Predators As Protectors

Written by SurfWriter Girls Sunny Magdaug and Patti Kishel

Who would have guessed that sharks – the bad guys in movies and nightmare of surfers – are actually heroes for our planet?

These fearsome, apex predators at the top of the ocean food chain keep the world’s marine populations stable. This helps to protect our oxygen supply by reducing the sea life that consume underwater vegetation that generates oxygen.

By keeping sea populations in check sharks also help to eliminate harmful algae that damages coral reefs.

Still, it’s understandable that sharks – that have rows of sharp, replaceable teeth and can be up to 60-feet or more – aren’t animals most people want to encounter up close.

But, SurfWriter Girls Sunny Magdaug and Patti Kishel know someone who has done just that.

To meet a real shark expert and find out what makes sharks so intriguing, we are excited to introduce you to marine scientist Apryl Boyle, CEO of El Porto Shark, which gathers and analyzes shark population data for conservation purposes.

Boyle, a National Geographic and Discovery Channel Shark Week contributor and former Aquarium Operations Associate Director for Santa Monica’s Heal the Bay Aquarium, has quite a story to tell.

To check it out, just click on: Shark Love 

Surf’n Beach Scene Magazine

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Sunny Magdaug and Patti Kishel hold the exclusive rights to this copyrighted material. Publications wishing to reprint it may contact them at surfwriter.girls@gmail.com Individuals and non-profit groups are welcome to post it on social media sites as long as credit is given.

Life in Slo-Mo

Written by SurfWriter Girls Sunny Magdaug and Patti Kishel

Move over unicorns and flamingos! Make way for the sloths!

Trend-spotters have anointed this reclusive creature that lives in the tops of tall trees as this year’s soon to-be pop culture favorite.

Native to Central and South America, sloths have the distinction of being the world’s slowest mammal. It can take them a minute or more just to climb 6 feet.

And talk about laid back, sloths spend up to 20 hours a day sleeping. So, it’s a rare sight when you see one on the ground.

SurfWriter Girl Patti & hubby Greg spotted some sloths in Costa Rica’s Manuel Antonio National Park near Jacó, a beach town on the Pacific known for surfing, when they were on a trip there.

“You had to look really closely because they blended into the trees,” says Patti.

Sloths eat a diet mainly of leaves and have a lifespan of 20 to 30 years. Plus some sloths have two toes and some have three.

Why does everyone like them so much? Maybe it’s because in today’s fast-paced, always on-the-go world sloths dance to a different tune.

Movies like Zootopia and Ice Age have helped to give them star power, too. So, get ready to channel your inner sloth.

But, take your time. There’s no rush.

Surf’n Beach Scene Magazine

SurfWriter Girls

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Sunny Magdaug and Patti Kishel hold the exclusive rights to this copyrighted material. Publications wishing to reprint it may contact them at surfwriter.girls@gmail.com Individuals and non-profit groups are welcome to post it on social media sites as long as credit is given.