One woman, one horse, and one dog: A 450-mile adventure!

by Angela Szesciorka, Vertebrate Ecology Lab

Warning, this is about horses — terrestrial mammals, yes. But as you may know, cetaceans did come from an ungulate lineage. So settle down kids.

I wanted to tell you all a little bit about my sister’s upcoming epic journey.

On May 25, my sister, Samantha, will embark on a 28-day journey across Nevada on horseback.

Why you ask?

Because no one ever has!

This will be the first solo equestrian ride along the Nevada portion of the American Discovery Trail, the coast-to-coast trail across the United Stated from Point Reyes National Seashore in California to the Delmarva Peninsula in Delaware.

A Visit to Año Nuevo Island

by Angela Szesciorka, Vertebrate Ecology Lab

In March the MS211 class (Ecology of Marine Turtles, Birds and Mammals) climbed onto a small inflatable boat, pointed offshore, and ran a half mile obstacle course through rocks, waves, and seals to Año Nuevo Island.

This tiny boat (named Dragon Rojo!) carried us to the island. About an eight-minute boat ride though, so not bad. Photo from Oikonos.org.

Taking to the High Seas on the R/V Point Sur

by Angela Szesciorka, Vertebrate Ecology Lab

Last Monday, I bussed it to Santa Barbara then hopped a train to San Diego. One night in a hotel and an overpriced taxi ride later, and I was laying eyes on the R/V Point Sur for the first time since November 29, 2012, on it’s way back from its 17,000 mile round-trip journey to Palmer Station in Antarctica.

The majestic R/V Point Sur.

Invertebrate Spotlight: Larvaceans

Mucus house of a Larvacean

Invertebrate Spotlight: Larvaceans

By Michelle Marraffini

Invertebrate Zoology Lab

Today in the Marine Invertebrate Zoology we learned about one of the most interesting marine animals.  Larvaceans (Class Larvacean) are unique animals in the phylum Chordata along with their close relatives sea-squirts (Class Ascidiacea) and slightly more distant relatives humans (Subphylum Vertebrata).   These chordates retain their tadpool larva form and excrete a mucus house from specialized cells located on their head.  This house starts off as a small balloon like structure, the tadpole Larvacean whips its body to inflate the balloon with water, then when it is big enough the animal crawls inside, and whips its tail to continue to inflate the house.  Larvaceans will also eat with the help of their house which also contains screens set up to filter water, water is then further filtered by the animal so that it can eat bacteria sized particles.

A schematic of a larvacean in its house with the screens and showing water current flow. Photo Credit: Earthlife.net

They live in this house until the screens become clogged and then they swim out of it start to make a new one.  They discard their old house with sinks to the ocean floor as marine snow.  Marine snow is considered a big source of nutrients to the deep sea, to learn more about how larvaceans contribute to marine snow check out MBARI’s website.

Larvacean photo, screens shown in red tint, white folds are more filtering tools, and the animal itself is in the center of it’s house. Photo Credit: Arctic Exploration 2002, Per Flood, NOAA/OER

R/V Point Sur in Transit

The R/V Point Sur is heading home this week, and students have had the opportunity to help with various science operations and add some cruise time to their resumes by joining up for a leg or two of the trip.  Check out this post by Ashley Wheeler, a first year in the Geological Oceanography Lab at MLML, about her experiences aboard our beloved vessel.

Ashley Wheeler – Photo by Tara Pastuszek

Ready on deck, the CTD package is set to deploy at sunrise – Photo by Ashley Wheeler

‘Spot a Basking Shark’ Project. How can you help save this endangered shark?

You can help the PSRC collect information to save the Basking Shark! Photo by Greg Skomal

By Kristin Walovich, Pacific Shark Research Center

Contrary to Hollywood’s portrayal of gigantic man-eating sharks, the three largest species of shark spend their time peacefully roaming the ocean’s surface munching on the ocean’s smallest creatures.  Basking Sharks, the second largest species of shark, cruise the seas in search of plankton, filtering up to 2,000 tons of water across its gills per hour. Reaching lengths of thirty five feet, this shark exists worldwide, yet very little is known about how they live or where they go.

To discover more information about this vulnerable species, scientists from the Pacific Shark Research Center (PSRC) and the National Marine Fisheries Service (NMFS) have begun a new type of shark hunt. Unlike the crazed and frantic scenes from the JAWS movie, this shark hunt only requires a boat, camera and telephone! The Spot a Basking Shark Project enlists the help of local sea-farers to uncover the demographics and distribution of the California Basking Shark.

Once common along the California coast, these gentle giants are now a rare sight. In the past, these social creatures were seen in schools of hundreds or thousands; however since 1993 no more than three basking sharks have been spotted together. Fishing and eradication efforts by fishermen who believed them to be ‘man-eaters’ contributed heavily to their population decline. Despite the fishery closure in the late 1950s, Basking Shark numbers have remained low, mostly due to human impacts like vessel strikes, fisheries bycatch and illegal shark fining. Based on the decline of Basking Shark numbers and lack of species information, the International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN) has listed this species as endangered.

If you see a Basking Shark, the PSRC and NMFS want to know! These sharks can be identified by their large size, pointed snouts, and large gill slits that encircle the head. Basking sharks have dorsal fins up to three feet tall that are visible as they slowly swim along the surface with mouths wide open catching plankton.  If you see a Basking Shark, call or email the PSRC with your location, date and time of the sighting and any photos or videos. Your information helps the PSRC document and understand these majestic and peaceful creatures.

Visit the PSRC Website to report a sighting and to learn more about Basking Sharks!

The basking shark can filter 2,000 gallons of water per hour while searching for plankton. Photo by Andrew Parsons

They’re BACK!

If you have been holding off on going to the Monterey Bay Aquarium until the sea otter exhibit re-opens…Now is the time!  On Saturday, March 23rd the exhibit was once again opened for the public.  I was there – and the crowd went wild!  Actually, there might not have been a crowd…I was too happy to notice!

Fish out of water

by Jackie Schwartzstein, Vertebrate Ecology Lab

Last weekend, my fellow Vert-Lab-member Angie and I hopped in my little car and made the four hour drive down to Carpinteria, CA for offshore survival training.  We are preparing to join a research team that conducts aerial surveys for marine turtles and mammals along the central California coast.  Before we can participate in these surveys, we are required to take a course in open water survival.

Tis the season for MLML Open House

The vertebrate ecology lab’s recreation of the inside of a whale. (photo by The Moss Lander).

Tis the season for MLML Open House

By Michelle Marraffini

Invertebrate Zoology and Molecular Ecology Lab

The spring semester is buzzing with activity from classes, field trips, and preparing for Open House.

Have you ever walked inside the belly of a whale?  Want to know how long turtles live or what seastars eat?  This year’s Open House will answer these and so many more of your ocean questions.  Be there Saturday April 20th and Sunday April 21st from 9am to 5pm.  As a FREE EVENT we offer a marine adventure puppet show, education presentations by students and faculty, live touch tanks, a sea lion show, raffle and prizes, and so much more.  There is so much to see you will need to come back both days!

Entry Way to MLML. Dive into Open House! April 20th and 21st
Photo by: Scott Gabara

Our next class meeting will be in the ocean…

Field courses are one of the best parts of attending graduate school at Moss Landing.  Class is moved from the classroom or lab to the great outdoors.  Getting away from the computer and out into nature helps keep anyone more balanced.  We learn ecological concepts and then view or test them in the field to better understand subtidal ecology.  This spring, the subtidal ecology class has been out SCUBA diving around Monterey Bay, identifying species and their relationships (ecology).

The subtidal ecology class gears up to go on an identification dive. The water temperature is around 11 Celsius (52 Fahrenheit), so thick neoprene suits are used as thermal insulation.

Identifying organisms in the field can be very difficult if using color, as it changes as you descend through the water column.  Red, orange and yellow do not penetrate through the water very far, so we use waterproof flashlights to restore the natural spectrum and hopefully more easily identify organisms.

Two students in the subtidal ecology class (Catherine Drake and Christian Denney) are on an identification survey, trying to learn different fish, algae, and invertebrates in Monterey Bay.

Comparing data with someone else when learning to identify organisms makes the process much easier.  You can quickly learn if you are mis-identifying something and try to find another one to recalibrate yourself.  Here are some species you may see around the Southern Monterey Bay area :

This alga, the Southern sea palm, reaches about 1.5 meters (4.9 feet) tall. An identifying feature of this alga is that is has a “Y” near the top of the stipe or stem, where is splits into two bunches of blades. Aggregations of this alga form understory forests, important for different fishes, invertebrates, and mammals.

This is an anemone, named the fish-eating anemone, which feeds on shrimp, small fish and other opportunistic food items.  An identifying feature of this anemone is the smooth red column seen at the bottom of the photo.