Happy Thanksgiving from the Bahamas!
Our day didn't go as planned again due to the weather and waves. The sites that we were supposed to collect data from had waves that would have made snorkeling way to dangerous. As a result, we spent the morning down on the south end of the island in Pigeon Creek. There is not much freshwater flowing into the creek, but it is very tidal and is the only real nursery for aquatic life on the island. San Salvador is isolated from the other Bahamian Islands and the Bahama Bank by deep sea and has a relatively small shallow shelf around it so Pigeon Creek is especially important. It is the only place on the island where you find mangrove trees and sea grasses which provide a great habitat for juvenile fish. We put in and swam upstream a bit staying very close to the mangrove shore. Once we went out into the middle of the creek, the water was deeper and the current much swifter. Here we were able to "ride the tide" and float out towards the ocean.
In the afternoon we tried collecting data at Rocky Point, but again the conditions were unfavorable. The chief scientist said that in the sixteen plus years of collecting data three times a year, he has only had four times when he was this hindered. We are all feeling a little guilty about not being able to help more to which John says "there is always tomorrow". Sadly, we realize that tomorrow is our last full day here. How quickly the week has gone.
Since we were already out, we decided to see a boat wreck that was down the beach and then put on our snorkel gear and float around in a small protected bay. Along one wall of very sharp rocks the waves were pounding with the surf, so we tried to stay well out of range. Much of this beach had a very sandy bottom and was quite different from the reef areas we have been seeing. Every now and again there would be a small patch reef where we could practice our identification of corals and enjoy the beautiful fish.
The cooks back at the field station surprised everyone tonight with a Thanksgiving dinner of turkey, sweet potatoes, and green been casserole for dinner.
The evening program tonight was a guest speaker from a local organization which is working to try to preserve areas around San Salvador. They are realizing the value of the reefs and the importance of protecting them. On Saturday John Rollino will join her to meet with the locals to see about getting more support for the project. As the speaker tonight expressed, it is not easy to get people to change tradition, but it is time that they must.

Part of the study here includes something called beach profiling. Just as a person's profile is the outline of their face from the side, a beach profile is a look at the slope of the beach. Specific sites are studied year after year and then the data can be compared. In essence, a line is drawn from the edge of the vegetation down to the water, running perpendicular to the water’s edge. Two long sticks are used and each of these has meter sticks taped along the side. The two are connected with a loop of rope that is two meters long. On the rope a there is a level. The person at the farthest from the water puts their stick at the edge of the plants and notes the level of the rope. The person on the water side plants their stick so that the connecting loop of rope is pulled tight. The rope is then moved up or down until the rope is parallel which can be determined by the level. The difference between where the rope is on the first end and where it is on the second end is calculated by subtracting. (For my students, this is much the same as we did when calculating volume by displacement.) The stick on the water side is held in position while the first stick is swung around to now mark the next two meter interval towards the beach. The same process of leveling is done and again the distance in calculated. This continues until you are four meters into the water.
This afternoon we were able to have some down time as the water is still pretty rough on the reefs we need to study so we got a chance to enjoy a very scenic reef where there were tons of fish. The diversity of colors, sizes and shapes is incredible. Several of us wanted the added of experience of swimming to what is called the wall. This is where the relatively shallow waters around the island suddenly plunge down to depths around 7000 feet. I wasn't sure what to expect, but as we passed an area covered in something I was told were called garden eels, the ground seemed to just end. Looking down there seemed to be nothing but a deep blue abyss. From what I understand, geologists are still not quite sure why the island formed as it did and what has caused these deep ravines, but at the moment all I cared about was the view. What a unique and wonderful experience.

The trip to the lighthouse was a great treat. It is called the Dixon Hill Lighthouse and was built in 1887. It is one of the last hand-operated, kerosene lighthouses in the world, and the last of its kind in the Bahamas. The 160 foot climb to the top is up steep winding staircases and it is well worth the journey. From the top you get a 360 degree view of the island and surrounding waters. It was easy to see the edge of the fringing reef and the variety of coloration on the inland lakes. Each lighthouse sends out a unique signal so a boat seeing it can determine which lighthouse it is seeing, and the one here has a double flash with a nine second interval in between.
From there we hiked down to a cave that was formed during a period when the ocean water was higher. The trail down was very overgrown and it was quite an adventure to get to it. To enter the cave you have to climb down a ladder which leads you into a large opening. From there you can explore several short offshoots. The main one is filled with water, so you have to swim which added to the adventure. We had several waterproof lights and a few folks brought along their waterproof cameras. We didn’t see any bats, but we did see some small fish which they think must have somehow come in with the rains from Noel as they do not recall ever having seen them there before. The island is composed of limestone that is similar to Florida and is like Swiss cheese full of holes

Yesterday I was able to communicate with my class. It took quite awhile to set up, but we were finally able to see and talk to one another. Other staff and volunteers here were very impressed with the process. I wish we had more time to do more of that, but the students will be out of school for Thanksgiving vacation after today.

We were in the water twice yesterday. Once at Monument Beach and the other at Lindsey Reef. I am impressed with how much I have already learned about identification of the various hard corals. These waters are not known for the fish life, but it seems pretty impressive to me. I still have to look up some of the names, but ones I know are Blue Tang, Wrasse, Trumpet Fish, Rays, and “Dorey”fish. One group saw a shark and another some barracuda but I missed those. We are also spotting some of the spiny urchin that were pretty much wiped out here years ago so the staff is very happy to see them coming back.

Due to high winds which are creating very choppy weather, we are not going to go into the water today. This mornings plan is to go see the light house and see an inland cave. This afternoon we are scheduled to do some beach profiling. This means looking at things like the slope of the beach and the size of the sand grains. Beaches with lots of wave activity tend to be steeper and have coarser grain. Those with less wave activity tend to be more gradual and have the finer sand.

We had another volunteer arrive yesterday from Russia. It is so wonderful to get to know so many wonderful people from around the world.

Transect Lines
Today we went to Lindsey Reef where we divided into our different teams to accomplish various tasks. My team was in charge of the transect lines. The basic idea here is to have a set area that is reviewed repeatedly over and over to look at long-term data. The way this is accomplished here is that big pins or nails were placed permanently into the reef at five meter intervals. A string is then stretched between these pins and the string is clearly marked at one meter intervals. You swim along the line and look one half meter on either side of the line for particular things. (For you math buffs, see if you can determine the area that is covered with each data collection). For this aspect of the research, we are asked to only look at the hard coral, and record only if we find any that are bleached. Bleached coral is a great name for it because it looks as if someone poured a bottle of bleach on it and all the color is washed out. At this point the coral is not actually dead, but very stressed out. The current was unusually strong today so swimming against it for hours at a time was tiring. Also, when you swim along the transect line, you have to do quite a bit of surface diving to look on the sides of vertical walls and in the various nooks and crannies.
Along with recording the health of the coral, we also took air and water temperatures, collected water samples and measured clarity. The clarity is tested with a very simple device called a secchi disk. This is like a round pie plate that is divided into four slices. Two opposite slices are painted black and the other two are painted white. One swimmer carries this and swims away until the other can no longer distinguish between the two colors. The distance between the disk and the reader is then measured and recorded. To make the measurement easier, the rope is clearly marked at one meter intervals. At each site we had to take at least two readings and find the average. Can anybody tell me why this is better than just doing it once? It was interesting to note how much the clarity could change is such a short distance. Our first reading had an average of about 12 meters and the second 16 and we were only about 60 meters apart. Do you think the visibility was better further out or closer to shore. If you said the shore you are right.

Thanks for all the great questions you guys are sending and I am so happy that talking to you worked out today. Internet connection is still very spotty here and as I am out in the field and in class most of the time, I dont' have much time to try to get through.
To answer some of the questions:
----The water is beautiful, but staying in for any length of time really zaps the energy out of you and leaves you quite chilled. I have been wearing my wet suit so I have been fine, but some of the other volunteers have had to get out of the water early to warm up.
----Luis, you asked about the different colors on the reef. This is one of the things that most fascinates me so far. As I told you, the coral which is an animal takes in these plants called zoozanthellea and it is these plants that actually give the coral its color. I have not clearly understood yet why some coral takes in certain algae and will continue to try to find out more.
---- As to the number of different types of coral - there are many. Our class last night - (yes, we have to go to class even at night!) was on how to identify various forms of hard coral. So far I have learned about fifteen different kinds and there are sooooooo many more.
---Someone asked how coral reproduce which is a great question. I have not learned much on this yet, but my understanding is there are two basic ways. One is called fragmentation. This is when a branch of coral breaks off and then starts a new colony. Another, which I think is more common, is that at a given time, they simultaneously release egg and sperm into the water column. I'm hoping to learn more about this too.
---How do corals help? There are several things that I am aware of. One is that they are part of the great web of life. Another is that they provide habitat. They are also a great defense against wave action. Finally, several cures or medicinal properties have been gained from them.
So, it is now time for me to go off to tonight's class. I am guessing we will be looking at the data we collected today. The group I worked with did transect work. I am hoping to put pictures and information about this on my podcast.
As I am learning that connection to the internet is not very consistent here, I will finish tonight by saying that I am taking lots of pictures and notes so if nothing else, when I get back I can share it all then. I have made some wonderful new friends with people from all over the world. The other two teachers are from NJ, but the volunteers come from California, NY, Russia, Hungary and Africa! What a great adventure. I wish you could all be here with me.

On Friday I packed the last of my things and caught a ride to Ft. Lauderdale with a fellow teacher and new friend, Ms. Atkinson. We spent the night at her parents and she drove me to the airport the next morning. My first flight took me into Nassau where I switched to a smaller plane to island hop over to San Salvador. We had been told not to worry about getting lost in the airport, and they were right. The entire airport is no bigger than a small house! Besides, it was such a small plane and there were basically three groups of people on the plane and it wasn't difficult to tell who belonged in which. There were those that live here, those going to Club Med and the research crew. We were picked up in trucks with open flat beds. Gear was thrown up, we climbed in and made the drive to the station. We settled in our rooms, had dinner and had our first "class" last night where we got a general overview of the facility and what our week here will entail. Internet access is off and on, and free time to try is limited. I will continue to try to post as often as possible. Don't forget to check out the podasts under the links box. I hope to be posting pictures there.

Is coral a plant or an animal? Where do they live? Why are scientists studying them? Are they beneficial? What threats do they face? Test your knowledge about coral reefs by visiting the Nature Conservancy site to take a quiz

Research supported by: The Live from the Field program is made possible by a generous grant from the National Geographic Education Foundation:

 

With two weeks to go, I am excited about what is to come. Soon I will be boarding a plane to San Salvador in the Bahamas, where I will work with a team of scientists and the Earthwatch program. They are involved in the 16th year of a an ongoing study of the coral reefs. I look forward to working with them, learning more about the reef systems and the threats that they face, and most importantly, communicating information back to my students.