Week 2: USFSP

            This week was definitely an eye-opener week for me. One reason I wanted to take this class was so that I could narrow down what I want to focus on in the field of marine biology. This week helped me to figure out some things that I definitely don’t want to do in this field. 

            First thing, I will not be doing offshore work. Ever. On Wednesday, we got the opportunity to participate in studies done on an offshore research vessel. Knowing that I get motion sick, I showed up prepared. I had my motion sick wristbands, I had taken non-drowsy Dramamine, I used motion ease, and I had lots of ginger snacks. I still got sick. I was sick from about 11am to about 7pm. The only thing I could do to help the motion sickness was to sit at the front of the boat and watch the horizon, or sleep. So, aftter a much-needed 2 hour nap, I actually felt pretty good. I was pretty upset that I wasn’t able to participate in the first site data collection because I was sick, but I was really excited to be in on the action at the second site. I really loved the data collection process. We collected specimens using a dredge and an otter trawl. Once we collected the samples, we categorized them into buckets and used field guides to identify their species. Then we would count and measure them and record all data found. It was a really cool experience and it was cool being able to identify species that we had never seen before. It required lots of teamwork and coordination, and I really enjoyed it. I’m glad it was only a 12 hour trip though because I don’t know how much longer I could have stayed on the boat for. Overall, it was a really cool experience being able to participate in a study on a research vessel. 

            I also learned two other things that I will not be doing in my marine biology career. I will not work with sponges and I will not work with plankton. The sponge was literally the most awful thing I’ve ever smelled in my life. It was absolutely terrible, and it never went away. It was just really hard to focus and dissect it when all I could think of was my nose hairs pretty much melting from the awful smell. Sponges are super cool and I love learning about them and I could see myself studying them but only if they’re still in the water and I don’t have to smell them. Also, plankton was a topic of this week that was really cool and interesting, but I don’t see myself pursuing a career with plankton. One of our tasks was to get a petri dish of one of the plankton samples we collected on the boat. The plankton sample we had in my group was so overwhelming. When putting the petri dish under the microscope, we couldn’t even see the bottom of it because it was just covered in plankton. It was just layers on top of layers of plankton. We had never even seen or studied plankton very much, and we were supposed to identify them and count them. It was just extremely overwhelming and we didn’t even know where to start or how to handle it. With one of the plankton species we identified, we determined there to be 97,761 total in the sample after all the calculations. It was just a really difficult task for us and we didn’t really enjoy it very much. The good thing about this class though is that it is helping us to narrow down our choices of where to go next in this field. There were some things that I did enjoy this week, but it more helped me to see what I don’t want to do in marine biology. I look forward to what I will learn in these next few weeks. 

Week 1: UWF Pictures!

Week 1: UWF

Our first week was spent at the University of West Florida. We learned so much about so many different ecosystems. It was great being able to travel around Pensacola and learn about different things in the ecosystem that need our help to be fixed.

            The first day was spent learning about stream ecology. We went to four different streams around Pensacola. They were all so different and had many different characteristics to them. The first stream that we visited, called Ferrypass Bayou Creek, was a 6 on the biological condition gradient. This scale is rated from 1-6, with 1 being pristine and 6 being in bad shape. As we moved to different streams, they all continually increased on the scale, with the Perdido River being the healthiest. We learned about the effects of development and sedimentation on streams. We also learned that everything that happens in streams has an effect on the larger bodies of water that they flow into like rivers and oceans.

            The second day was learning about water quality and seagrasses. Water quality samples were taken using a YSI, a plankton net, a CTD, a light penetration meter, and a seki. Each of these tools is used to measure a different aspect of the water being sampled. All of the data collected was taken into the lab and analyzed for future studies. After taking water samples, we learned about seagrasses. Seagrasses are essential habitats for countless aquatic species. Seagrass abundance was measured using square pvc pipes. They were placed on the sea floor and the abundance of seagrasses present was measured and recorded.

            The third day was spent learning about dunes, fish sampling, and sea turtles. We went to Pensacola beach and took sein samples. Seining is a way to get samples of the aquatic life present in the sampling area. It is a large net with two poles on each side that’s dragged along the bottom of the water body being sampled. Five sein samples were taken at every location we visited. The data collected is a good representation of whether the quality of the water at the site is good or not. After collecting the fish data, we went to Fort Pickens to learn about sea turtles. They study light pollution’s effect on sea turtle nests. Light data is collected at night on each nest to see how much light is surrounding the nests and how much it affects where the turtles go when they hatch. The data collected is analyzed and is taken again once the eggs hatch to see how much the light affected them getting back into the ocean.

            The fourth day was spent in the lab analyzing all the data that was collected during the week. It was also a day to work on presentations. There were seven groups who each had a different topic to make a presentation on.

            The last day was spent finishing up presentations and presenting to the group. The presentations were great and it was great being able to learn more about what we had been working with the whole week. Overall, it was a great week and we learned so much. I am looking forward to what the rest of this class has in store.

Introduction!

Hi! My name is Meg Simon and I am studying to be a Marine Biologist! When I was four years old, I discovered my passion for marine biology when my family took a family vacation to Sea World. Since then, I knew that I wanted to study marine life and work with marine animals. I look forward to learning more about all the different ecosystems in Florida. I am excited to learn about new organisms I've never seen before. Throughout this class, I will be blogging about all the experiences that I will have, all the places I will go, and all the things that I will be learning! I can't wait to start this amazing journey!