Sand Sculptures
30th May 2009, Saturday
This event in the RX Wildlife Festival emphasised the hands-on recreational opportunities of the Rye Bay coastline. Families were encouraged to build sculptures based on RX wildlife, but the real aim was to get children working with sand. Of course, the adults bring children as an alibi, so that they can do some digging.
The sand is not just sand, but contains all sorts of shells, mostly Banded Wedge Shell, in vast, uncountable numbers, many drilled by predatory Necklace Shells, whose distinctive conical egg-masses were also found. On the surface lay the remains of other creatures including three species of Crab: Shore, Masked and Velvet Swimming Crab.
All the time, we were passed by Painted Lady butterflies arriving from the sea on their way northwards in the biggest migration for years.
