Early this morning, I eased my way to the pier. It was the perfect morning to be out since all was quiet. After I reached the point where the marsh meets the water, I noticed that the tide was out and the all important mudflats were exposed. Thinking this might be a good critter-watching time, I settled in for a spell. It did not take long before my first guest arrived. A half-grown raccoon wobbled his way out of the marsh and immediately started "fishing", Those little front paws swished the water until it was muddied which confused the tiny shrimp that had collected in the two inches of water. Overnight, the tiny shrimp moved to the safety of the shallows but now, a predator had found them! The little coon was smart enough to know that confusing the shrimp would allow him to catch more. After getting a dozen or so of the tiny morsels, the raccoon moved on to bigger and better things, He started digging for the small crabs that were buried in the mud. After just a couple of tries, I could here the crunching of a shell. The coon had a crab! Breakfast was served to a hungry raccoon!
The mudflats see a lot of action during the winter months. Besides the raccoons, many shorebirds, fox, otters and even the bobcats will visit and dine upon what they find. They all know that the flats provide easy pickings if they do not mind getting a bit muddy. The pier provides me with a front row seat for this never-ending show!
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