Sandy Beaches

Cornwall is known for its picturesque sandy beaches, many of which are heavily visited in the summer, but how many of these tourists give a second thought to the life that is found there. Beaches range in size from those in small coves to larger expanses such as the three miles of golden sand at Hayle.

The majority of Cornish sandy beaches are comprised of small particles of local stone such as quartz. There are some beaches almost completely made up of small pieces of shells, such as Porthcurno beach.

At first sight a sandy beach appears like a desert void of life, but on closer inspection this is not true. This statement does depend on whether the beach is exposed or not. An exposed sandy beach is not a great environment for shorelife but even here some life will survive the harsh conditions. With a sheltered sandy beach the variety of life forms greatly increase.

Exposed Sandy Beaches

Living conditions are difficult on a exposed sandy beach. The only place to find sanctuary is under the sand and this is not straight forward. The waves can disturb the sand down to a depth of 4 inches, so any creature needing refuge will have to dig deeper than this. If shallower the creature will just be carried away and left stranded on the sands surface at the mercy of predators. Walking along these beaches just after a storm one can come across the remains of numerous burrowing creatures washed out of the sand. Such animals you would rarely see at any other time.

Exposed sandy beaches may only have little life on them, but often they are a good hunting ground. Those on the north coast particularly in winter are a good place for strandings. The strandings are not comprised of masses of seaweed; and small creatures such as the Buoy Barnacle Dosima fascicularis and By-the-wind-sailor Velella velella are not obscured under a tangle of smelly rotting weed.

Sheltered Sandy Beaches

Sheltered sandy beaches may appear to be deserted of life forms but this not so. If one visits at low tide the large expanse of sand below the high tide mark looks barren. All the creatures below this point bury down into sand to prevent drying out and to avoid the probing beaks of predatory birds.

Below the high tide mark you may not immediately seen any life, but look closer there are indications of the dwellers below. Lug worm casts are very common, the first uncovered by the tide will be younger worms, smaller casts but many of them. The further the tides retreat the larger the casts but are fewer in number, while the furthest out will be perched on their own small mole hill like mound.

Close to the low tide mark one will notice protruding from the sand an inch or so, tubes comprised of sand grains. These are the top of, up to a foot long tube of the Sand Mason Lanice conchilega.

Between the high and low tide marks there will be bivalves, however one will be lucky to see them. Even if they are on the surface they will quickly retreat into their burrows if disturbed, and they will sense your approach way before you see them. However you may see a small squirt of water caused by a rapidly burrowing razor shell; or a figure of eight in the sand formed by a razor shell that had laid on the surface and up righted itself before burrowing. These shellfish and worms will bring in waders such as plovers and Oystercatcher Haematopus ostralegus, which can be seen probing in the sand with their beaks, feeling out their prey.

The second area of life is the strand line, here seaweed and other detritus are stranded providing nutrients in an otherwise barren environment. These materials break down and form a medium that plants can grow in. The break down of the rotting seaweed can attract hoards of flies. The flies in turn attract flocks of starlings in late autumn. Another animal which benefits from this decaying mass is the Common Sand Hopper Talitrus saltator whose burrows will be seen in the sand close by. Sand hoppers leave their burrows at night to feed on the decaying vegetable matter.