News

Seagrass habitat

May 05 2023

For our second full day of class, we started out at 8am with our first marine biology lecture. We discussed differences between the open, broadly dispersing marine ecosystems and the more rigidly delineated terrestrial ecosystems, and talked about how those differences could affect the system responses to perturbations or large-scale changes. We also learned about the taxonomic Kingdom Protista, and obtained scientific names for a number of items we had found already, such as the “mermaid’s wineglass” (Acetabularia crenulata), or the “shaving brush” (Penicillus dumetosus).

After the lecture, we headed out to Triton Flat to collect new species of wildlife and compare them to what we had found yesterday in the bight. Right before we departed in the boat, I caught an upside-down jellyfish (Casseopea xamachana), which was lovingly given the name “Johnny”. Aside from Johnny, we found a massive number of new wildlife, including every type of sponge (ball, tube, vase, and encrusting), a “sea biscuit” (Clypeaster rosaceus), and even a large sea snail known as the milk conch (Macrostrombus costatus). Though the strong ocean current made for tough work, we were excited by what we had discovered.

In the evening, we had a short lecture over seagrasses, and learned of the importance of Thalassia testudinum, Syringodium filiforme, and Halodule wrightii, how they provide habitats and food to marine ecosystems. After a delicious burrito dinner, we spent time on the edge of our resort attempting to catch more wildlife, with reasonable success! Overall, it was a long but very rewarding day, and I’m excited to see what awaits us next!

-Jonah King, ’23

Seagrass habitat

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