Students get friendly with sea critters to School 4

Chris Brady, Long Island Aquarium’s Outreach Coordinator, visited School 4 with a few of his favorite aquatic critters that don’t mind being touched.

The children were amazed to learn that clams are so strong that even the world’s strongest person can’t pull open a live clam shell, but there is one creature that can: a sea star (often referred to as starfish). A sea star wraps itself around the clam and then, with infinite patience, pulls and pulls until after about 12 hours, it has opened the clam’s shell.

As he walked around allowing children to touch the sea star, Brady explained more about it. The class erupted in laughter when Brady asked, “How many of you have a stomach that comes out of your mouth? That’s how the sea star eats.”

Next came the spider crab, a female with small claws that don’t pinch, and a horseshoe crab which isn’t really a crab at all and is more closely related to the spider. Despite its scary appearance it, too, does not have sharp pincers and does not sting.