The Sand Dollar
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The Sand Dollar - Elusive - Beautiful - and Full of Legends
What an amazing little animal the Sand Dollar is. Yes, they are animals. They live in the Ocean in Sandy Beds, in a large social group. Most of those you find on the beach, are already deceased.
Any Beachcomber would probably agree, they are also very elusive. When you find a whole sand dollar, it seems special. If you find a whole bunch on the beach, it is a feeling like finding treasure!
There are a few legends associated with the Sand Dollar, which I will share with you below.
Baby Leatherback Turtle on Beach Near Sand Dollar
Baby Leatherback Turtle on Beach Near Sand Dollar
So What Exactly is a Sand Dollar?
The sand dollar is a marine invertebrate, a living animal, closely related to the starfish, sea lily, the sea cucumber and the sea urchin. Sand dollars come from the Echinoids class, which means "spiny skinned creature."
Sand Dollar, invertebrate having a flat, circular outer shell. The common sand dollar of the northeastern United States is found on sandy bottoms in comparatively shallow water.
The size of the adult shell is about 8 cm (or 3 inches) in diameter on the average and has many small perforations that form a symmetrical petal-like design. You can find larger ones, and tiny little baby ones as well as any size in between.
The entire shell is penetrated by many small, brown spines that give the shell a velvety appearance and enable the animal to move about.
By the time a sand dollar washes up on a beach, it is usually no longer living, and only its shell remains.
Sand dollars obtain food by using their spines and tube feet to engulf sand from which they extract minute plants and animals.
Sand dollars belong to a phylum (family) of marine animals known as echinoderms, which inhabit all the world's oceans and can live in both the shallow and deep-ocean floor.
Scientific classification: Sand dollars belong to the order Clypeasteroida of the class Echinoidea. The common sand dollar of the northeastern United States is classified as Echinarachnius parma.
I believe the Western Sand Dollar to differ from the "Keyhole Sand Dollar" found on the Eastern shores. It tends to not have the five "keyholes" in the shell, and is round, rathers than having those decorative little indentations around the edges.
Though each one has it's own beauty.
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Sterling Sanddollar Pendant

Sterling Sanddollar Pendant
Large Sanddollar Sterling Pendant. Measures 1.25"dia. Add a 2mm Round Omega to complete the look.
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Sterling Sanddollar Pendant
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The Beauty of Live Sand Dollars
Ocean Sanddollar Print By Chariklia Zarris

Ocean Sanddollar Print By Chariklia Zarris
Chariklia Zarris img: 6.00 x 6.00 paper: 6.00 x 6.00
Ocean Sanddollar Print By Chariklia Zarris
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The Legend of the Sand Dollar
The Legend of the Sand Dollar
There's a lovely little legend
That I would like to tell,
Of the birth and death of Jesus
Found in this lowly shell.
If you examine closely
You'll see that you find here,
Four nail holes and a fifth one
Made by a Roman's spear.
On one side the Easter Lily,
Its center is the star,
That appeared unto the shepherds
And led them from afar.
The Christmas Poinsettia
Etched on the other side,
Reminds us of His birthday
Our happy Christmastide.
Now break the center open
And here you will release,
The five white doves awaiting
To spread Good Will and Peace.
This simple little symbol
Christ left for you and me,
To help us spread His Gospel
Through all Eternity
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Mosaic Sanddollar - Mini Print By Paul Brent

Mosaic Sanddollar - Mini Print By Paul Brent
Paul Brent img: 8.00 x 8.00 paper: 8.00 x 8.00
Mosaic Sanddollar - Mini Print By Paul Brent
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Another Legend of the Sand Dollar
Another Legend of the Sand Dollar
The legend of the sand dollar first began in Maine, where children were taught to believe that sand dollars are pressed sand.
Another legend is that they were money for mermaids to use.
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Beadboard Sanddollar Print By Paul Brent

Beadboard Sanddollar Print By Paul Brent
Paul Brent img: 9.00 x 9.00 paper: 11.00 x 11.00
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Beadboard Sanddollar Print By Paul Brent
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A video of the "Legend of the Sand Dollar"
The Legend of the Sand Dollar
I found this really touching, thought you might enjoy it too.
Runtime: 3:10
7303 views
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Summer Sanddollar Print By Paul Brent

Summer Sanddollar Print By Paul Brent
Paul Brent img: 8.00 x 8.00 paper: 8.00 x 8.00
Order Here
Summer Sanddollar Print By Paul Brent
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Where can I find a Sand Dollar
Many think that finding a Whole Sand Dollar as a very, rare and lucky thing to do.
There are some that think of them as a gift from God, or a sign from the Heavens above.
They are found along the beach, usually at low tide, in the wet sand.
And they will look like the picture below, when still in the sand.
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Sand Dollar Pendant and Chain

Sand Dollar Pendant and Chain
Genuine sand dollar is a pretty, silverplated reminder of the sea. 1"-diam. pendant dangles from a 16"-long sterling silver chain. Gift boxed.
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Sand Dollar Pendant and Chain
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The Myth about picking them up from the Beach
There is a Myth or misconception, that picking up a sand dollar and keeping it, is wrong because it is a "live animal".
This is not entirely true, you will definately be able to tell a live Sand Dollar from one that has been dead for a while.
A "live Sand Dollar" will have a very fuzzy look to the top of it, and tiny little spines on the bottom.
I like to throw these back to sea, thinking I am saving them, but most likely they are already dying if they end up on the beach. But I would recommend not picking them up or taking them home.
A "dead Sand Dollar" will be smooth on both sides, and usually a lot whiter in color.
Most beaches and state parks have strict rules against taking any live sea life from their home, so please honor those laws.
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Sterling Silver Earrings Round Sanddollar

Sterling Silver Earrings Round Sanddollar
Displayed here is this pair of diamond cut sterling silver round sanddollar French wire 13mm earrings.Width: - Depth: - Height:
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Sterling Silver Earrings Round Sanddollar
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Sand Dollar on the Beach
Homefires Rugs Sanddollar

Homefires Rugs Sanddollar - PY-PB020
Homefires Rugs Sanddollar Dimensions: 22 X 34 SKU: PY-PB020
Homefires Rugs Sanddollar - PY-PB020
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Preserving Sand Dollars
Preserving Sand Dollars
In order to preserve a sand dollar you must first soak it in fresh water. You can follow the steps below to keep your sand dollars to be treasured:
1. Place your sand dollars into a bucket of fresh water. This water will turn a brown-red color & after a short time begin to smell thus it is important to change the water frequently. If time is of the essence just continually flush them in water until the water remains fairly clear.
2. Your next step is to soak them in a solution of chlorine bleach & water. Mix the solution in the following ratio: 3 parts water to 1 part bleach. Soak them for 15-20 mins. only.
3. Rinse the sand dollars off under running water for at least 2 mins.
You must not soak them overly long in the bleach-water because it will make them become brittle & they will begin to crumble apart. They can also turn yellow from too much bleach.
Each soaking in bleach weakens the sand dollar's exoskeleton a little more so it is not recommended you do this more then once.
If this process does not whiten your sand dollars then it is best to allow the sun to bleach them the rest of the way or you may simply spray them with white paint or lacquer.
Another way to clean & sun-bleach sand dollars is to place them on an ant mound. The ants will clean them & the sun will bleach them. This method takes as long as a week so if you are in a hurry this is not the method for you.
Now you may harden these treasures by mixing a white glue & water in equal parts. Use a sponge brush & completely coat each sand dollar with this mixture. Allow them to dry completely. Once your sand dollars are dry you may use them in a wide variety of craft projects or in displays.
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SS 7.5'' LARGE SATIN SHELLS, STARFISH & SANDDOLLAR LINK BRACELET

SS 7.5'' LARGE SATIN SHELLS, STARFISH & SANDDOLLAR LINK BRACELET
SS 7.5'' LARGE SATIN SHELLS, STARFISH & SANDDOLLAR LINK BRACELET
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SS 7.5'' LARGE SATIN SHELLS, STARFISH & SANDDOLLAR LINK BRACELET
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Pelican Beach - Oil on Sand Dollar - By Artist Linda Hoxie
Set of Four Sand Dollar Occasions Drink Coasters

Set of Four Sand Dollar Occasions Drink Coasters
Description: Set of 4 Absorbent Coasters Cork-backed to protect furniture Large surface area (4.5 inches in diameter) to catch more drips Printed and packaged in the USA (no decals)
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Set of Four Sand Dollar Occasions Drink Coasters
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This shows you what a "Live Sand Dollar" Looks like - Please throw back
Living Sand Dollar
We found a living sand dollar. It was very cool. We put it back in the ocean right after filming it.
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Art Poster Print - Mathematics Music (Henriettsontag) - Artist: Joseph Cornell - Poster Size: 18 X 24 inches

Art Poster Print - Mathematics Music (Henriettsontag) - Artist: Joseph Cornell - Poster Size: 18 X 24 inches
"Mathematics Music (Henriettsontag)" by Joseph Cornell High quality art poster. DirectForSale sells over 300,000 different art posters. Browse our store and shop for all your Art posters with DirectForSale. This Mathematics Music (Henriettsontag)Poster is made with High Quality Poster paper and is made for years of enjoyment. * Poster Size: 18 X 24 inches. * Primary poster color=Cornflower Blue. * Secondary poster color=Pink. Note: This item is not available for express shipping.
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Art Poster Print - Mathematics Music (Henriettsontag) - Artist: Joseph Cornell - Poster Size: 18 X 24 inches
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How and What does the Sand Dollar eat?
The Sand Dollar is considered a suspension feeder and feeds on suspended organic particulate matter in the water currents.
Various specialized spines, tube feet, mucus-secreting glands and the pedicellariae - small pincher-like organs with moveable jaws, are involved in feeding.
The spines on the aboral side are club-shaped and covered with cilia. When small organic particles and organisms flow onto this surface, little eddies are created and particles become trapped by mucus secreted on the spines.
They are directed by these club-shaped spines and cilia to the margins and around to the oral side to the food grooves, where they move in mucus streams that lead to the mouth in the center.
Larger suspended particles may be held by sucker-tipped podia and transported to the food grooves. For living prey such as crustacean larvae and small copepods, the spines on the oral side converge and enclose it into a little tent-like cone, where it is passed to a food groove by the jaws of the pedicellariae. Sand is ingested with the food and it is thought that this is deliberately done to use for weight, for their stability in the sand.
The Western Sand Dollar is able to feed in this manner because of its eccentricity, which allows it to bury itself "standing up" obliquely in the sand. This is their feeding position, parallel to the surge current with the anterior end buried (Lawrence 1987). By positioning themselves closely together, they may exploit their hydrodynamic shape and influence the current flow past their bodies. It is likely that this is the reason they form densely packed beds of several hundred individuals per square meter. In light currents, they may stand perpendicular, lay flat, or even bury themselves (Jangoux and Lawrence 1983).
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Silver Bangle With Sanddollar

Silver Bangle With Sanddollar
FAST SHIPPING with this perfect Silver Bangle With Sanddollar is offered especially to you by the Great Jewelry Co.. This piece comes complete in a premium gift box, 5-Star service and complete customer commitment. We are truly "customer committed" and do our best to help you in any way that we can. You will receive personal emails from us when your order is received, processed and delivered. Giving this as a gift? We ship each piece with a packing slip that does not show the cost. It also comes with a 30 Day Return Policy. Most importantly, we are available 24/7 via our email address at michael@religiousjewelrystore.com or our toll free number 888-202-2165.
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Silver Bangle With Sanddollar
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Reflections of the setting sun - Oil on Sand Dollar - By Artist Linda Hoxie
How do they Breed?
Reproduction
Reproduction is sexual and the Western Sand Dollar reaches sexual maturity between 1 and 4 years of age.
The swelling of the gonads in May marks the beginning of the major spawning period, which lasts through July or August.
The female Dendraster discharges the eggs already ripe (meiosis already occurred) through her gonopores and are fertilized externally by the male, who protrudes his genital papilla from his body wall to increase the distance that the sperm can reach the eggs.
Within 2-4 days, four-armed pluteus larvae develop and become a part of the floating zooplankton. Adult Sand Dollars will eat their own larvae but not their eggs, due to a protective jelly coating. Individuals probably spawn multiple times. Females can produce over 350,000 eggs per year.
Brooding, or the association of the juvenile with the female parent, is not common in echinoderms because it would decrease reproductive productivity.
The larvae may travel quite a distance with the currents and do not necessarily stay near the parent bed group.
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Nagalle Gem Quality Opal Sanddollar Pendant

Nagalle Gem Quality Opal Sanddollar Pendant
Nagalle gem quality Australian Opal inlay sanddollar pendant set in 14kt gold.
Nagalle Gem Quality Opal Sanddollar Pendant
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Sanddollar - The legend of the Sanddollar on zazzle
The legend of the Sanddollar

A Bed of Sand Dollars
Now Let's look closely at the different parts of a Sand Dollar
If you look at the front of a Sand Dollar, which is called the aboral side, you will see the five petals of the flower and those tiny little holes on the front, called gonopores.
A flower-like pattern is composed of pore pairs where specialized tube feet perform gas exchange.
At the center is the madreporite - a perforated platelike structure that forms the intake for their water-vascular system, and adjacent to this on the interambulacra, the genital pores. Radiating out from the genital pores are the five flower petals, which represents the ambulacral radii.
On the back of the Sand Dollar, which is called the "Oral Side" is the mouth in the center, the hole in the middle.
And the tiny hole at the bottom, is well...the sand dollars bottom, where wasted is excreted.
The groves are food groves.
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Young Pacific Ridley Turtle on a Sand Dollar
Young Pacific Ridley Turtle on a Sand Dollar
Awesome footage of a Live Sand Dollar crawling on the Beach
Time Lapse Sand Dollar moving accross the sand
This is some Time Lapse video I shot of a very active Sand Dollar moving across the sand in the afternoon. It has a clump of sand on top of it. I have always seen these when I was a kid, but now my fascination with them has really been sparked. The eat plankton and are related to Sea Urchins (they eat sea plants). Some of these Sand Dollars move in a straight line, some go in a circle around and around. Others zig-zag back and forth. I know they seem to have an exoskeleton but WHAT are they? I cant seem to find a lot of detailed information about these creatures and their habits online. Has anyone ever seriously studied the behavior of these creatures? I don't know if they have a brain, but without one, how do they make decisions? Some seem to bury themselves in the sand.
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Girl Watching Sunset - Oil Painting on a Sand Dollar, by Artist Linda Hoxie
The Legend of the Sand Dollar
Lighthouse - Oil on a Sand Dollar - By Artist Linda Hoxie
Sand Dollar Signatures - Please leave Your Mark in the Sand Here!
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Thank you so much for stopping by. Please leave me a note and let me know your thoughts on the Sand Dollar and this site.
If you are interested in any of the Sand Dollar artwork, by Linda just check watch the ebay link below. Or email her through this lens.
Thanks again for stopping by!
Linda
PS: If you like this page, Please
Stumble It!
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KimGiancaterino wrote...
This is the second sand dollar lens I've given a Squid Angel Blessing to today. Beautiful job!
Evelyn_Saenz wrote...
One year on a beach in Costa Rica we discovered live sand dollars. They hang out just below the surface of the sand where the ocean meets the beach. If you sift your fingers through the wet sand you will find them. Lay them on top and they soon wiggle their way back down leaving 5 depressions where the holes are.
fotolady49 wrote...
Interesting lens. I never knew there was so much to lean about sand dollars! 5*****
Mazzer wrote...
Another great lens. They say everyday is a school day - I had never heard of Sand Dollars before. Your lens has been very informative with lovely photographs. Well done!
daria369 wrote...
Another awesome lens, great info, beautiful photos and - just what I was looking for to write about in a letter to my aunt who has never seen a sand dollar... Thank you!!!
JaguarJulie wrote...
I've always thought the sand dollar was the most amazing creature -- probably only found quarter pieces on the Florida beaches. Lovely lens.
JaguarJulie wrote...
I've always thought the sand dollar was the most amazing creature -- probably only found quarter pieces on the Florida beaches. Lovely lens.
mulberry wrote...
Great lens. I recall collecting these as a kid and learning from some Florida
"natives" how to clean and preserve them.
poddys wrote...
Very nice lens. I only saw Sand Dollars once, in Maine. I love the seaside, the shells and the unique organisms that live there. 5***** for a beautifully created lens.
JustBon-Crochet-Designs wrote...
Beautiful lens with some wonderful info. 5*s
dustytoes wrote...
You provide some wonderful information here! I photograph shells and am glad I happened to see your lens. Nice job. ~pam
mobleyj wrote...
Linda, I enjoyed this website on sand dollars. I use sand dollars as ornaments on my Christmas Tree. Thanks for the kind words on my lens. I will be adding other vacation excursions so stay tuned.
Judi
LensbyLisa wrote...
Wow, this is a really cool lens! Makes me want to take a trip to the beach to hunt sand dollars!
The_Party_Animal wrote...
I love sand dollars - when I lived in Florida I made everyone a pretty ornament for their tree for xmas one year. 5 sandy stars washing up for you.
ArtByLinda wrote...
Eelcat, how wonderful to be right there on the ocean to do that! Thank you so much for sharing you story about the sand dollars, they are lovely little unique creatures. :-)
My best, Linda
EelKat wrote...
I love sand dollars. Around march each year they wash up in the hundreds, just like in you bed of sand dollar picture. Me and Buddy (my dog) go out and collect them all up, keep the dead ones, and take all the live ones back out into the oceans. They get trapped in the sand bar during high tide than can't get back over it during low tide, and by the time the tide come back to wash them out again, they all die. I can stand seeing that happen, so that's why I collect them all up and carry them back over the sandbar, to the deep side again.
ArtByLinda wrote...
Laura, I'm glad you liked it. Marine Biology is your hobby? Wow, how fun that would be! Take care, Linda
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