By Indeya, Lana, and Quinn—

Today, we awoke at five thirty AM and hopped in the van to the SJI County Park. The reason for this early rising was so that we could reach the beach at low tide. This enabled us to create transect lines from high to low tide. In total, we had it stretched 15 meters, ending at the waters edge. We then put our .5 meter by .5 meter quadrats down, starting at each meter and focused on the right side, to record the counted (some estimated) numbers of mobile animals, and percentages of attached animals and algae. A few of the mobile animals our field crew found were limpets, chitons, whelks, periwinkles, hermit crabs, etc. Some attached algae we found were green turf, red turf, green sheet, red sheet, hedophyllum, fucus, etc. And finally, a couple attached animals we found were barnacles, mussels, and other encrusting species. After finishing these transects, we split our transect line into three areas: low, medium, and high. We then used a caliper to measure and record at least 25 specimens in each section.

Photo by Tim Dwyer

Once we got back and had a quick snack, we headed to the science lab to go over the mistakes that sometimes go into data collection, and we all went over each others’ data and corrected any mistakes or writing that was unclear. We then wrote clear procedures of our morning transect and our slug transects from yesterday.

For lunch we enjoyed a mix of sandwiches and fruit/vegetables. After this well deserved meal, we again hopped in the van and made our way to the Friday Harbor Labs to take a ride in the Centennial. We used the Centennial to do a trawling and collect invertebrates (and some vertebrates) so that we could hold them in a tank and study them.

Photos by Seth Grant

We came across some bottom fish and got to look at them for awhile before putting them back in the water. I think this has been the most exciting day for the group thus far. Lots of crabs and fish and scallops came up in the trawl, and we all got to touch and see. It was truly an experience. We actually did two trawls and so we got to go through all the different species twice!!

Once back on the docks, Tim and Derek gave a diving demonstration and actually took a camera down with them so we could see. We had a walkie talkie kind of system and got to ask them to look at specific things or pick up some specimens we liked. A couple of us got sunburns during all this. We won’t forget sunscreen again.

Photo by Tim Dwyer

For dinner, an option between veggie or meat spaghetti and some bomb bread. But the day wasn’t over yet, we next went to an Antarctic photography presentation presented to us by Alasdair Turner called Antarctica: Ross Island and the Future of the McMurdo Sound Region sponsored by the San Juan Island Museum of Art. He showed us beautiful pictures and talked about the real Antarctica, like we would have never seen or heard otherwise. It wasn’t just all about beauty though, he also brought up why the ice was melting, global warming, ocean acidification, food chains, illegal fishing, and more. He was both serious and funny, and we’ve learned quite a lot. Until Tomorrow!!

• Here is Alasdair Turner’s Antarctica photography series.
• Here is Alasdair Turner’s Antarctica blog.

By Jamie, Sara, Jake, and Arielle—

June 29^th, 2016

This morning, we had an early morning with a wake-up call at 4:45 am. We ate a quick breakfast and left the dorm at 5:15 sharp. We drove to the Friday Harbor Labs’ terrestrial reserve to survey slugs with Dr. Erika Iyengar.

Photos by Seth Grant

We found two types of slugs: the invasive European slug and the native banana slug.

We surveyed 3 different areas until the sun was up. Slugs live in dark and damp places, so the only time that we can see them is before sunrise.

After, we went back to the Friday Harbor Labs. We took a tour of the labs and learned about its history.

After the tour, we came back to the dorm for a well-deserved reflection time. Some of us napped and read books, while others played some badminton and volleyball. After reflection time we all joined together for some lunch.

After Lunch, we hopped in the van and drove to Mt. Young. We were joined by Sharon Massey who taught us the basics of scientific illustration. On the top of Mt. Young, after the somewhat exhausting hike, we took inspiration from the amazing scenery and began drawing. Hiking back down the mountain was a whole different story. Having taken a different route, we encountered a smelly snake and at the end of the hike we discussed different patterns in the mountain’s vegetation.

Back at the dorms, we had some exploration time, which gave us time to clean up and explore the property some more. Soon it was dinner time and we were joined by Derek Smith, a PhD candidate.

He specializes in marine ecology, most especially the ecology of shipwrecks. He shared with us some extraordinary pictures and stories. After Derek left, we played some card games and then it was time for bed. We had a delightful but tiring day. We hope you enjoyed reading about our day!

By Caroline Grauman-Boss—

Tuesday, June 28th, Dr. Vik Iyengar of Villanova University and Dr. Erika Iyengar of Muhlenberg College joined us for dinner and an after-dinner presentation of their research. The next day, the Salish Sea Sciences team rose early to be in the field with Erika at 5:00am to participate in slug surveys with her. Students identified different slug populations and learned about their habitats, habits, and the effects of invasive species. Students will have the chance to study maritime earwigs with Vik at False Bay on Friday, July 1st.

Dr. Vik Iyengar at False Bay with Salish Sea Sciences: Photo by Tom Grauman

To get a sense of the kind of research the Iyengars do and why they do it, please take a look at the following links:

• the homepage of Dr. Vik Iyengar at Villanova U. and his page about his research on maritime anthropods, specifically earwig mating systems.
• the homepage of Dr. Erika Iyengar at Muhlenberg College.

Both professors have a deep history pursuing research at the UW Friday Harbor Laboratories. We are fortunate to have them here this summer and that they are making the time to share their knowledge with us.

By Caroline Grauman-Boss—

On the morning of Tuesday, June 28th the Salish Sea Sciences team received an introduction to one of Salish Sea’s great cetaceans, the orca whale. Science Director, Tim Dwyer, familiarized students with some of the vocabulary that distinguishes whale populations, most especially the fact that among mammals, whales are “cetacea” and that orca are odonticetes, or “toothed whales,” a subgroup of the dolphin family. There are three distinct whale populations in the Salish Sea at the southern end of Vancouver Island: Southern Residents, Transients, and Off-Shores.

Fun fact 1: people can tell which whales are breeding with which whales by tracking whale poop. How do they do that? Tucker the Labrador Retriever has a nose for it!

Fun fact 2: How do people know that the off-shore population eats shark? Shark skin grinds down their teeth!

Between 10:00am and 12:00pm, students gained deeper knowledge about Salish Sea whales and other mammals from Whale Museum program staff and exhibits. To learn more about Whale Museum programs, click on the following webpages:

The Whale Hotline

Marine Mammal Stranding Network

Soundwatch Boater Education Program

SeaSound Remote Sensing Network

Marine Naturalist Training

Salish Sea Association of Marine Naturalists

Education Programs

By Indeya, Lana, and Quinn

This morning, after an early breakfast, we made sure we were prepared for our longboat expedition starting Sunday. Afterwards we walked to the Whale Museum. The director there presented enriching information on the Orca inhabitants in the Salish Sea.

Photo by Seth Grant

She mostly focused on the Southern Residents and their characteristics but also went over the other types of Orcas in the area such as Transients, Northern residents, and Offshores. While taking notes, we learned of their hunting techniques, language/tone of voice, prey, size, and environmental issues. We then toured the facilities, seeing various skeletons, fetuses, and brains.

Photo by Seth Grant

After that we broke for lunch, again having DIY island sandwiches. I personally put chips on mine, it adds a whole new level to the sandwich taste and texture. We then adjourned to the Science lab, where Dr. Rebecca Guenther introduced us to the wonders of algae. Each table had at least one live aquatic autotroph. Dr. Guenther taught us the differences between algae and how to find out which specific algae you have using the Dichotomous Key. We tried out a simplified version of the key to find out the names of the algae on our tables. After working and being focused we finally got to play, and use the algae to create designs and dry them. Tomorrow we will check up on our Dried algae to see the state it’s in.

Photo by Tim Dwyer

While on break, our Instructor, Tim, put together a simulation to teach us how to survey organisms. Our organisms in this case were actually rocks and although we could have counted them all, we used transect tapes, quadrants, and our meter ropes to find a population estimate. We hope you enjoyed learning about our day! Until Tomorrow!!

Photo by Tim Dwyer

By Jack, Peder, and Lynn

Today was a magical experience; we woke up too early for those of us from far away, and we had breakfast as a group. We chatted and shared stories from each of our corners of the world. After breakfast we talked about who we were and who we were not. We also discussed some less serious questions like our favorite foods. As a team, we drew closer by each silly anecdote.

Photos by Seth Grant

Next we dived into the past and explored with Tom the amazing world of photography. While dodging cars, we recreated photos of the past. We had lunch; DIY island sandwiches.

Photo by Tim Dwyer

Following lunch, we were introduced to the science lab and its method of choice. We learned about the scientific method and put our skills to the test.

Next we had designated ‘exploration time’ where a small group of us headed down to the ice cream shop. Out of 72 flavors it was impossible to choose just one. They did decide however to represent Friday harbor with some stunning hats. We arrived back to pizza. After some time, we headed out to go for our kayak expedition.

On our kayaks, we raced through the water. Some of us even dare to pick up a harmless Moon Jelly, and some of us did not. Arms aching, we all stopped our furious paddling to finally see the beautiful sunset. After a long pause and quiet tears of enjoyment, we arrived at our home for the month.