By Jordan Studer
news@wbcowqel.com
There’s never been a better way to cool off and enjoy a warm summer evening than wading in the creek and the Crawford Park District turned to that tried and true activity on Thursday. Families came out to Lowe Volk Park to take part in learning how to go seining in the Sandusky River.
Lisa Bogard, park naturalist, led the event and was very excited to enlighten the community. Bogard explained why she felt it is so important for kids and families to learn about nature in their community.
“It’s in your backyard, you need to know what’s out there. It’s just so good and healthy to just be outside and know what is out there with the water quality. I mean it’s life,” Bogard passionately explained.
Before heading down to use the seines, a type of net with a long vertical handle designed to have the top of the net float and the bottom sink down, Bogard enlightened the group. Bogard first talked a bit about why the river is so important and what critters might be found during the adventure.
Bogard explained to the group that the more critters such as crayfish, water spiders, and minnows found, the better the water quality of the river. After describing to the group what kind of nets would be used to catch some critters, Bogard demonstrating the “Sandusky shuffle,” that seiners could should use.
The movement coined with the name, “Sandusky shuffle” is the method of shuffling your feet and kicking under the water in the direction the water is flowing to try to get the critters stirred up.
It was explained that in order to catch any it would take a group effort. While a few people do the “Sandusky shuffle,” a few others would be holding the seines and other nets so that the flow of the water would go directly into the nets.
After loading up on nets and bug spray, the seiners headed down to the river. No sooner than when the shuffling and net holding began, critters and creatures began surfacing. Little hands began grabbing at the nets attempting to hold each critter.
The crowd favorite, the crayfish, were not being shy and the crowd was not afraid to pick them up and hold them. One seiner, Grant Fischil, bravely grabbed any crayfish he could get his hands on.
Grant Fischil’s sister, Charlotte Fischil, was just as excited to be in the water catching crayfish and learning about what else lives in the water. Charlotte explained that before that event, she didn’t know that larvas were real. Another seiner, Cate Artemus, also expressed her surprise when catching a larva that evening.
“I thought larva was a type of plant! Because there’s seaweed and I always think that some stuff just sounds like a plant, but once you touch it and look at it you’re like ‘That isn’t a plant!’ It is a living thing, a living animal!” Cate enthusiastically explained.
For more information on the lively adventures and events put on this summer by the Crawford Park District, visit their website at http://www.crawfordparkdistrict.org/programsevents.html.