On a nocturnal note

Around 7 in the evening we set out on our first nighttime snorkeling adventure. We separated into groups with a designated flashlight holder and stayed within the boundaries that we were given. The species activity is completely different at night, I saw quite a few creatures that I haven't even seen during the day. It may have just been that I was trying to pay attention to things around me more closely than I usually would have because it was harder for me to see. The fish that were feeding at the bottom were much less reactant to me swimming up close to them, even with the flashlight on. I was surprised by how close I was able to get to them before they slowly began to move away.

Beaded Sea Cucumber
(Nocturnal species)

Notice feeding tentacles near bottom of photo 

Longspine Squirrelfish

Spotted Scorpionfish

Spotted Scorpionfish

Yellow Stingray

Yellow Stingray feeding near a Starfish.

Day of Relaxing, Work, and Fun

We had a very relaxed morning today. Dr. Gilchrist told us to finish up our assignments due today. After working for a solid amount of time, Sonja and I decided to set out for some kayaking. We wanted to go out for the point, but decided once again that it would be better to go to the beach near the point so that we didn't get sucked away. After paddling for a while, we finally reached the beach! We saw some very cool snails and climbed the rocks where we saw some crabs and very pretty shells. After that, we went back and gave our presentations of our focal animal and focal area sampling data (discussed in earlier people's blogs). So many people saw really cool species! I was really intrigued by how differently fish behave especially and I'm looking forward to start working on our projects this week. After eating dinner, we went for a night snorkel. We used flashlights to see underwater and we saw an octopus again! We also saw a scorpion fish, which I had never seen (or identified before). A few people got jellyfish stings and I hurt my finger on the dock, but it was definitely worth it. Sonja and I also saw a fish sleeping on turtle grass. The reefs are completely different during the night! After I was just about to go in, I came back out when I heard that a few people were seeing an eel. I put on my snorkel and Thomas showed it to me. It was so pretty and glissened on the bottom of the shallow sea floor. Great way to conclude a very nice day!

Don't be a hermit, there's plenty to explore here!

On the evening of the fourth we begun work with hermit crabs! We were instructed to separate into three groups with our roommates. Each group was given 50 of the same shells. We were to label each shell with a “T” to indicate our room followed by the shell number 1-50 and 15 at the end to indicate the year. After labeling each of the shells with sharpie we were to put a bit of superglue on the marker to seal it on shell. Then we took four measurements of each shell using calipers. We took the length and width of the shell and the length and width of the aperture. There were four students in our group and we each took one of those measurements for all 50 shells. We worked like machines and finished fairly quickly with a great deal of accuracy. After measuring the shells each group chose a location to place their shells. We placed ours in the sand to the right of the pathway leading to the water from the dining area. Each morning we are to check the shells to see if any have been taken by crabs. If any shells are left we are to take the same shell measurements to determine the approximate size of the creature. The morning after we placed the shells, July 5, there were no takers. Our group felt slightly discouraged and thought we chose a poor location. The next morning however, we had a taker! A critter left a tulip shell and moved into shell #39! The shell it moved into had an aperture of about two millimeters larger than its original shell!

We placed the shells to the right of the pathway leading to the water from the dining area. They are about four and a half meters from the shore line.

This is the first shell that was recovered. We believe that some type of snail inhabited this tulip shell.

We took measurements in millimeters. The following values were recorded:
total length 47.73
total width 18.19
aperture length 9.36
aperture width 9.12
The shell it moved into was measured in milimeters and its values were
total length 36.85
total width 14.65
aperture length 13.41
aperture width 11.44

7.5

Ah the lovely day after the 4th. I woke up alert today despite the 5 hours of sleep. No bad bug bites.

(Skip breakfast... I mean I ate... just.... anyway.)

We went out today in pairs/trios to do different types of studies on the corals. Natalie and I first did the 10 minute 1 meter by 1 meter watch. She took pictures while I recorded on a dive slate. After that, we followed a little blue tang fish around for ten minutes and watched him eat. I was able to swim with the huge fish again under the dock, and we were messing around and saw an OCTOPUS. A HUGE ONE. He clearly didn't fit in the crevace like he wanted. At first we thought he was a huge snail, and then I saw his big eyes and suctions and called Natalie back over. He was so cool! It's definitely something I hope I never forget.

(Skip lunch)

We had free work time, so I went up and took a shower in the daylight for the first time in a while. (After much anger at the water in cabin 8's shower which was so hot I was so unhappy I couldn't even touch it.) Then I've been here, at the computer, working on the Species Identification powerpoint of mine (now a lovely green and closed and done!) and attempting not to pass out next to Codee. (who braided my clean hair all nice)

At dinner, Austin and I thought it would be a good idea to pour hot sauce on our food. Of course it was super spicy hot sauce and we both were dying, but continued to eat because we had to eat something. So we both died for a while. My tongue was on fire and my lips went numb. But after a little bit more work it was alright. Then Natalie and I went back up to the room and worked more on our poster project we did today using focal species and focal area. 

Now I'm exhausted, and I need to sleep.

-- 

Olivia Van Housen

Sampling Activities

To date we have been introduced to four different sampling techniques. We were sent into the field with appropriate equipment for about an hour to complete each exercise. On July 1, 2015 our seven student group completed the point quarter transect and the regular transect on two separate expeditions.  The point quarter transect involved choosing and marking ten points two meters apart from one another. After the points had been flagged, photos were to be taken in four quadrants around each point one meter from the flag. In the regular transect at least five points were to be marked one meter apart in a straight line. In both transect exercises photos were taken of the points and students were to identify the species of coral in the area. The data was later transferred to an excel spread sheet and the percent coverage of coral was analyzed. On July 4, 2015 we worked on another type of sampling called grid sampling. This time we were to flag off a 5 meter by 5 meter square in the same location we did the transect. We were to visualize this sectioned off square as a grid with 1 meter by 1 meter sections. To start the sampling we were to pick three coordinates and take a photo in each of the sections. Our group chose (1,1), (3,3) and (5,5). This information was transferred to an excel spread sheet and the percent coverage of coral was analyzed. On July 5, 2015 we conducted focal area and focal animal sampling. Our three person group worked on the focal area sampling first. In this type of sampling researchers are to watch a single area 1 meter by 1 meter and observe the organisms that come in and out of the area. The species name, movement, and behavior was recorded for later analysis. To conduct the focal animal sampling a single animal is monitored and its behavior is recorded. Both samplings were conducted for a predetermined period of ten minutes. The information observed was used to create a poster that will be presented later on today.

Day 7: July 5

We went snorkeling this morning at 1030. In partner groups we were to do focal species and focal area field study techniques. I was grouped with Olivia. The focal species is where you choose a species to follow for ten minutes. You observe it and take pictures of it. We followed a Blue Tang fish. At first I was nervous that we would easily lose it or scare it off but it was a generally calm and easy animal to follow. He mostly fed on plants and corals and hid under rocks and swam around. It was fun. Next was the focal area. That is where you pick a small area, about 1m by 1m, and observe the habitat for ten minutes. I took pictures and Olivia wrote notes on a dive slate. The observations have been recorded on a poster like PowerPoint that we will present to the group tomorrow. In the afternoon we had time to work on our various assignments. Upcoming we have due our second essay which is to compare sponges and Portuguese Man O’ War on why sponges are animals and Portuguese Man O’ War are colonies. Also, we had to make a poster on our observations from todays field study. Also, we have to work on our newest transect and analyze the coverage in our groups. Lastly, we have to finish our species identification assignment. It was a full day of work, but I have everything under control and it feels good.

We found an octopus today after we finished our focal work!

Day 6: July 4

In the afternoon we practiced a new field study technique called sampling. We placed flags on four corners of a 5m by 5m grid. Before we got out to the reef we decided on coordinates that we would use to take pictures of; rows and columns, each row/column being 1 m. We we got out there, we measured and took pictures of the spot. We will then analyze the photos for percent coverage of coral and compare them to our transect results to see how accurate/precise the two techniques are to each other.

After that, we got out hermit crab assignment. Each room is given 50 hermit crab shells. We are to label them based on room, number and year (the 15th shell is T1515, we are room T for top of the hill...), and we will place the shells near our rooms tonight and see where they end up in three days time. I am excited to interact with hermit crabs in a scientific sense and I have only played with them as domesticated animals. We also have to measure the length and width of the shell and aperture (opening) so we can later compare that data with the shells that the crabs discard.

our shells all lined up to be measured

Tarantula in our room

Climbed up into the rafters to see if I could find anything funky, and this "little" guy started moving about. A Honduran curlyhair tarantula.

-Thomas Chaffee

7-05-2015

This morning we went out and hunted for photos for crustaceans and fish. Of course, I was super excited to just be out in the field observing stuff. Still, the parrot fish are my favorite, so (obviously) I swam after a few of them trying to get the best "glamour shot." We went out for an hour, and then Natalie and I saw everyone else heading in. Naturally, we kept at it in stride to the other side of the dock to look for more crustaceans. SO MANY LOBSTERS. I mean... three isn't considered "many" but it's ok. (Some were just dead and cooked lobster heads.) After a lot of salt water and diving down to creep on unsuspecting urchins, we finally went inside.

(Skip lunch and hour break furiously moving 250 photos into their respective places.)

This afternoon we went out and looked for mollusks and plants to the right of the dock. Because Natalie and I had already been out there, I was able to recognise certain corals as ones I saw on the first excursion. I worked on trying to perfect my photography, and found a really odd worm. Later I will identify it... probably. 

After most of the group went inside, I still (ignoring the toe blisters from the fins) went hunting and went under the dock. It was amazing! I saw a (father) seahorse hanging on to a palm fronth and I swam with hundreds of little tiny fish. It was one of the most epic experiences I've ever had. 

-Olivia Van Housen 

7.3.15

7/1/15 - Coconut Party

Coconut Room Service from the nicest native around. This man looks to be in his sixties and yet he can scale a coconut palm tree effortlessly. I want to be able to do this someday!

July 11, 2014

Along with all the wonderful creatures of the sea, there are a few terrestrial and avian creatures that are fun to watch, or watch out for.  We have tarantulas all over, seeing lots of holes in the hillside where they hide.  We have scorpions that love to come out of the holes in the stairs at night.  There are many varieties of hummingbirds flitting all over and hanging out at the birdfeeders for them as well as crows, and frigate birds soaring on the winds.

                      I found a dead snapper in the sea grass beds and brought it back for Rob to use with his Mantis shrimp research but he decided against using it so I tossed it back in the water and the frigate birds decided to scoop it up, fighting over it in the air, dropping it, picking it up, over and over again, until one finally flew off with it.  It was a sight to see.

                     Went back to check the SE near shore area (by the base camp) to check on the movement of the previously marked Flamingo Tongues.  About 1/3 – ½ of them were still on the same fan.  Some had moved to other fans or corals, most of the time no further than 1.5m and sometimes as close as only 6 cm to the next coral.  Others were unable to be found on their original fan, in the sediment or any fans near.

                      Saw a huge purplish Donkey Dung Sea Cucumber close to 30 cm long (yes, that is their name), some different colored, fairly large cowfish and a burr fish, as well as the usual multicolored parrot fish, jellies and various other fish as well as a purple Sponge Brittle Star wrapped around a gorgonian branch coral.

              

                                                Squirrel Fish

                                           My little juvenile Flamingo Tongue.

July 9, 2014

           .  

Oops.  Left out this day.

Still haven’t made it back out to the NW point area.  Seas have been rough, especially in the afternoons when the wind really picks up, so back to the center reef, west of the dock.  Checked on previously marked flags for evidence of Flamingo Tongues.  Most corals other than the Common Purples Sea Fans (CPSF) had their polyps out in full force, unless a FT was on the coral, then the coral would have open polyps on part of it and closed polyps were the FTs were (the majority of the time).  Some of the fans showed signs of being eaten, but not to a serious extent, especially the feather corals, hardly showing any damage even though FTs were found on them often. 

                     In the lab at New College the CPSFs opened their polyps mostly at night, rarely in the daytime.  Only an afternoon dive today, whereas many days I try to get more than one session and area done.  Looked in the debris area under the dock for a reported large octopus sighting but was not lucky enough to see it, just millions of anchovies and other small fishes.

                                          

Rod Coral with polyps open - closeup

                                                   Purple Feather fan - 1/2 polyps open,1/2 closed

                                                    Rod coral - polyps open

           

July 10, 2014

                      Whew!  Still catching up on posts.  So much time in the water and then recording all the info.  Not to mention the iffy internet.

Time is flying here on the island of Cayos Major in the Cayos Cochinos chain of islands off Honduras.  Hard to believe we are more than half way done with our time here.  It is going much too fast.  A morning swim today, finally over to the NW point, all the way to the point this time, starting there and working my way back past the previous area I checked further from the point a few days ago. 

                     Decided to follow the shore line out, as trying to take the “short way” straight across to the point is a lot more difficult with the current and wind and takes as long to get there fighting the elements as it does to take the “long way” around the bend, closer to shore in shallower waters with less current and wind effect.  Coming back is a little easier the short way as the wind and current is pushing you in that direction.  That is also were the turtles and rays are seen a lot of the time. 

                     On the way out I spotted a golden colored boulder coral about 1m in diameter in the middle of the sea grass bed and under it saw 2 small lobsters, going to town feeding on the algae and such near their boulder.

                     I was excited to find the smallest Flamingo Tongue yet.  It was about as close to the larva stage as you could get, with the shell being only about 2mm wide and 5-6mm long attached to the top of a Common Purple Sea Fan.  Yahoo!  Smallest I have seen yet.  I few days ago I found a small juvenile FT but it was twice the size of this one.  Most FTs I have seen have been fully mature, around 2.5-3.0 cm with a few only 1.5-2.0 cm.  This itty bitty one was hard, but fun to find.

                     At the NW point there were a lot of sea fans but few FT.  Further back from the point a lot more FT on various corals were seen.  I need to verify that they were all of the Gorgonian phylum.  100s of 1,000s of sea urchins line the shore reef areas and the waves have a tendency to push me into some of these shallow area, being hard to get out of without running into the urchins and other reef creatures.  Almost got trapped a couple times and got close to meeting up with a bunch of spiny (ouch) sea urchins.

                                          Long spined sea urchin - all over the place

Encrusting coral

                                          Purple feather Gorgonian

                                         Strange division of arms on sea cushion

                     

July 8, 2014

Winds and current still ripping pretty good making the NW point a little too rough again today.  Went back to the southeast shore and southwest shore and point area. 

                     Yesterday I met one of the tourists, Norma from the capital city of Honduras, who is going back to school at FIU in Miami for a BA in Marine Bio.  She was interested in tagging along with me on my research and I was more than glad to have her along.  She read the GPS unit for me, giving the latitude and longitude coordinates for the locations we found the Flamingo Tongues.

                     We marked the beginning and end of the shelf with the 100s of sea fans, but still found few FTs in that area.  I did spot a small octopus that disappeared real fast upon seeing me.  Together we mapped the location of all FTs found, whether on the fans, the feathers, branches or rod corals, or even in the sediment.

                     I found a FT approximately 10-12 cm from a purple ribbon coral.  As I proceeded to grab my camera and take a pic of it off the coral it moved to the base of the coral, within 30 seconds.  I was amazed at how fast it moved considering I watched one move last year for a period of 10 minutes at a “snail’s pace” moving only about 40 cm in that time.

                                                   Diseased coral with purple spots and black streak from Flamingo Tongue eating the coral polyps.

                                         Odd pattern in Brain Coral

                                          Chain eel in sea grass bed with mouth open

                                                    Black ball sponge

July 7, 2014

                     Due to the high winds and strong current I did not go out to the far NW point area but went back out to the same reef area as yesterday, west of the dock 100m to see what kind of movement the Flamingo Tongues do in a 24 hour period.  In the shallow area of the reef in a 3m² area were found 12 FT.  In other random 3m² areas there were no FT found.  One shell of a FT was found near the base of a branch coral.  The cameras have been working well, especially the compact Olympus camera I got just before leaving.  The clarity of the camera for close up shots seems to be better than the Sea Life camera supplied by Dr. Gilchrist.  Check out the difference in these photos.

                                          FIRE WORM - CLOSEUP - SEALIFE CAMERA

                                FIRE WORM - CLOSEUP - OLYMPUS  CAMERA

FLAMINGO TONGUE ON COMMON PURPLE SEA FAN CREATING A BLACK STREAK ON THE VEIN - EATING THE CORAL POLYPS

                     July 6, 2014

Since internet has been iffy I am playing catch up again with the posts.  

          Did not push too hard today.  Only a morning swim (3 hrs) and a laid back afternoon, catching up on blogging and consolidating info, even a little easy reading.   Aaahhh!  Checked out the area in front of the dock, west about 100m or so.  There was quite a bit of rubble before reaching the actual reef area.  The rubble area had rock, some hard corals, such as boulder and brain corals.  Heading towards the northern side (to the right) the reef started to come alive with a lot of different soft corals, some sponges, anenomes, urchins and brilliantly colored fish.  There was an abundance of feather and branch corals compared to fans.  Many FT were found on the feather and branch corals, a couple on rod corals and even some in the sediment between fans.  The FT tended to congregate in a fairly tight area near the center of the reef which is in a pretty open area getting a fairly strong current.  Marked as many as possible with flags before lunch.  Worked with the GPS unit getting used to it to mark the FTs throughout the bay.

                                     BRANCHING FIRE CORAL - OVERTAKING SEA FAN                                         

                                          SPLIT-CROWN FEATHER DUSTER

                                          CHRISTMAS TREE WORMS ON BRAIN CORAL

                                          CHRISTMAS TREE WORMS - CLOSEUP

July 5, 2014

            Headed to the southeast near shore area this morning.  Saw a few Cushion Sea Stars of various colors along the way, pretty good size, about 1 foot across that look like a puffed up version of a “starfish” or sea star as is the proper name.  Worked my way to the shelf area where 100s of fans are on a rocky area about 30m offshore and 1-2m deep.  For as many sea fans as there were, there was very few Flamingo Tongues (FT), only on the edges of the reef, not in the center.   Very surprising considering the quantity of fans.  I would have thought it was a cornucopia for the snails.  Apparently not, and it makes me curious as to why.  Continuing to follow the shoreline, within 30m or so more FT started showing up as I neared the bend turning west.  All FT were seen on Common Purple Sea Fans except for one that was on the sediment in front of a fan (about 10cm away).  As I proceeded towards the southern point heading west more FT started appearing.

            Afternoon had me prepping equipment and cameras for tomorrow and catching up on transferring information from my reusable, waterproof “paper” and cameras to my info sheets and computer.  Not as much fun as being in the water checking it all out, but necessary none the less. 

                                                    FIELD OF SEA FANS - FEW FLAMINGO TONGUES

             
                                             GIANT SEA ANENOME

                                          BLUE ENCRUSTING CORAL

                                          BLUE ENCRUSTING CORAL - CLOSEUP

                                          SEA CUCUMBER - PURPLE - ABOUT 12"

Well, I've been searching and searching for shrimp and have finally found two. This is exciting for me. I've finally got some to film. This should be pretty good for me. On July fourth I swam with a turtle and two days ago I swam with two more. My count is up to four green sea turtles, 1 huge american stingray, 1 large octopus (not sure of the species), and millions of other fish. So far this has been a wonderful experience.
Yesterday we went diving for the first time. The first location was a place called the stadium. It was a sand flat surrounded by angled walls of coral that was reminiscent of a stadium. At the end there was a small swim through cave. The cave was pretty awesome, but overall the best part was the corals that surrounded the flat. The second location was that of a National Geographic plane wreck (no one was harmed.). That was a pretty awesome little site that snuck up on you. It was at 60 feet and was covered in corals. This has been my favorite experience on the island so far.
Here is a view from the dock that I took a while ago. This is the first time I've been able to upload photos!

My Independence Day - July 4, 2014

July 4, 2014   

            Fireworks may be exploding all around the country tonight but the stars in the sky here are doing the same.  1,000’s to see with only a crescent moon in the sky.  I haven’t been able to see the Milky Way since I can’t remember when with so much light pollution at home.  The Big Dipper hanging low in the northern sky was shining brilliantly as were all the other stars and planets.  We went down to the docks to see if the Spotted Eagle Rays were hanging around like previous nights, but to no avail.  Seeing “shooting stars” and all the constellations was awesome though. 

            I tackled the Northwest side of the bay this time, towards the point (1/2 mile as the crow flies) but did not make it all the way to the point as the winds starting picking up and the current was slamming me all over the reef area before I even made it to the point.  It is one long swim going diagonally across the bay, over the deeper area, fighting the current, but that’s where I get to see the turtles and rays (but not today).

            This area of the bay seems to get a lot more current flow than the opposite aide of the bay (Southwest towards the point).  As with the section of fans on the southeast shore area with 100s of fans, this area on the northwest side held a similar section loaded with fans.  An average of 30-40 fans per 3m².  Overall, this side of the bay looks healthier with more corals and Flamingo tongues and less algae.  

          The coral are darker purple in color like the second picture, although some still have a lot of algae.   You can see the “black streak” the FT made as it moved along the fan, eating the coral polyps.this particular FT did not have very much of its mantle displayed and it can be seen that the shell itself is very plain, white and creamy in color.  The first pic shows a Flamingo Tongue with it's mantle almost fully displayed on a very small (as you can see from the size of the FT which is only about 2.5-3.0 cm long) purple rod coral surrounded by the heavy algae plaguing the area.

            More pics for your viewing pleasure.  Blue Branching Vase Sponge from various angles.   Enjoy.

July 3, 2014

            Went back to the first site to check on the movement of the flamingo tongues I found yesterday.  Found 4 of the 7 in this area had moved, one almost a meter away, and 3 others had remained on the fan they were on yesterday.  I also found quite a few more and marked those.  Quite a few were found on other coral than the Common Purple Sea Fan.  Yesterday I found 1 dead one (shell) at the bottom of a sea fan.  I also found what I thought was a dead one (but wasn’t) in the sediment near a sea fan. 

     The black and white measures 1 cm per stripe.  Gives you an idea of the size of these Flamingo Tongues.  Most do not get over 3 cm but  a few stretch that.  The bottom picture shows the location on the fan, in a cleared area of algae, that I might assume has been cleared by the snail as it usually covers the fan more evenly.  The 2nd pic shows Christmas Tree Worms that grow all over hard corals such as brain and boulder.  The 3rd pic I believe is a Split-crown Feather Duster worm that disappears instantly when swimming by it.

            I did not see the large spotted eagle ray today that I did yesterday.  Its tail must have been all of 5 feet long and possibly longer.  Due to the poor clarity of the water I did not get great photos of it.  It sure was beautiful though.

     Still behind blogging but trying to catch up.  So much to see.  Enjoy the pics

July 2, 2014

Catching up for lost time and internet issues.

            After having a chance to explore the northern half of the bay I have found a few less sponges and a lot more algae compared to last year, both along the shore and near the point.  There are millions of anchovies and other small fishes throughout the bay.  Much more than I remember last year.  According to Mike, the proprietor of Turtle Bay Eco Resort, (on a deserted island – not really a “resort”) has informed me that due to a change in the winds this year, coming from the east (backside of the island) instead of the west it has affected the bay by not clearing it out as much which may be the reason for the higher algae content.  He also said that due to the change in winds, also being stronger than usual, it has kept the fisherman off the water.  They have not been catching bait fish (the anchovies and other small fish) so the population of these fish may be up because of this.  I would have thought this would have helped keep the algae content down, but it does not appear so.

            After looking over the south side of the bay, the fans on this side seem less healthy although they are prevalent, in the 100’s in one stretch, mostly small to medium size fans in this location.  Most are lighter purple or yellow, many with a high algae content on them.  The north side comparatively had less fans overall, but most were much healthier, of a deeper purple color, not so light, and not as much algae and other growths on them as I show in these photos.  As I found the flamingo tongues along the way I placed flags next to the coral they were on, or the bottom if that is where they were, to follow up in the following days the movement of these animals.  I am also trying to determine if they show a “preference” for certain fans, such as deeper purple, lighter purple, algae ridden, other corals, etc.

Darla

Cayos Major Honduras July 1, 2014

July 1, 2014

            Well, off to a rough start with cameras and computers but finally obtained some decent photos of all sorts of underwater creatures.  I am continuing research I started last year on the Common Purple Sea Fan, a gorgonian coral, and its relationship with the Flamingo Tongue snail.  I am attempting to find out if the snail vectors the Apergillus sydowii fungus to these fans or if it aides the fan by removing the fungus.  It ingests the fungus and uses it as a toxin to protect itself against predators.  I am theorizing that the Flamingo Tongue is aiding the fan, gorgonians being its primary source of food, a feeds only a little on the fans, not decimating them, and then moves on to another fan.  It may be very difficult to determine this, but I am going to give it a go. 

            Although I am studying these soft corals (non-reef building) I have captured a lot of images of other sea life besides and share it with you now.  Unfortunately I was not prepared with a camera and missed a fabulous shot of a Sea Robin.  It was very disappointing.  That will teach me to take a camera, every time I get in the water. I hope you enjoy these pics and more to come in the following days.

update 2014

we are switching to the old site as the new one is not working well.  So we will be posting from this blog.

We are in the middle of our first week,adjusting to time changes and weather.  It is clearly a nino year; wind from east,lots of algae,  no rain, but few mosquitoes.  All of our projects are started.  Darla is seeing fewer flamingo tongue snails.  Rob is locating his shrimp.  We have labeled shells and the land sites are really showing good results.  Students will be blogging about their work.