Orca Sighting!

Erin Loury

by Erin Loury, Ichthyology Lab

Regular 4 a.m. wakeup calls are brutal even for the coolest fishing survey.  Once the boat is steaming towards our destination, very few things can come between me and my precious snooze time.  But this morning I heard words that had me on my feet in a hurry:  “Killer whales!”

Science crew and volunteer fishermen alike clamored onto the deck and pressed ourselves against the boat railings, scanning the early morning horizon as our captain maneuvered us in for a closer look.  Suddenly we saw them -  two black jackknives of dorsal fins appeared over the rolling swells.  We spotted two small orcas (another term for killer whale), their heads surging  forward through the waves.  Their characteristic white eye spots stood out like warpaint in fearsome contrast against their sleek black bodies.  I watched in disbelief and euphoria as their heads broke the water’s surface once, twice, and again before they disappeared from sight.

Photo by Chad King (SIMoN)

Since I wasn’t able to snap a decent photo of my own, this one is courtesy of SIMoN and the Monterey Bay Sanctuary, who generously host a marine photo library for public use.

Though orcas are found in all the world’s oceans and are not unheard of in Monterey Bay, to actually see them here is rare and really quite special.  Orcas are voracious hunters – as far as their prey are concerned, they earn their nickname, “wolves of the sea,” and probably the Latin meaning of their scientific name, Orcinus orca: “from hell!”   Orcas near Monterey, like the ones I saw, sometimes hunt gray whales passing through on their migration from Mexico to Alaska with their new calves (ie, easy targets).

But even their ruthless reputation  just added to my enthusiasm, which somehow always gets the best of me around whales and charismatic wildlife.  Cheering and clapping at the sight of my first orcas,  I threw my fist in the air and shouted “Jump!,” – you know, like in Free Willy?  Apparently these orcas had never seen the movie, since they missed their cue.

Still, it was a good miniflashback for me, remembering how I used to dream of being like the kid in that movie, who lived by the ocean and got to spend time with awesome marine life, lucky duck.  And now I am that kid, getting to see the real deal on days like this, roaming free.  Such sweet job perks even make the 4 a.m. wake-up call  worth it – at least until tomorrow morning.

A Journey to the Bottom of the Ocean

Kyle Reynolds

Editor’s Note: Graduate student Kyle Reynolds describes her experience in the South Pacific, where she participated in a 2006 research cruise to study organisms living on the hydrothermal vent system of the Lau Basin.

by Kyle Reynolds, Benthic Ecology Lab

Fiji from the air

Looking out of the airplane as it began its descent toward Fiji, I remember feeling like I was having an out-of-body experience. We had crossed the equator and the International Date Line during this flight – two firsts for me! Once the plane touched down and we made our way to Suva, the capital, I would be embarking on a multidisciplinary research expedition with several teams of scientists from around the world to study the biology, chemistry, and geology of hydrothermal vents in the Lau Basin. My heart was in my throat as I elatedly took in the sights and sounds of my last moments on dry land for the next 30 days.

Once onboard the R/V Melville (the Scripps Institute of Oceanography ship we’d be using), the scientists quickly went about the task of securing their own cargo in their lab spaces to keep anything from spilling or breaking in transit. Our research would involve multiple deployments of a remotely operated vehicle (ROV) named the Jason II, or “Jason” for short. Jason would be working almost non-stop over the next month to take videos as well as animal, geological, and chemical samples for the various researchers’ projects. I was there to obtain snail samples for my thesis research, and would be using them to study their reproductive adaptations. Being the newbie, I was given the midnight to 4:00 a.m. shift to stand my watch in the Jason control van each night. The control van is a large metal container from which the crew can pilot Jason, while scientists record the data, log notes, and direct the collection efforts.

Teachers Splash into the Lab and Field

Grad students at MLML work with adjunct professor Dr. Simona Bartl through the Teacher Enhancement Program to help teachers incorporate the resources of a marine lab into their classrooms. This June, 20 teachers from around California participated in the week-long Lab and Field Explorations summer workshop, learning activities ranging from water quality and invasive species to sand crabs and sharks. Kathy Diver, a teacher at Los Osos High School in Rancho Cucamonga, CA, contributed the following account of her experiences with the Lab and Field Workshop.

Teachers ready to explore the lab and field of MLML!

Kathy Diver, Los Osos HS teacher

I am writing from home a day after my week at the Teacher Enhancement Program in Monterey Bay at the Moss Landing Marine Labs (part of the Cal State University system). I had a very good time, but I am pretty tired after all that work and fun. Simona Bartl, the Project Director is a serious scientist with a great sense of humor. She seems to understand the need to bridge the gap between research science in the laboratory and students’ understanding when we are in the classroom.

We had a variety of presenters from various levels of education and research in the Monterey area. What an honor! Some were MLML teaching assistants (aka graduate students), others were instructors from the Monterey Bay National Marine Sanctuary, Hopkins Marine Station and the Elkhorn Slough Estuarine Research Reserve. All presenters led activities both in the field and in the lab that let us see first hand how we can participate in scientific research with our own students.

Monday (6-23-08) we were at the Moss Landing Marine Laboratories all day. We toured the facility with Elsie and learned what the week was going to look like. We did an activity with Sacha (from MERITO) in which we modeled the shape of the Monterey Canyon in clay, and another in which we pretended to discover a deep sea organism. We had to list the adaptations to the environment and give it a scientific name according to normal naming conventions. This curriculum focuses on multi lingual learners who live near the oceans, but since I have used similar activities in my class, I think it’s just good teaching.

Teachers inspect invasive snails for parasites

Tuesday (6-24-08) we went to the Elkhorn Slough with Kenton, Danielle and Elsie to study, count and collect an imported (invasive) species of snails. We later compared our numbers to last year’s research data. The original native species in the area has not been seen in over 35 years. The invader was brought in during the 30’s with the oyster cultures that were brought to the area for pearls and oyster meat. We also used microscopes to observe the parasites that are infecting this snail. We spent some time with Simona in the afternoon discussing and sharing lesson plans, activities and resources we use in our own practices. Since the 20 participating teachers cover a variety of curricula we got to discuss marine science with respect to our own classes and get some idea on how to enhance what we already do.

Braving the surf to sample sandcrabs

Wednesday (6-25-08) we went with Lisa and Erin to the Salinas River Beach to do a population study on the sand crabs there. It was cold and wet, but I loved being on the shore and in the water. We caught, measured, and recorded data on sand crabs. Later, we put in our numbers to an online sand crab-monitoring site (LiMPETS). We also checked some sand crabs for parasites while in the lab. These parasites actually harmfully infect shore birds and otters, so the scientists and agencies are keeping a close watch on the number of parasites found in a given area. I loved this day!!!