Mon, 8 Feb

Mon, 8 Feb another windy day. after breakfast Marie decided to 'step up to the plate' and start sorting the sea grass samples we took the other day. everyone has been talking about how horrible the sorting process is, and no one really wants to do it. i didn't understand then ... i do now ! before we start, Marie says, 'you said you like gardening, right?" ....ha! it is a very laborious, time intensive task. as i mentioned the other day we collected a 4" tube, 8" long, of a sea grass plant, along with it's roots, and of course, the accompanying sand, and put it in a mesh bag. today, we take it out of the bag, and start tearing it apart. we have to divide it up and put it in piles. the roots go in one pile, the shoots go in another pile, and the leaves go in a third pile. now this isn't 'rocket science', but it takes forever to pull all the roots out of, and off of the shoot, they are all tangled, and to make matters worse, there is sand everywhere. Marie chooses to sift through the sand. i tried this technique for 3 of them, then decided it would be easier for me to remove as much of the sand as i could before i started. so i take the bag back to the sea and try to filter most of the sand out through the holes in the mesh bag before i start. this was easier for me, but i was sure it was going to take us 2 days to finish! soon we were joined by Nick and Ray. we finished by lunch time .... all 36 samples! i was amazed we got it all done ... This Sea Grass study is a study that is done all over the world to collect data on the health of the Sea Grass populations. they also have heat and light sensors at the sea grass site, so they are also collecting data on the temperature and amount of daylight that the sea grass beds get. i think this is done 4 times a year ... luckily i won't be here for the next collection :) it wasn't bad, but it's not as fun as being in the water. it was good to all be together to visit while we worked. Photo of the sample before sorting; does this look like some kind of Chinese dish ? Photo of my piles of roots, shoots, leaves. by the way, Marie said i do a very thorough job :) me Ray working on sorting sea grass samples: pic of worm Ray found in his sample; weird looking, isn't it ? after lunch it was decided that we would try recording and observing the stingrays again today. but since it was so windy and wavy; we would stay inside the reef in the lagoon, where it shouldn't be so rough and wavy. 1:30pm we headed out in the boat again with Buck. after a short ride, they said i should get out and just snorkel around and try to find a stingray, observe, and record it's movements/actions. so, overboard i go, and they take off .... hummmm ... i hope they come back to get me ... oh, Alex did say that if i get tired or bored, i can just swim back to the caye ................ ??????????? let me explain a little about Glover's Atoll. if you imagine an oval shape that has a coral reef ledge all around the outer edge. on the outside of the reef, is the wide open sea. on the inside of the reef, is a lagoon. it ranges from 3-20feet deep. inside this lagoon are over 700 'patch reefs' ... which are, ....patches of reef, as opposed to the long continuous reef that makes up the Atoll and the long barrier reef. within seconds of getting in the water, a stingray comes right up to me, as if to say, here i am, follow me. so i did ... but eventually he tired of me and took off. i spent time snorkeling around, found another stingray buried in the sand, she eventually took off as well. they would lead me on a wild goose chase into the sea grass, then take off like a lightening bolt. they were swimming against the current, and i couldn' t keep up. even though it wasn't supposed to be very wavy out there, it was. it was difficult snorkeling. i finally i got discouraged and found a patch reef and hung out there for awhile and watched the beautiful fishes. i am still not used to my underwater camera, but managed to take a few pics. Photo of a Trunkfish ... i like these guys ... they have a triangle shape and are cute ! Photo of a jelly fish :::: Photo of another trunkfish ... a Smooth Trunkfish: i was out there from 1:30 until about 4pm, when they came by with the boat and picked me up. i was amazed that i was in the water that long. i had my full wet suit on and did not get cold at all today; not even my fingers. it was warmer and the sun was out. i had a great time! dinner then bed