Turtle, Turtle

Today we woke up and the weather looked sour again. There were grey clouds and the wind was blowing entirely too hard to go scuba diving. Mr. Napier told us that yesterday he went to the dive shop and asked them if we were going diving for the duration of the trip. They looked at him funny, which isn’t a great sign for those of us who love seeing all of the underwater life in the coral reefs. This morning we ate breakfast and then met in one of the kitchenettes at 8:30 to talk about our plans for the day and Martin Luther King Jr. day. We talked about what it really means to each of us and how we should really reflect on its significance instead of inactively listening to what everyone tells us about the day. After our serious discussion, we got in the vans and drove to The Turtle Hospital (http://www.turtlehospital.org/). There we listened to our guide about what the hospital does for the turtles and the research that it does in partnering with the Florida University. They rescue, rehab, and release any injured sea turtles that they find. Sea turtles are different from fresh water turtles in that they cannot retract their head and fins into their shells. They are all endangered and protected, which means that people cannot touch them or take them, and that all products that are made from sea turtles cannot be taken or sold in the US. The Turtle hospital does most of its research on Fibropapilloma, a disease that affects every species of sea turtle. Fibropapilloma is caused by a virus that causes tumors to develop all over the turtle’s body. Mostly the tumors appear under and around the sea turtle’s eyes, which may lead to blindness and eventually death. The virus can also cause tumors on the liver and kidney of the turtle, in which case there is nothing that the hospital can do for them, and they must be put to sleep. A majority of the turtles at the hospital are being used for Fibropapilloma research. The other turtles have been injured because of human involvement. Many sea turtles are killed every year because of shrimping nets snagging them and drowning them. Others get caught in fishhooks and lobster and crab traps or hit by ships, which puts an air bubble in their back, so that they become buoyant and cannot submerge to escape from sharks or eat the food on the bottom. The Turtle Hospital takes them in and tries to fix whatever problems they have. One happy story came last Thursday when they released a leatherback turtle that had lockjaw (where he couldn’t move his mouth) after one year and 2 weeks in the Hospital. We learned at the gift shop about internships that were available there. Mr. T told us that if he had known about marine biology and all of the fascinating life underwater that he definitely would have taken advantage of it. I totally agree, and I’ve really enjoyed learning and observing all of the oceanic life that we have seen here in the keys.This afternoon, we’re going to do blogs and finish our symposium presentations for the Wednesday we get back. After that we’re going to pack, return all of the rented equipment, and get a good night’s sleep for the long journey home.
Steven Clapp

6 Foot Surges

Our second day of diving was very different from our first day. On the way out to Looe Key, everyone was fine and excited about the big waves. During the third dive we had to do an emergency ascent, compass navigation, remove and replace weights. During the dive, we saw a bunch of cool fish and reef and one boat saw a nurse shark today. It was so wavy during the dive that even at the bottom of the ocean the fish and reefs were swaying with the waves. During the surface interval people got really sick. But once everyone got back into the water, we were fine. During this dive, one group saw the yellow-headed jaw fish, which out instructor told us was really rare to sea. The time we got back to shore, most people had gotten over their seasickness. When we got back, everyone became a certified scuba diver! We did some paperwork and got our temporary cards. Then we had sandwiches by the boats because we had to get to Sea Camp. Once we got to Sea Camp, our leaders told us that they wanted to go snorkeling and not many people were excited about going but our leaders talked us into it. Before we got on the boats we talked about near-shore ecology and what are the benefits and negatives about it. We also talked about mangroves and how they benefit the ocean. After talking we got into the boats but we stayed in the bay so the waves wouldn’t be so bad. We got really close to a group of mangroves so that we would be able to see what lives around mangroves. We parked the boat in about three feet of water. Most of the group inflated their life jackets so that they wouldn’t touch the bottom of the ocean. One of the groups found a conch and the other group found a few starfish. It was hard to see a lot because the ground was murky, especially compared to the water at Looe Key. After everyone finished exploring the mangroves, the boats went out a little farther to an island called Bird Island. The island is made up of mangroves where a bunch of different birds lived. We saw some pelicans, osprey, and some other birds. The mangroves make a good home for birds because it provides a lot of protection and is right by the water so it would be easy for birds to catch fish. Then we went back to Sea Camp and returned all of masks, snorkels and fins. We made tacos for dinner and our Sea Camp leaders, Anna and Angelie came over for dinner. Later that night we went back to Sea Camp for our last lab of the week. In this lab we talked about the different types of algae. Then we played a game where we divided the group into two teams. A member from each team would go up to the board and would have to feel a type of algae without looking at it. Then they would draw what they thought the coral looked like and made up a name for it. The teachers were the judges of whose pictures and names were better. Then got into groups of three and each group got a tray of green algae. We dug through the algae and tried to find as many animals as we could and identify what phylum each animal was in. Most groups found starfish, crabs, shrimp, and worms. Then we went through another type of algae where we found a lot of similar animals but we also found a lot of sponges in these algae.
Christina Laan

Our First Day Of Scuba Diving - FRIDAY =)

Wow! Our first day diving was one heck of an adventure. We started our day off by waking up early to get a good breakfast in our stomach so that we had enough energy for the day. After we ate breakfast we loaded up all three of the busses and headed off to the dive shop, Undersea’s, to prepare and learn how to scuba dive in the ocean. JB, one of our scuba instructors handed our BCD's to us and we were one step further in going on our first day of scuba diving. We were told to go onto the boats and prepare our oxygen tanks and BCD’ and get ready to depart to the ocean. All of us from the tundra started to get a little warmer and start a nice tan! Everyone had to experience two dives on the first day in order to get certified. Our first dive was a success even though many people experienced seasickness in between our first dive and second dive. On our first dive we had to go underwater and practice buddy breathing, clearing your mask, and snorkel to regulator exchange. Because we have twenty-one students and three teachers the group was divided into four different groups on two different boats. For each dive we stayed under water for 45 minutes to an hour. During this time our instructor took us around the ocean to look at different plants and animals. For our first dive we were under water for about forty minutes. In one of the groups they saw a Caribbean reef shark that swam away from them but then circled back around the group and came so close it looked like you could touch it. My group saw many barracudas and tons of small fish. After this first dive was when every one started to get seasick. We had a 25-minute surface interval to recover from the first dive. Then we got back in for our second dive. On this dive we spent a lot of time looking at more fish and practicing the skills we learned back at the pool in Indiana. In the afternoon we went back to SeaCamp where our group leaders took us back to Looe Key for some snorkeling. Before we got into the water, we talked about coral but once again people got seasick so it was very hard to look down on the flat top boat where Ana and Angelie where drawing diagrams of the coral. The seasickness got much better after everyone got in the water. While my group was out in the ocean snorkeling, we saw two sea turtles. The other group saw a pod of dolphins. This was very exciting to get to see these unique animals. Something cool, but dangerous was spotted, a jellyfish. Everyone had to be very careful of these creatures because they could potentially harm you. All of us were excited to have a big meal after such a long day. But the day did not end yet. After dinner, we headed back to SeaCamp for the second time that day. We talked about different night animals and why certain animals hunt at certain times of days. Then we divided into groups and went out to the shore of SeaCamp with buckets and nets for a night wade. The group caught a lot of different animals including hermit crabs, horseshoe crabs, blue crabs, and a conch. Overall, we had a really productive and busy day and we learned a lot.
Katie Collins

Our first day snorkeling!!!

Today was our first real day at SeaCamp. We had toured SeaCamp the night before but still not knowing what to expect that morning when we got up. Our alarms went off at 7:15 and we got ourselves ready with a bathing suit and any gear that we might have had. We all ate breakfast (which consisted of oranges, muffins, toast and juice) and then got into our vans and drove off to SeaCamp. At SeaCamp we met Anna and Angelie for the first time. They talked to us about our activities that were planned for the day and then we went over to a shack to get our snorkel gear (mask, snorkel and fins). We then proceeded to go the “Snorkel Cove” to do our swim test. We had to swim to the end of a dock and back in freezing water with no gear on. After we all passed the swim test Anna and Angelie gave us our wet suits and we were briefed on how to snorkel properly. Getting on our wet suits and our snorkel gear, we put on a buoyancy device and got in the water. We performed a few tasks for Anna and Angelie and then we got out of the water and walked anxiously to flat tops 5 and 6. As we got onto the flat tops we had to put all our stuff in either a dry box or wet box, put on our life vests, and then sit down for the ride. It was a 25 minute ride out to the site where we were going to snorkel. Passing from the Atlantic Ocean to the Gulf of Mexico we became even more excited about the things that we would see under water. The water was only 5 ft deep but we were ready to see some cool animals underwater. Anna talked to us about coral and sponges on the flat top, before we entered the water, with chalk, which she used to draw and explain things. We all got in the water and were given nets to collect special things that we wanted to show everyone after the snorkel. We were in the water for about 25 minutes and after that we all got out and talked about the special animals and plants that everybody caught. There were sponges, Cassiopeia, Cassiopeia egg sacks, and “Peppermint” Coral which is actually called “Stinky” Coral. Anna told us that the coral was called “Peppermint” Coral so that we would smell it and after everyone got a good whiff of it, she told us that the real name was “Stinky” Coral because it smelled so bad. Anna also showed us the way water and nutrients go through a sponge’s body by squirting this neon green liquid into it (that process is called a “Sponge Flush”).We then left the site, went to the dock, got our stuff together and left for the hotel. Back at the hotel, some people made our lunch of sandwiches while others hung out at the pool. The food was great and well prepared but there always has to be clean up, so afterwards some people volunteered to wash the dishes and put the food away. Now, it has only been half the day so far; we then went to the P.A.D.I dive shop where we looked around for souvenirs and were fitted for fins, masks, snorkels, BCDS and we were given “shorties” (which are short wetsuits). We also met our instructors for the scuba dives. The funniest one was J.B., the women dive teacher.We then gathered in the parking lot and decided on which 4 people were going to the grocery store and what to get there. We then went back to the hotel and worked (and hung out) while waiting for everyone to get back from the grocery. Once they got back, we got in the vans to go to SeaCamp for a lab. For the lab we were studying the upside down jellyfish that we had see while snorkeling earlier called the Cassiopeia. We talked about its class, and what his name meant and we looked at how it adapted to the different environmental effects and then made a conclusion and a graph to support our information. We cleaned up the activity area and then we said goodnight and thank you to Anna and Angelie. For dinner we had spaghetti, salad and garlic bread; it was very good. We played cards and just relaxed for a while and then we went to bed thinking about how are very first open ocean dive would be the next day.
Ashley Conard

This is January??

After waking up by at least five in the morning, we all had a long day and most of are going to bed around midnight. We got into Miami around 2. It was so nice outside. It was warm, but a little windy. It was hard to believe that it was the middle of January and people were walking around in shorts and tanktops. Then, we rented buses for the three hour drive to the Keys. On our way to the Parmer's Resort we saw palm trees, mangroves, and the ocean. We got to our hotel and checked out our rooms first. Our hotel is pretty nice. There's a big pool in the middle, it's right on the water, and there are a bunch of hammocks and shacks to hang out around. After a little, we went to check out our SeaCamp. We got a tour from one our "counselors" named Anna. It's a really cool campus. There are a bunch of different classrooms and dorms, a ton of scuba gear, a shark pond, labs, and classrooms. There is a touch tank with sea cucumbers, starfish, sea urchins, and mollusks and a lot of us touched them. Then, we were split up and had our first lab. The 24 of us were split into two smaller groups. My counselor's name was Angelie. It started out with a little explanation of the different kingdoms, phyllums, orders, and so on. Then we talked about some certain classes of sea creatures, like bivalvia (clams, oysters), cephalopods (octopi, squid), and gastropodas (snails). Then Angelie bust out a bunch of squid for dissection. The first thing we did was identify some of its main parts, like the tentacles and mantle. The first thing we had to do was pull out the beak, and after that we had to try cutting out the eyeball, but still keep intact. The first eye my partner and I tried to remove popped and squirted eyeball juice everywhere, so that was pretty gross. Then we had to cut the mantle up to the top and peel it back so we could see inside. It was really gooey and slimy as we picked apart the gills and inside. My favorite part by far was when we removed the ink sack and actually wrote with the ink. A lot of people wrote on their hands with it. The only thing I had dissected before was a cow eye and fetal pig, so this was a lot of fun and definitely not as gross.
Erica Chavez