The last Friday in May is National Heat Awareness Day. For those of you who don’t know, it gets hot — very hot — in the South. Particularly in coastal Alabama, where the heat and humidity work together to create a double whammy. If you aren’t used to dealing with this weather, it can be a potentially critical issue. Heat exhaustion and dehydration can cause fatalities. A few ways to prepare for this mix of sun, heat, wind, and water include [...]
How much do you know about those sea oats you see growing on the dunes of the Alabama coast? We’re sharing six facts below to help you brush up your knowledge. 1 – Sea oats are a widespread grass that is drought resistant and immune to fungus infections. That makes them a hardy species for the tough coastal environment, even using the sand that collects around it to stimulate the plant’s growth. 2 – The scientific name for sea oats [...]
We’ve probably all done it: throw a torn-off piece of bread into the air for sea gulls to swoop down and catch in their beaks. In fact, it’s kinda fun. Cheetos and crackers, too. But the next time you are tempted to feed the birds, don’t. Just don’t. There are reasons for this. First, it’s dangerous to someone holding out their hand to the sharp peck of a gull’s beak. Second, it makes these beautiful creatures become a nuisance. They [...]
Even though Independence Day is now past, we know shooting off bottle rockets and Roman candles during summer vacation is fun. We get it. But shooting fireworks on the beach can be dangerous. Fireworks are involved in about 10,000 injuries treated in U.S. hospitals each year, and about 7,000 of those occur in the four weeks surrounding the Fourth of July. Fireworks also leave behind a mess. Those little pieces of paper litter the beach after a night of exploding, [...]
