bid farewell to Amelia Dence, who joined the staff as an intern in January and stepped up to Assistant Editor in April. In the year she’s been with us, she’s brought great content, great ideas, and been incredibly dedicated S to the success of the magazine. We’re deeply grateful for her many contributions and wish her the very best in all her future endeavors! about the
ST
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Petition Commissioner Hudgens to Waive Deductible
Insurance Consultant Andrew Barile recently reached out to Southern Tides Magazine to ask that our readers be informed of an initiative to help homeowners affected by Hurricane Matthew. All readers are encouraged to write to Insurance Commissioner Ralph Hudgens and ask him to waive the two percent Hurricane Deductible charged by most insurance companies. This higher deductible, which could be as much as $5,000, on top of the expense of a mandatory evacuation, is not economically feasible for many homeowners. Hudgens has the power to waive the deductible and force insurers to bare more of the loss. Please send your letters to: Commissioner Ralph T. Hudgens Office of Insurance & Safety Fire Commissioner Two Martin Luther King Jr. Drive West Tower, Suite 704 Atlanta, GA 30334 6
SouthernTidesMagazine.com December 2016
CCA Donates Generators to WMC Keeping the aeration pumps running to ponds that house
thousands of fish at the Waddell Mariculture Center (WMC) in Bluffton, SC requires uninterrupted power; a need that has long been recognized yet unanswered. Until now. Because of the important scientific research and stocking of many recreationally important species of fish, Coastal Conservation Association (CCA) South Carolina stepped in recently to provide two generators large enough to keep all 25 outdoor fish ponds on the WMC’s grounds going in the event of power outages. The recreational angling advocacy group believes in the work being done at WMC and like several other important habitat and research programs, they have provided vital equipment, material for reefs, manpower for habitat restoration, and funding now exceeding $200,000 in the last six years. “For the mariculture center to maintain uninterrupted production systems is important. Because our work with several recreationally important marine species is seasonal, the loss of electrical service for a period of time jeopardizes our important work. These generators donated by CCA South Carolina will significantly reduce that risk and allow our researchers and scientists’ to continue their studies unimpeded,” said Al Stokes, SC DNR. “As part of our on-going commitment to improving marine habitat and our support of science based fisheries
CCA Members and Waddell Mariculture Center staff with the two donated generators. Photo provided by WMC
management, providing this equipment was an investment that our state board knew would further both of those causes,” said Richard Berry, CCA South Carolina State Chairman. “Given the impressive track record of scientific study and research to come out of this facility, we know this will pay dividends to recreational angling and fisheries management for years to come.”
Georgia DNR Offers Marine Habitat Tag The Georgia DNR is now offering a new marine habitat license plate featuring a redfish, designed by Cobb County, GA graphic artist Omar Murcia. The design was one of three that Georgia residents were given the opportunity to vote on earlier this year. Sales of the plate will support the Coastal Resources Division programs to enhance marine habitat in Georgia’s estuaries and the adjacent ocean. (See ad on page 15) The cost of the plate will be $25. Of that, $19 will go to the marine habitat enhancement fund, $1 will go to the issuing tag office, and $5 will go into the state treasury. Pre-order for 1000 plates must be received before the plate can go into production. Please visit coastalgadnr.org/preorder and click the link to preorder your plate and help support our marine habitat.
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Ebb & F low
The Speckled Beauty By Trey Leggett
S
ome have argued that redfish, also known as spottail bass, are the favorite catch amongst inshore anglers from the Carolinas to Texas. Although the redfish puts up a formidable fight, can have numerous spots, and can be a stunning copper color, it still cannot outshine its cousin, the speckled trout. These trout have brilliant variations of blue and green colors, mottled with an array of spots all over their upper bodies, fins, and tail. Being a predatory hunter, the speckled trout has two large canine teeth they use to grab their prey. Larger trout have the distinction of having a yellowish color to their lips and inner mouth; these trout are known to many anglers as “yellow mouths.” Small trout forage on minnows, shrimp, and other small crustaceans, while larger trout prefer a diet of mullet, pinfish, and croaker. Speckled trout have been known to eat mullet over half their own length. Trout in Coastal Georgia typically range in size from 13 to 21 inches. They do grow bigger in our area, but the typical angler usually targets the smaller schooling sizes of 14 to 18 inches. Speckled trout prefer live oyster beds, grass, creek mouths, and drop-offs. They seem to follow the tides in and out, chasing bait opportunities as they go. P r e fe r r e d methods of catching speckled trout are a light to medium rod and reel setup using a popping cork and live shrimp on a Kahle hook. Some anglers use this same method but with mud minnows or finger mullet. Personally, I use a mediumlight action rod and smaller spinning reel to throw small, Trey with a beautiful speckled trout. artificial shrimp and Photo provided by Trey Leggett soft, plastic bait fish on a one-eighth ounce jig head. I also enjoy catching them on topwater lures (walk the dog action) or hard, suspending jerk baits. Speckled trout are usually found in the mid- to upper portions of the water column. Predawn and twilight hours, or overcast days, are your best bet for topwater lure action. There’s nothing like having a speckled trout suck your lure into its mouth from underneath, dive-bomb on top of it, or knock it 10 feet into the air. Due to our extreme tidal fluctuations, you’ll sometimes have to troll around to find the trout. I use my Hobie Miragedrive Pro Angler 14 and pedal an area, either trolling or blind casting until I find some fish; then I’ll stake out and fish until the bite turns off. Don’t forget that fish net to scoop up your catch when close to the kayak or boat. Speckled trout violently shake their heads side to side when you have them hooked up and can easily spit a hook. Make sure you check your state’s regulation for speckled trout. Georgia regulations are a minimum of 14 inches, with no upper slot, and a daily limit of 15 trout, per person, per day. Ensure that your fishing license is up to date and that you have your Saltwater Information Program (SIP) permit. Then enjoy catching the prettiest inshore fish we have. Trey fishes for Hobie Kayak Fishing, Hobie Polarized Sunglasses, SouthEast Adventure Outfitters, and Coastal Georgia Kayak Fishing. Email: info@southerntidesmagazine.com 8
SouthernTidesMagazine.com December 2016
Taste of the Tides
Crab Gratin
By Forrest Westendorf Kitchen Supervisor
Southern Tides is pleased to bring you a Taste of the Tides, in which we’ll feature a different recipe each month. We’ll start off with Forrest’s delicious Crab Gratin – perfect for holiday parties!
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INGREDIENTS 2 lbs crab meat, jumbo lump ½ lb unsalted butter, cut into cubes 1 ½ cups onion, minced 1 cup celery, diced small 1 cup red pepper, diced small 1 ½ cups all-purpose flour 2 cups milk 4 cups heavy cream 2 cups parmesan, grated 2 tbsp lemon juice 2 tsp hot sauce 1 tsp Worcestershire 4 tsp creole or Cajun seasoning Salt and pepper to taste
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Crab Augratin with toasted French bread. Photo by Forrest Westendorf
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INSTRUCTIONS
• Add four tbsp butter and onions to medium sauce pan. Cook gently until onions are tender and translucent. Add celery and green peppers, cook an additional three minutes. Remove from heat and reserve. • In medium sauce pan, melt remaining butter over medium heat. Add flour and mix well. Add milk and heavy cream. Cook over low heat for 10 minutes, stirring constantly. Add parmesan cheese, lemon juice, hot sauce, Worcestershire, and creole/Cajun seasoning. Stir until cheese is melted. Season with salt and pepper to taste. Remove from heat and reserve. • Combine onion mixture with cream mixture. Add crab meat, toss gently to combine. • Taste, add salt and pepper as needed. • Serve with sliced, toasted French bread.
Enjoy! December 2016
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Now allowing DIY bottom prep & painting! Marina: (912) 897-2896 Boatyard: (912) 897-1914 606 Wilmington Island Road Savannah, GA 31410
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Stitching Together Gray’s Reef By Michelle Riley
Communications and Outreach Coordinator Gray’s Reef National Marine Sanctuary Foundation
G
ray’s Reef National Marine Sanctuary (GRNMS) is part of a sanctuary system effort to create never-before-seen 360-degree panoramic views of America’s national marine sanctuary sites. Recently, trained photographers from the Florida Keys, Hawaiian Islands Humpback Whale, and Monterey Bay National Marine Sanctuaries traveled to Savannah to instruct four GRNMS staff members on using the high-resolution underwater photographic system. Together, the team took preliminary shots of the unique ledge habitats and marine life in Gray’s Reef. “Using the new technology is relatively easy, but you have to concentrate on your composition and field of view,” said Chris Hines, deputy superintendent of Gray’s Reef, who learned to use the system. “These images will be stitched together to form seamless 360-degree virtual reality scenes of Gray’s Reef for the first time.” The current collaboration is with The Ocean Agency and follows from an initial project called the XL Catlin Seaview Survey, an effort to create a global survey of corals reefs around
the planet, including four national marine sanctuaries. Sponsored by international insurer XL Catlin Group Limited, the Seaview Survey is a scientific study to conduct a rapid assessment of the current state of coral reef systems and to make the scientific record publicly available for scientists worldwide to use. This new collaboration with The Ocean Agency is focused on creating virtual reality images for all national marine sanctuaries to support sanctuary science, education and outreach programs across the system. “This technology provides us with a 360-degree image, a visual aid that will serve as a baseline of what Gray’s Reef looks like today, allowing us to clearly see changes to the reef as time goes by,” said Sarah Fangman, superintendent of Gray’s Reef NMS. “To have a tool that visually documents the state of Gray’s Reef is immensely valuable in managing the sanctuary and ensuring its health and viability.” Gray’s Reef and the Office of National Marine Sanctuaries will make the virtual reality images available on various internet platforms so that scientists, educators and the general public can use them for their own purposes. Gray’s Reef divers will shoot a second round of photos soon, and sanctuary staff are eager to share the photos with the public. “Gray’s Reef is too far away and too deep for most people to visit,” says Fangman. “Thanks to this unique technology, everyone will be able to see Gray’s Reef like divers see it, in 360!” To learn more about this cutting-edge project, visit The Ocean Agency website at http://www.theoceanagency.org/ projects-1-1-3/ and Google’s underwater streetview at https:// www.google.com/streetview/#oceans. To learn more about the Office of National Marine Sanctuaries’ participation, visit http:// go.usa.gov/x85Yb and stay tuned to Gray’s Reef’s Facebook and Twitter pages, and our website.
Email: michelle.riley@noaa.gov
This test photo of a ledge at Gray’s Reef includes multiple images taken with the 360° technology that have been stitched together. Photo provided by GRNMS
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There’s a worm that looks like a Christmas Tree! • The Christmas tree worm (Spirobranchus giganteus), is a polychaete, with two plumes, or crowns, that protrude from the worm’s body. The crowns are composed of radioles, hair-like appendages that radiate out from the central spine. The crowns appear to be miniature Christmas trees perched atop live coral.
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• The two crowns are visible while the rest of the worm resides in a tube composed of calcium carbonate, secreted by the worm. The tube is embedded in live coral, typically brain coral. At full maturity, the crowns are only about one and a half inches tall, while the tubes can be up to eight inches long. • The tube serves as a home and as protection for the worm. When it senses movement in the water nearby, the crowns withdraw into the tube, which seals with an operculum, similar to a trap-door. Usually after a minute or so the crowns will reemerge. • These worms are filter feeders. Phytoplankton and other small particles are captured in the radioles and passed to the worm’s mouth. • Christmas tree worms are found in many colors, including pink, red, orange, yellow, blue, and white. • Christmas tree worms and other polychaetes have no natural predators and can live as long as 40 years. Polychaetes make up about 8000 of the 9000 known species of annelid worms.
The Waterline Up crew would like to thank all of our loyal customers for your business!
Date compiled by Amy Thurman Photo above by Nick Hobgood/Creative Commons Photo on left provided by NOAA Photo below by Octopus Diving/Creative Commons
December 2016
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Waterline Up is proud to support our coastal boating community and Southern Tides Magazine! Look for us on Instagram!
“Port Royal has a small rookery that draws an amazing array of birds. It’s hit and miss on most days but during migration periods it’s busy. Plenty of opportunities to view and capture photos. In this shot from last spring, one of the young birds eventually fell out of the nest (dare I say was pushed?) ... there was a gator waiting nearby.” There are many opportunities to learn about these and other lowcountry creatures at LCI.
Getting to Know the LowCountry Institute ... Lowcountry 101
Writing and Photography by John and Lisa Holden
W
hat comes to mind when you hear someone refer to the lowcountry? Perhaps it’s an image of your favorite Pat Conroy novel (be honest now … everyone has a favorite Pat Conroy novel). Perhaps it’s the lowcountry’s unique history, culture, cuisine, or one of many delights we’re fortunate to know and experience. But for those who’ve enjoyed the LowCountry Institute (LCI) experience, the first thing that comes to mind is a true appreciation of the environment in which we live: the salt marshes, the tidal rivers, the large tracts of forested areas, and the multitude of lowcountry critters. LCI’s principle objective is to “inspire appreciation in residents, visitors and decision makers about the unique environment of our region.” Speaking from experience, the institute does just that, and much, much more. The Institute staff thrives on outreach, getting out to share, to teach and to encourage all to explore the vast array of opportunities just outside our front doors. The outreach comes
in various forms, all of which are designed to interlink local efforts to protect and preserve our environment, and educate those who call the lowcountry home. Key to this are the many research and conservation partnerships with our public agencies and universities – those that assist us to better understand the local environment. Through research studies, coordinating citizen science projects, and participating on advisory panels, LCI serves as a strong voice in support of environmentally related efforts and decisions. If you haven’t noticed, Beaufort County offers wonderful skies for stargazing. LCI produces Night Skies Over Beaufort County, an informational astronomy series (available on the Beaufort County Channel and YouTube) that focuses on handson astronomy lessons, and further relates what’s happening millions of miles away to our lowcountry environment. You don’t have to be a teacher or student to benefit from these short Below: A view inside Mobley Nature Center, on Spring Island, where the LowCountry Institute makes its home.
lessons; Night Skies Over Beaufort County is something to be enjoyed by all. In partnership with the Beaufort County Channel, the Institute also produces The Coastal Kingdom, a show that brings
Birding at Nemours Plantation. Dr. Chris Marsh pointing out a variety of bird species to the current Master Naturalist class.
local nature lessons into homes throughout South Carolina, as well as portions of Georgia and North Carolina. The lessons air on SCETV and the Beaufort County Channel, and can viewed at http://www.coastalkingdom.com. If you think you know and enjoy the lowcountry now, just watch one of the many Coastal Kingdom episodes completed to date – they’re informational, they’re entertaining, and they’re funny (“obviously, the bigger the snake the bigger the bite!”). The Coastal Kingdom is like a favorite mini-series – you really do look forward to the next episode! The Teacher Training Program is perhaps the most critical ground roots effort to affect how the next generation best determines ways to preserve the lowcountry environment. “This program has resulted in nearly every school in Beaufort County (including schools in Charleston, Jasper, and Colleton Counties) having at least one teacher trained to bring experiential nature education to their students,” said LCI Education Director Tony Mills. Remember teachers who encouraged us to think and explore, those teachers we’ll never forget? For any teacher looking for a sound investment in the future of what we know and love, this series presents a wonderful opportunity for the next generation to live and learn. Closely aligned with the Teacher Training Program, and perhaps the Institute staff’s favorite part of their job, is LCI’s local school outreach. This outreach is show-and-tell at its finest, taking LCI to area schools to promote and build on the foundation of thinking and exploring. LCI can host small groups of students or scouts (or adults for that matter) at Mobley Nature
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Center, on Spring Island, where the Institute is based. Perhaps LCI’s most well-known outreach effort is the Master Naturalist Program (affectionately known as LowCountry 101/102). This is a 12-day course (normally on consecutive Mondays for 12 weeks) that takes participants on quite the journey of exploration and discovery. When finished you’ll never look at coastal or inland forests, marshs, wetlands, brown water rivers, black water rivers, beaches, or wildlife the same. You really are inspired to keenly observe the lowcountry environment each and every day. The additional rewards of participating in this program lie in the opportunities that follow, namely (1) making a difference where we can through volunteering and (2) promoting and sharing the knowledge with others. To date, the Master Naturalist Program has enlightened over 800 people, among them staff at local nature centers and government agencies, leaders in regional residential communities and others interested in learning more about the biology, geology and ecology of our unique region. The tropical storms and hurricane we’ve endured over the past several months highlight the vulnerability of our barrier islands, among other things. As a course participant, you’ll spend time studying these islands: what makes them and what influences them. If you’ve ever wondered what happened to the thousands and thousands of acres of lowcountry rice fields from the 1700s, and what they are today, you’ll get a first-hand look, and you’ll marvel at how it was done. And the list goes on. Upon course completion, students have the opportunity to participate in advanced training events throughout the state as part of a state-wide Master Naturalist Program. What you find in the state-wide program is just
Master Naturalist program participants identifying various fish and other finds during cast net training.
how fortunate we are here in the lowcountry. The LCI Master Naturalist course is perhaps the most desired of all the Master Naturalist programs state-wide. Beyond these programs, what makes LCI such a great SouthernTidesMagazine.com December 2016
organization? It’s simple: the staff. Volumes could be written about Dr. Chris Marsh, Kristen Mattson and Tony Mills alone. If you’re looking for an environment where learning is not just fun but infectious, this is it. After spending any amount of time with this staff you’ll immediately want to go out and make a difference. Trust us when we tell you the opportunities are there. To learn more about the LowCountry Institute, visit online at: lowcountryinstitute.org. LCI can also be reached at (843) 987-7008. LCI is located at the Mobley Nature Center on Spring Island (adjacent to Callawasie Island) in Okatie, SC. Public access to the nature center is limited so please call ahead to coordinate visits. Kristen Mattson is the point of contact for those interested in
Master Naturalist students working on their cast net skills under the supervision of instructor and LCI Education Director Tony Mills.
signing up for the Master Naturalist Program. The course, as you can imagine, is in high demand – there is a waiting list. Kristen can be reached at kmattson@lowcountryinstitute.org or (843) 987-2732. And finally, at the end of the day after you’ve finished enjoying some time with the LowCountry Institute (either on-line or in person), you can sit down and dive back into your favorite Pat Conroy novel. You’ll probably read it with a much greater appreciation.
More Habitat = More Fish Pre-Order one for your vehicle and trailer today
Learn about the Marine Habitat License Plate CoastalGaDNR.org/PreOrder
The
Season of Giving
As you plan your holidays this season, consider giving back by making a contribution, becoming a member, or volunteering your time to one or more of the following organizations. We sincerely apologize if we’ve missed anyone.
Many of us have a passion for animals, both the pets who are members of our families, and the wild creatures that our species that inhabit our coast. Pet Rescue: Coastal Pet Rescue - coastalpetrescue.org Humane Society - humanesocietysav.org One Love Animal Rescue - oneloveanimalrescue.com Wildlife: Georgia Sea Turtle Center - georgiaseaturtlecenter.org Oatland Island Wildlife Center - oatlandisland.org The Dolphin Project - thedolphinproject.org
Waterfront Dining Fresh Local Seaf d Live Music
If you’d rather help out your fellow man, consider one of these organizations. Abilities Unlimited, Inc. - facebook.com/AbilitiesUnlimitedInc American Red Cross - redcross.org CASA - casaforchildren.org Disabled American Vets - dav.org Fishin’ For Jamie - facebook.com/Fishin-For-Jamie Old Savannah City Mission - oscm.org Second Harvest Food Bank - nwpafoodbank.org Wound Warrior Project - woundedwarriorproject.org
Do age & Dry orage Transients Welcome
Fish Tales 727.3473 • Ft. McAlli er Marina 727.2632 3203 Ft. McAlli er Road • Ri mond Hill, GA • SM 605
“Where there is charity and wisdom, there is neither fear nor ignorance.” ~ St. Francis of Assisi
Alfred Einstein said, “Education is not the learning of facts, but the training of the mind to think.” These organizations strive to educate our communities about our amazing coastal region. Georgia Sea Grant - georgiaseagrant.org LowCountry Institute - lowcountryinstitute.org Port Royal Sound Foundation - portroyalsoundfoundation.org South Carolina Sea Grant - scseagrant.org Tybee Island Marine Science Center - tybeemarinescience.org UGA Marex Aquarium - marex.uga.edu/aquarium
We live in the most beautiful place on earth. Our marshes and waterways are among the last remaining pristine areas of our nation’s coast, largely due to groups like this who work hard to protect it. Altamaha Riverkeeper - altamahariverkeeper.org Clean Coast - cleancoast.org Gray’s Reef Nat’l Marine Sanctuary Foundation - graysreefnmsf.org Ogeechee Riverkeeper - ogeecheeriverkeeper.org One Hundred Miles - onehundredmiles.org Satilla Riverkeeper - satillariverkeeper.org Savannah Riverkeeper - savannahriverkeeper.org St. Mary’s Riverkeeper - stmarysriverkeeper.org Tybee Clean Beach Volunteers - tybeecleanbeach.simpl.com
River Street Dolphin Tour Business for Sale! Spend your days on the water and live the dream! • $390K - Financing available with $150K down
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e uld b o c s i ! Th office r u o y
ISLE OF
HOPE
MARINA
Fall Black Gill Cruise Rolls Out New Research
Complimentary Loaner Cars! • Located in scenic and historic Isle of Hope
By Michael Sullivan
External Affairs Manager UGA Skidaway Institute of Oceanography
• New water, electric, fuel, and pump-out systems • High-speed Wi-Fi and TV available at every slip • Laundry facilities on premises, bicycles, Wall Street Journal, and more! • 4000 feet of concrete floating docks (including 600 feet of deep-water face docks)
YACHTS UP TO 220 FEET AND TRANSIENT BOATS WELCOME!
Happy Holidays!
T
he University of Georgia Skidaway Institute of Oceanography entered the fourth year of its black gill research program with a day-long cruise aboard the R/V Savannah and the introduction of a new smartphone app that will allow shrimpers to help scientists collect data on the problem. Led by UGA scientists Marc Frischer, Richard Lee, Kyle Johnsen and Jeb Byers, the black gill study is being conducted in partnership with UGA Marine Extension and Georgia Sea Grant, and is funded by Georgia Sea Grant. Black gill is a condition Georgia shrimpers first noticed in the mid-1990s. Many shrimpers have blamed black gill for poor shrimp harvests in recent years, but until Frischer began his study, almost nothing was known about the condition. Now the researchers know black gill is caused by a parasite—a single-cell animal called a ciliate—although the exact type of ciliate is still a mystery. The October cruise had multiple goals. The first was simply to collect data and live shrimp for additional experiments. “We were able to collect enough live shrimp in good shape to set up our next experiment,” Frischer said. “We are planning on running another direct mortality
(912) 354-8187 50 Bluff Drive Savannah, GA VHF Channel 16 18
SouthernTidesMagazine.com December 2016
study to investigate the relationship between temperature and black gill mortality. This time, instead of comparing ambient temperature to cooler temperatures as we did last spring and summer, we will investigate the effects of warming.” A second goal was to introduce and begin field testing a new smartphone application developed by Johnsen. The app is intended to be a tool that will allow shrimp boat captains and recreational shrimpers to assist the researchers by filling some of the holes in the data by documenting the extent of black gill throughout the shrimp season. The Georgia Department of Natural Resources conducts surveys of the shrimp population up and down the coast throughout the year. However, those surveys do not provide the researchers with the rich data set they need to really get an accurate assessment of the black gill problem. “Instead of having just one boat surveying the prevalence of black gill, imagine if we had a dozen, or 50 or a hundred boats all working with us,” Frischer said. “That’s the idea behind this app.” The fishermen will use the app to document their trawls and report their data to a central database. “The app is complete and available on the app store, but we are still in the testing stages,” Johnsen said. “We want to make sure that it will be robust and as easy to use on a ship as possible before widely deploying it.” Recruiting, training and coordinating the shrimpers will be the responsibility of UGA Marine Extension and Georgia Sea Grant. “I think it should be entirely possible to at least have a small group of captains comfortable and ready to start using it when the 2017 season begins,” Frischer said. Shrimpers wanting more information about the smartphone app can contact Marc Frischer at (912) 598-2308.
Opposite Page: Researchers Marc Frischer (UGA Skidaway Institute), Brian Fluech and Lisa Gentit (both UGA Marine Extension and Georgia Sea Grant) examine shrimp for signs of black gill. Above: A screenshot of the smartphone app for tracking black gill. Images provided by UGA/SkIO
December 2016
SouthernTidesMagazine.com
19
THUNDERBOLT BAIT HOUSE (formerly Adams’ Bait)
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River of Words:
The Art and Poetry of Place By Dorothy Ingram
Artist-In-Residence Beaufort Middle School
S
CIRCA 1870
GOODBREAD HOUSE
BED & BREAKFAST INN
tepping softly from the deep bed of marsh wrack on the hurricane-swept river bank and onto a crunchy mat of oyster shells, we gazed across the Broad River. “You are now standing on a Native American shell midden,” shouted our guide, Chris Kehrer, Naturalist and Education Coordinator for the Port Royal Sound Foundation (PRSF). I was in awe. I was tagging along on a field trip with a class of 40 seventh grade students from the Classical Studies Choice Program in the arts-integrated Beaufort Middle School. Earlier in the day, the students and their teachers had joined field trip assistant and docent, Lois Lewis, on a tour of the PRSF Maritime Center, where they studied the history of Beaufort County oyster culture in the Oyster Room and learned about lightning whelks, horseshoe crabs, and flounder in the touch tank room. From there, they moved to the Maritime Center classroom, where they were instructed in the various adaptations of fish in the Sound, according to the form and function of each adaptation. These forms, including mouth type, body shape, and coloration, would then be incorporated into an exercise in which the students, in groups, designed and drew their own marine animals (even sea monsters were allowed). Students then presented their creations to their classmates, explaining the function and rationale behind each adaptation. Following a brief lunch break at the Maritime Center, students next traveled to the Widgeon Point preserve on the southern bank of the Broad River, where they hiked across the salt marsh at low tide, learned about wax myrtle, palmetto, spartina, black needlerush, pickleweed, sea oxide daisy, periwinkle snails, and even examined a raccoon skull. They eventually hiked along a path through thickets of palmetto and groundel, and out to the ring of ancient oyster shells, before boarding the bus and heading back to school.
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Students demonstrate their understanding of form and function by designing their own marine animals. Photo by Dorothy Ingram
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SouthernTidesMagazine.com December 2016
Together with interdisciplinary classroom studies in science, math, fine arts, and language arts, this field trip to Lemon Island, South Carolina, will culminate in these middle schoolers’ participation in the national River of Words program. This annual project encourages students in grades K-12 to discover their “ecological address” and to develop and internalize a keener sense of place by stepping outside of the classroom to study first-hand the environment of the watersheds that shape the landscape, the history, and the culture in which they are growing up. To accomplish this goal, the River of Words initiative partners an integrated school curriculum with local community resources, such as the Port Royal Sound Foundation, to provide an enriched learning experience for each student, resulting in a deeper personal connection with the natural world. This relationship between classroom math, science, language studies, research, and experiential learning, ultimately finds expression through each student’s original artwork and creative writing. Working with art teachers and an artist-in-residence, the seventh graders will produce drawings and paintings of their selected subjects found on field trips and in science studies. Next, conferring with their language arts instructor and literacy coach, they will use figurative language to express through original poetry their personal thoughts and feelings about growing up in this Students in the field exploring. This group discovered magnificent Southeastern coastal that Pickleweed is a taste that must be cultivated! watershed. Ultimately, their Photo by Dorothy Ingram creativity will join with that of other Beaufort County School students, resulting in the Beaufort County School District’s annual exhibition of student art and a published book of art and poetry entitled River of Words: Musings on Port Royal Sound Through Poetry and Art 2017.
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Naturalist Chris Kehrer talks to students about the form and function of the marine animal they have “created.” Photo by Dorothy Ingram
December 2016
SouthernTidesMagazine.com
21
T he Bitter End Trimming the Tree
By Captain J. Gary “Gator” Hill
A
h, cool weather has finally returned to the land, banishing the sand gnats and mosquitos to their winter slumber. We’ve made it through the pounds-adding fare of Thanksgiving and the lines of Black Friday to what lies ahead: wintertime magic. Christmas is rushing toward us faster than the Polar Express and although we’re still getting over the effects of Matthew, we’re lowcountry strong. It’s now time to plan for Christmas, Hanukah, Kwanzaa, or whatever holiday you celebrate. For some of us, our fondest memories of childhood were helping mom and dad trim the Christmas tree. This month, I’m going to talk about trees and decorations – but not the Christmas variety. Have you ever seen blue or green bottles hanging from trees while out riding in the lowcountry? Some of you probably know what I’m referring to: the “bottle trees” that have adorned the lowcountry and Appalachian culture for centuries. Although some may think this tradition started here in the lowcountry, it’s more commonly acknowledged as originating in the Congo in the ninth century, though there’s some speculation that it started many centuries before that in Egypt and Mesopotamia. Whatever the case may be, they share the same basic purpose of making great traps for haints and evil spirits. During my years, I’ve seen very elaborate trees as works of art and simple posts with spindles angled upward to hold the bottles. More commonly found are the traditional trees in which a live tree hosts the bottles. Many folks argue over which glass color or shapes work best, but cobalt blue tends to be a favorite among the spirit world, though it’s common to see green, red or even clear bottles used. The premise is simple. At night, as spirits wander about the land waiting for souls to devour, they become mesmerized by the color of the glass. Being curious by nature, the spirit will enter the bottle through the neck and then be trapped. As morning sunlight hits the bottle, the rays of golden light destroy the spirit so it can no longer roam this mortal world. If you pass by a bottle tree in the late evening hours you can sometimes here the moanful sounds of the trapped spirits. Opinions abound as to the color, how the bottles are
22
Blue bottles tied to the branches of a tree near Lazaretto Creek, where a segment of the WGN series Underground was filmed. Photo by Captain J. Gary Hill
attached, and the direction the bottle is placed. For example, some say the bottle neck must be up, otherwise the spirit can slither out the bottom and escape, while others believe the facing down over the end of the branch is preferable. No matter your belief, the one thing that holds true is that these bottle trees are important ties to our early culture. In a time where history and culture have been pushed to the way side, I feel these bits and pieces are crucial. Not to mention, who wants haints hanging ‘round their house or garden, right? Often referred to as a poor man’s stained glass, bottle trees are simple to make. Why not be creative this holiday season and make use of your wine or spirits bottles and create your own garden center piece? Until next time, Merry Christmas and happy holidays. May you and your family and friends be blessed and kept safe through this special time. See ya’ll on the water! Email: jgaryhill@gmail.com
SouthernTidesMagazine.com December 2016
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Merry Christmas & Happy New Year
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