Rock pooling in Cornwall is an adventure that stays with you for a lifetime, a chance to come face to tentacle with creatures that are normally only seen by divers.
If you get it right, you may find spiny urchins, starfish the size of your forearm, perfectly camouflaged fish and even the egg cases of small sharks.
Make sure you rock pool responsibly. Before you go to the beach, it’s important to know how to keep yourself and all the creatures safe.
Click here to get started with my Top 5 Tips for Successful Rock Pooling.
Next, discover how to pick up a crab and learn some amazing facts about these common crustaceans.
Use these easy-to-follow identification guides to discover some of the amazing creatures that live in the rock pools.
I’d love to hear what you find and help you identify your rock pool creatures. Please do get in touch.
If you come across something interesting or unusual try to take a photo and don’t forget to record your find with the Cornwall Wildlife Trust.
Have a great time rock pooling and remember to follow the Cornwall Marine and Coastal Code.
Green shore crab with eggs under her tail. 
Three-spot cowrie tucking into a sea squirt 
Common starfish at Readymoney Cove near Fowey 
Star ascidian sea squirt colony, looking like an impressionist flower painting. 
Painted top shell. 
St Piran’s hermit crab 
Strawberry anemone 
Cornish clingfish – Lepadogaster purpurea, Looe. 
Cushion starfish exploring the rocks with its tube feet. 
Sea lemon sea slug with its frilly gills extended. 
Candy striped flatworm grazing on bryozoans in Looe
Turn every beach trip into an adventure with my new children’s book Beach Explorer. It’s packed with hands-on activities, facts and tips to help you find out all about how the beach works, the animals that live there and what you can do to help look after the beach. Grab your copy now from your local bookshop or online.
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