What An Eventful Day

Thursday was one of my favorite days!  We started off the day surveying the rocky intertidal at Playa. We spotted 2 different types of starfish, the Brittle Star, and Sun Star. Unfortunately, I scared a poor brittle star enough to make it self-amputate one of its arms! According to Dr.Cheroske, the brittle star will “give up” one of its arms in hopes that it will suffice the appetite of the predator preying on it, that way the predator will take/eat its arm instead of eating the star itself. It did make me sad to think that I stressed the star enough to feel threatened. Interestingly enough, the arm that the star had given up continued moving, even after haven been detached. How crazy is that! I’ve attached a picture of myself holding a sun star.

Our next activity was attending an informative presentation at CEDO that covered marine mammals that inhabited the area,  including the Vaquita. The Vaquita is a whale endemic to Mexico. It has been overexploited near the coast and has been categorized as an endangered species. Researchers believe that less than 25 remains. Attempts were made to conserve the population but have ended with no results. In fact, CEDO had two vaquitas in captivity for reproduction purposes but later discovered that vaquitas cannot survive in captivity, much less reproduce. Both Vaquitas died, so attempts to conserve Vaquitas by means of captivity quickly came to a halt. This species of whales seems to be doomed.
We ended the day kayaking at the Morua Estuary. It was at this time that it hit me, how fortunate I was to be kayaking in a foreign country with people who are as passionate as I was about field experiences. I’ve attached a video below so that you can get a feel for how beautiful it was.

                      

Until next time!

Today marked the end of our trip and it is bittersweet. I'm happy to be home where sand doesn't get everywhere and where I can nap in a real bed but leaving Puerto Penasco was so sad. This trip has been amazing since the very first minute that I stepped foot at CEDO. I have learned so much about marine biology and even about myself. All the friends I have made on this trip will be missed and waking up with the sound of the waves in the background! Every single activity and trip we had was such a great experience, even when we went to help out on the long-term biological research on Least Terns, I know that I will probably never get over my fear of birds but I can power through it for research. If I didn't take this trip, i'm pretty sure I would have never experienced anything like this in my life. It has made me even more excited to continue to pursue a degree in marine biology!!

Packing Up and Saying Goodbye :((

(Wrote this last night)
Today is out last day here in Mexico :(( I'm currently waiting to eat dinner and out to pack up. We had out presentation today and took our exam that we all crammed for. I really enjoyed this trip!! We did so much more than I thought we would and saw new and exciting things everyday. Goodbye Mexico you were good to me :')

Also look at this painting that looks like Glen

 

First Tide Pool Encounter
 On Tuesday, our first full day of being in Mexico, we woke up early and studied the low tidal area near CEDO. What we found amazed me, I did not think so many animals lived within just one area of the ocean. I have never touched a sea hare, or seen small red shrimp up close. I have a picture of the little shrimp clinging to the rock we overturned.

For our last excursion today we surveyed the amount of eggs and nests of the vulnerable sea bird, Least Tern. This small bird is protected in Mexico and in the United States. While walking around counting eggs and nests we found some other cool things like washed up trigger fish and other sorts of critters! This week has been full of fun and learning and now we are ready to go home! 

May 18th, 2018 blog

Today is finally boat day! It was a two hour ride out to Bird Island, on the way I there I talked fish stories and swapped photos with Captain Oscar. Even though we could not speak each other’s language we still managed to share many laughs at our attempted communication. I sat up top the entire trip looking for wildlife. I seen the Blue Footed Boobie as well as other birds.  I was shutting my eyes taking in all action of the boat sway when I smelt it, I knew we had arrived at Bird Island. At first it slaps you in the face as if walking into a penguin exhibit. After a few minutes being submersed to this new area you get used to it. The islands are so covered in poop it has literally turned them white. The Sea Lions were amazing, the women and pups was super curious and came right up to you, as the males stood onshore and non-stop barked at us. They were all talk lol! I was slightly intimidated by them when swimming in big swells next to them but after I got in the sea kayak it was on. It  was a fabulous day watching the scuba team prep and come up was neat too. The icing on the cake was on the way into the harbor we ran into a pod of Common Bottlenose dolphins who played with are boat for a good ten minutes. There was about six of them, it was a perfect ending. LOVE being on a boat!!!

RE: May 19th, 2018 blog

 

 

From: Lgreene328@outlook.com
Sent: Saturday, May 19, 2018 11:27 PM
To: 'cheroske@mesacc.edu' <cheroske@mesacc.edu>
Subject: May 19th, 2018 blog

 

 

                                                        Today we drove out about an hour to the Trona Salt Mine. Our amigo Daniel gave us some wonderful history and a tour on the property which is on a reservation within a reservation. Daniel talked about how the land is rented but has not been in use for years due to loss since a major earthquake. The companies that rent it out are making products in the medical/medicinal and pharmaceutical areas. It is highly prized for it’s 3 main factors; it is eco-friendly, environmental and cultrally traditional. I really appreciated how the Tohoana; a native tribe indigenous to this surrounding areas. A man seeks travel to these salt mines,  after the long journey he collects a cut of salt to take back home. This proves his worth and he receives the true title of becoming a warrior. I was saddened to learn that a lot of these men are taking the journey by car now, but they are saying that it is a new tradition. I suppose change is inevitable.  This was an awesome and informative excursion I really enjoyed.