Blue Flag Award

1. Blue Flag Award • All Blue Flag Beaches have a flag similar to this one flying during the bathing season June to September. • The Blue Flag is an International Award –You will find the Blue Flag flying in 41 countries around the world. • Beaches in Ireland receive the Blue Flag from An Taisce. Just because you had a blue flag last year does not mean you will get a blue flag next year. There is a lot of work to get a Blue Flag every year.

2. Blue Flag & Green Coast awards Some Beaches don’t have a blue flag but are still very clean beaches. They just don’t have the same facilities as the Blue Flag beaches .For example They may not have toilets, car parks etc. If a local community or group adopts these beaches they can become Coastcare Groups and get an award for the beach ---It is called the GREEN COAST AWARD. Have you heard of it?? To find out more contact Annabel McLoone An Taisce amcloone@eeu.antaisce.org and www.beachawards.ie you might find out what beaches near you have a Green Coast Award .

3. What does the Blue Flag mean? • 1. Water Quality: The water quality is Excellent. It is tested by the Local Authority who are in charge of the beach. Results are on the Notice boards at the beach. Look for the smiley faces on the boards. • 2. Safety & Services:Nearly all beaches have their own life guards. Lookfor the lifeguard flags and know what they mean. This water is so clean lets go swimming

4. Water Safety Lifeguard Flags

5. What else does a Blue flag beach need ??? 3. Management and facilities: There are Certain rules on all beaches but particularly Blue flag beaches. Don’t let your dog wander off without a lead. Clean up after your dog. Don’t trample on the sand dunes. Use footpaths. Use litterbins PLEASE and if there are no bins bring your rubbish home with you!!!!!

6. Graffiti destroys our environment Don’t damage property & Don’t Don’t use Graffiti PLEASE !!!!

7. To get a Blue Flag the beach needs you!!! 4. Environmental education and information. This is where you come in ! ! ! ! The Beach Operator must provide lots of information and activities to help educate people on the sea shore and how we can care for our environment. Tell your parents, your cousins, your friends all about your Blue Flag beach day. Remember--There is also a – BLUE FLAG CERTIFICATE awarded to schools who carry out marine/beach activities. To find out more contact Annabel McLoone An Taisce at amcloone@eeu.antaisce.org

8. What schools found on the beach last year This is a lugworm. On the beach you will see a mound of sand like spaghetti. If you dig the sand up you will usually find a lug worm. This worm lives in a U shaped tunnel and eats lots of sand in its search for food. The ball of spaghetti is called a worm cast.

9. Razorshells in the sand This is a razor shell-a long shell which you usually find empty on the beach. These shells burrow into the sand and birds love to eat them. They are difficult to find alive as they can dig down quickly into the sand. Who has seen these empty shells on the beach ?????

10. Seaweeds There are 3 different colours of seaweed---The BROWN, The GREEN and The RED. On the shore they provide shelter and food for lots of animals. This is called Bladder wrack. Air bladders can be seen along the Frond (stem) and helps to keep it from drying out on the seashore.

11. SEA WEEDS Sea Lettuce. Too much nutrients in the water like phosphates and nitrates can cause sea lettuce to grow too much. This can be a problem in some of our beaches in West Cork for example Inchydoney Beach. Where do you think nutrients come for? Sewage & Agriculture OAR Weed. Large brown seaweed.

12. Mermaids Purse This is the egg case laid by the dog fish in deeper waters. The egg case is usually only found when it is washed up onto the shore and then it is often dry and hard. It is usually empty as the young fish will have hatched by the time the egg case is washed ashore. These were found on Garretstown beach. Have you seen any on your beach?

13. Common Shore Crab • Common shore crab

14. SHORE DETECTIVES

15. CONSTANTLY CHANGING ENVIRONMENT Between high and low tides, the conditions change completely for some of the animals and plants twice a day, problems they may face: – Drying out – Force of the waves – Getting eaten – Overheating – Changing light – Changing salt content (salinity) The Rocky Shore

16. Animals of the Rocky Shore Animals and plants at the rocky shore have to be crafty, ruthless and strong! NO PLACE FOR WIMPS!

17. How do they survive? They have special ‘weapons’ such as: Big feet Doors to lock Suckers to stick onto the rocks Holdfasts to hold on tight Poisons to kill

18. ROCK POOLS Little oasis where the animals can hide from harsh conditions. No worries about drying out here! Other worries though…what might they be?? ‘SEAFOOD TAKE-AWAYS ON THE SEA SHORE’

19. What animals will we find? Elephants? Kangaroos? Tigers? Cows?

20. Animals of the Rocky Shore Limpetshave a cone shaped shell, which is like a china man’s hat. It is like a safety helmet which protects them from drying out and predators (e.g. crab attacks). They are the seashore version of cows on the beach. They have one huge foot and move slowly around the surface of the rock grazing on green seaweed and tiny animals. They scrape seaweed off the rocks with a tongue like a file. After feeding, they return to their home base where they have carved out a little groove on the rocks. Underneath the limpet it looks like it has a giant foot

21. Animals of the Rocky Shore Barnacles are mass breeders….. Like rabbits. They are very friendly with each other and don’t mind who they “socialise” with. Imagine an upside down crab living in a tiny volcano. If you look very closely, you can see their shells are like little houses with a door that opens at the top. They only come out to play “socialise” and eat when the tide is in.

22. Animals of the Rocky Shore Beadlet Anenomes are relatives of the jellyfish and are like a regurgitating wheelie bin scavenging anything that passes over them. They have lots of poisonous tentacles around the top which are like little pieces of spaghetti waving around. The tentacles are retractable and they have a slimy surface to help keep the moisture in. If any small animal touches the tentacles, they will be zapped (paralysed) by its tentacles. The prey is drawn into the anemone’s stomach, their flesh digested and their bones spat out.

23. Animals of the Rocky Shore Mussels are mostly black/grey in colour. They have 2 shells They eat plankton when the tide is in. When the tide is out they close up shop really tightly. Sometimes they have a beard People eat me!

24. Animals of the Rocky Shore Dogwhelkis a common sea snailand is found on rocky shores where the water is shallow. They are usually cream/white in colour and can grow up to 4cm long. They have a groove in their shell and they eat mussels, limpets and barnacles. It lays eggs that can often be found in rock crevices and under seaweed. The eggs look like large grains of rice.

25. Animals of the Rocky Shore Edible Periwinklesare small and are often found in rocky shore areas under seaweeds. Pointy, brown/black shell Grazes on seaweed Moves around like a People eat me!

26. Have a fun beach activity day . Cork County Council wishes you the best of luck in your Marine Education day and lets hope the sun shines . Thank you for taking part Kind acknowledgements to Birgit O Driscoll Environmental Education Unit An Taisce for her sea shore detective slides .