Whales, Pinnipeds, and Sharks, Oh my!

On the weekend of the 26th and 27th of January 2013 WhaleFest was held at Fisherman’s Wharf in Monterey. Organizations ranged from local non-profit marine research and public outreach organizations and program here in the Monterey county, as well as fun activities such as painting a squid!

Camp Sea Lab in WhaleFest

Our own very Pacific Shark Research Center participated in this event to share their knowledge of sharks to the public. It was a very windy, cloudy, and cold on Saturday as we set up the station. The strong wind made it a challenge to keep fliers and posters on the table. Braving the weather, our efforts were recognized as visitors intrigued by the mako shark Isurus oxyrinchus head and of a shark fin we had on display, began to ask questions. We were able to teach visitors more about sharks and also talk about the research that’s going around in Moss Landing Marine Laboratories! Many of them are very interested in attending the Open House event that will be held at MLML April 20th and 21st.

Visitors intrigued by the shark head.

 

There were many attempts to inflate a humpback whale in the Festival on Saturday, but because of the strong wind, the whale was never completed.

Inflating the humpback whale

But luckily, the weather cleared up and the sun came out and made WhaleFest far more enjoyable!

Kristin interpreting for the visitors

 

Water, water everywhere but not a drop in my suit!

By Michelle Marraffini

Invertebrate Zoology and Molecular Ecology

Breakwater Cove dive spot in Monterey where DUI had set up their Demo Day. Photo by: Pamela Neeb Wade

Scuba diving on the central coast means you get to see amazing kelp forests and underwater geological formations but it also often means you are getting in the sometimes frigid waters of Monterey Bay.  At depth, the water can get very cold, I experienced a dive at Big Creek, Big Sur where the temperate was only 8 Celsius (~46 degrees Fahrenheit)!  At that temperature my wimpy 7 millimeters feels like wearing shorts in a blizzard and gets even thinner as the pressure compresses all the neoprene bubbles in my suit.   Over the years I have seen many other divers in thicker wetsuits (up to 20 millimeters on their core) and dry suits.  That is right scuba diving without getting wet.  When a company that makes dry suits (DUI) offered a demo day at a local dive spot my labmate Pamela and I leaped at a chance to jump in the water without getting wet.

Life’s a Beach

MLML bloggers Michelle, Diane, and Catherine volunteer with Young Women In Science

By Catherine Drake and Michelle Marraffini, Invertebrate Zoology and Molecular Ecology Lab

Photos by: Diane Wyse, Physical Oceanography Lab

Summer is here on the Central Coast and MLML students as well as a few MBARI interns took some time off to play hooky for a cause.    We volunteered with the Monterey Bay Aquarium’s Young Women in Science (YWS) program to help middle school girls in this summer camp monitor the beach for sand crabs and learn how to boogie board.    The camp’s aim is help empower young girls interested in science to be guardians of the ocean.   Many of these girls have never been swimming in the ocean before and fellow bloggers Diane, Catherine, and myself showed the girls the joys of splashing in the surf.

Lifeguards explaining some water safety ideas before we head into the water

Catherine catching a wave with the girls of YWS

We spent half of the day using the scientific method and sampling along a transect to look for sand crabs.  The campers were encouraged to form hypotheses about where the crabs were living and use results to think about larger food webs and ecosystem processes.   After lunch and a safety lesson on currents and waves from the lifeguards, girls rushed towards the ocean with boogie boards in tow ready to conquer this new frontier.  We ran in after them and helped them learn to catch a wave and dive under ones that were too big.   This was the first time being in the ocean for many of these young ladies, and they were so brave as they dominated the large waves.  When it was time to go, many of the girls had enjoyed their time in the water so much that they insisted on catching one final wave.  It was inspirational to see the girls having so much fun making observations about sand crabs and trying to catch every wave they could.  We had a great time volunteering for this essential program, and can’t wait to help out again!

Michelle riding a wave and showing the girls of YWS how much fun boogie boarding is

Never a dull day for a Marine Biologist in Monterey Bay, Catherine models some giant kelp, Macrocystis pyrifera, while boogie boarding

 

Happy Fourth of July From Moss Landing Marine Labs!

by Angela Szesciorka, Vertebrate Ecology Lab

Moss Landing Marine Laboratories wishes you a happy Fourth of July! We hope you have a fun-filed day of (over)eating, celebrating, and spending time with friends and family. While you are enjoying your day of fun, check out some of nature’s most patriotic sea creatures below!

Red

Affectionately known as red bull, this 14-limbed amphipod crustacean (Acanthonotozoma inflatum) is found mostly in the Atlantic Ocean feeding on Bryozoa, a phylum of aquatic colonial invertebrate animals. Photo by Alexander Semenov.

Eyes on the Pies

No mess, no glory! (photo: E. Loury)

As the school year winds to a close, Moss Landing students get ready to unleash their post-finals jubilation on the time-honored Lab Olympics.  These contestants from last year have survived a pie-eating contest, one of may challenges facing the would-be Lab Olympic champion.  This year’s event is approaching next week – what daring feats of skill will come to pass?  Stay tuned to find out!

Another Thesis Defense, Another Skate Cake

Megan with the cake version of her Master's thesis subject (photo: E. Loury)

Congratulations to Megan Witnon, the latest Ichthyology Lab graduate from MLML!  Megan defended her thesis this week titled “Age, growth, and demography of the roughtail skate, Bathyraja  trachura, from the eastern Bering Sea.”  And her defense wasn’t complete without another amazing cake creation from MLML food art extraordinaire Diane Haas.

Though Diane has dabbled in dessert skates before, this one really takes the cake!  The butterfly shapes represent the vertebrae sections that researchers like Megan and Diane use to tell the age of  skate.  The purple vertebra represents the end product of a chemical process called histology that Megan used to better see the age bands in the vertebrae.   Now that’s a doubly sweet success!

The Roughtail Skate as interpreted by Diane Haas (photo: E. Loury)

Drop-In to MLML Open House: The Art of Science… Or Is It the Science of Art?

MLML students play paint-by-number

Sometimes we all need a break from the daily grind.  What’s a good way to take a breather?  How about taking some time for arts and crafts!

These MLML students are taking some time after-hours to paint the aquarium scene for the 2009 puppet show.  MLML alumna Heather Hawk lent her expertise and drew the fantastic backdrop, then directed her peers to fill the corals in with the proper colors.

If you’d like to see the 2009 Open House puppet show featuring Harry Spotter, take a look here!

Aquarium scene backdrop

MLML Open House is Saturday, April 30 & Sunday, May 1

How’s the View Up There?

(photo: H. Hawk)

Recent grad Heather Hawk snapped this photo while on a plane ride high above Moss Landing.  From way up here you can see Moro Cojo Slough in the foreground, snaking out into the harbor.  Surrounding the slough are fields of pickleweed, a wetland plant known for its tangy and salty ‘pickle’ flavor.  The power plant can be seen by the two towers on the right side of the photo, and the large white field is what’s left from the magnesium oxide plant. The break in the dunes to the left of the power plant was created by the Army Corps of Engineers in 1946 to create Moss Landing Harbor.  If you are interested in the history of Moro Cojo Slough, Elkhorn Slough and Moss Landing and would like to read more, take a look at the Elkhorn Slough Foundation website.

The Slippery Seaweed Commando Crawl to Glory

photo: E. Loury

Recent Invertebrate Zoology graduate Amanda Kahn completes the kelp crawl challenge during a past MLML Lab Olympics competition.  It has been said MLML students never graduate because we keep having too much fun…but Amanda proved it’s possible to do both!

Have Your Skate and Eat it Too

photo: E. Loury

Here’s another incredible, edible, and ocean-themed creation by Ichthyology student and food artist extraordinaire, Diane Haas.  Baked in honor of Simon Brown’s recent thesis defense, the cake depicts Simon’s two study species – the Berring Skate (top) and the Aleutian Skate (bottom).  The differences between the two skates are small, but accurately rendered!   Since this was a thesis about diet, it’s only fitting that there should be some “prey items” for garnish. Check out some of Diane’s other masterpieces featuring sharks and rockfish!