This week has flown by. On Monday and Tuesday I continued to work on the Giant Sea Bass project. One of the graduates is using the round stingrays for her research to learn how the rays are affected by changes is temperature, which could help scientists understand the effects of el niño on elasmobranchs. After increasing the temperature, she uses a respirometer to measure how much oxygen the rays are consuming. I have been watching the video to record their movement while in the respirometer. Professor Lowe, Sean (the other intern), and I got up early Wednesday morning and we took a boat over to Catalina Island. Professor Lowe showed us around the research facility and then we got in the car and started driving around the island. The purpose of the trip was to find aggregations of leopard sharks for Jack’s research, because the sharks he planned on observing were scared away by sea lions. In California, large amounts of leopard sharks have been gathering in warmer, shallower water and Jack is using drones to observe them. He wants to understand why this is happening, at what temperatures these aggregations can be found, how size plays a role, and even their interactions with each other. He is using temperature data loggers to either prove or disprove
The harbor at the USC Wrigley Institute on Catalina
his hypothesis about the temperatures they will aggregate in. We did find some at a boy scout camp right where they canoe so it will be interesting to see how the sharks react to that. At the end of the day we got in the water and snorkeled for a bit and the water was so warm and clear. We saw a couple different types of fish but then sadly, it was time to go back to the mainland. All in all, it was a great day.
A couple months ago we got an invitation in the mail for my cousin’s wedding and I was so sad to hear I would miss it because I would be in California. Last week my aunt and the bride’s sister came up with a last minute plan for me to come. The thing was my mom did not know that I would be coming. On Thursday night, I took a flight from Los Angeles to Boston and I arrived Friday morning and my aunt picked me up. We pulled off the surprise but I almost thought she was going to have a heart attack, but luckily she was very happy to see me. The wedding was held at an
My sister and I at the wedding.
inn in New Hampshire and the weather was beautiful. It was the perfect ending to a great week.
There are no comments published yet.