Saturday’s event gave people a chance to get in touch with local organizations working to preserve vital local habitats like the Newport Bay Conservancy, California State Park Rangers for Crystal Cove and the Laguna Ocean Foundation, as well as rescue and research groups like the Pacific Marine Mammal Center, the Wetlands and Wildlife Care Center, and the Ocean Animal Response and Research Alliance.
Carissa Rice, education field coordinator for the Laguna Ocean Foundation, said many of the people who visited their booth on Saturday hadn’t heard of the organization she’s a part of, or the tidepools they focus their education and conservation efforts on. The delicate coastal habitats are extremely sensitive to human activity, and home to unique species like the California spiny lobsters and various sea urchins.
All of Laguna Beach is a protected habitat, so it is illegal for people to take anything from the beach there or place their hands or feet in tidepools. These provisions have helped dwindling starfish communities rebound in Orange County despite struggling to recover in similar habitats like La Jolla in San Diego County.
“You had so many people who were excited about this, but maybe not being responsible in how they showed that excitement, so picking up the sea stars and being like ‘Look I found a sea star, this is really awesome!’ and then chucking it back into the ocean [is] not the best behavior,” she said.
To read the entire Daily Pilot/LA Times article about World Wildlife Day click here.