My names Kaylynn Quinonez and I’m spending my summer on Tybee Island, Georgia where I am studying marine biology at Tybee Marine Science Center. My mentor is Allison Williford and I am staying with Zelda and Sheldon Tenenbaum. I arrived Saturday morning and started first thing on Monday at 9:00 am. This week I spent most of my time at the facility assisting with the centers week long sea camp program. Each week a new group of young kids come in to learn about the marine life. This week I worked with a group of 6-8 year olds. Each day is themed based on the animal life we teach about.
Monday’s theme is invertebrate day. We used a slideshow to teach kids that invertebrates have no back bone and that snails, starfish, sea urchins, hermit crabs, and crustaceans are all examples of invertebrates you may find in the ocean. We then gathered up some of the invertebrates in our facility and used a camera to let the kids see the different parts of them up close. We also allowed the kids to explore these animals in our touch tanks. Our touch tanks are two large tanks of water with a plethora of invertebrates inside that are designated for people to be able to hold the animals above them.
Tuesday’s theme is whale day. We taught the kids about what our mammal sea life is like and
taught them that dolphins are considered part of the whale family. We also educated them on our right whales which are in danger of going extinct. We then let them explore our whale exhibit in the facility.
On Wednesday I spent the first half of the day not on Sea Camp. Instead I shadowed someone on their Girl Scout Tour which includes a tour of the facility, a beach walk, and beach seining. Seining is where students pull a 10 foot net with weights attached into the shallow water and then lift the net up in an effort to catch organisms that come to the shore. The second half of the day I was back on Sea Camp for fear over fact day where we taught about shark life and took the kids to look for shark teeth on the beach.
Thursday is dolphin day. We took the kids on Captain Derek’s Dolphin tour. This tour took the kids onto a boat where they were able to look around the ocean for dolphins. The tour does its best to ensure you see as many dolphins as possible and works to educate people on them and the surrounding Tybee. Students learned that not all dolphins have the same dorsal fin and it often gets damaged.
Friday is marsh day. However since the bus was broken down we were not able to go to the marsh and instead stayed back and taught the kids about bird life at the marsh and the ocean. They were able to use binoculars to look for sea life and watch turtle feeding.
Friday also happened to be an important day because it was my 17th birthday. I spent the evening on the beach before going out to a restaurant in Savannah called Taca for sushi with Zelda and Sheldon. They also gave me a Tybee hat as a gift and bought some delicious cake. I’m so grateful for them. This week was also important in that it was my first ever time on an airplane. The airplane was definitely less comfy than I had imagined. In my free time I hung out with Moses, the dog Sheldon and Zelda are watching for a friend, hung out on the beach, biked around town and to my internship, and explored all kinds of yummy food. This weekend I learned how to paddle board and spent time at the bookstore buying a bunch of books to keep me busy. I also learned that my body might be gaining an allergy to shrimp.
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