Bahamian Reef Survey

I have returned back to Atlanta after an incredible experience on the island of San Salvador. On our last day on the island we had the opportunity to have a true Bahamian meal at a local restaurant. The remainder of the day we had "free time" fo rus to explore the island and relax. I wanted to put up one last post with some pictures that I was unable to share while on the island. I am looking forward to using all that I have learned with my students back in the classroom.

Thanksgiving in the Bahamas!

Happy Thanksgiving! The weather here this morning was still somewhat unfavorable so we headed to an area on the island called Snapshot Reef for some recreational swimming. The tourists who stay at Club Med on the island supposedly feed the fish, so there are tons of beautiful creatures here in the sea. Today for the first time I saw a barracuda as well as several sting rays. We swam out to the first reef which had many interesting corals and other living organisms. Another volunteer and I decided to be adventurous and swim a long distance out to another area of the ocean where there was a drop off. You could see the first drop off which was about 100 meters deep and we swam out even further where we were told the ocean was over 7000 meters deep! It was a little scary to be out in the middle of the ocean with nothing around you but it was a very gorgeous blue color like you’ve never seen before. This evening we will have a traditional Thanksgiving dinner and then head to the lab where we will have our regular evening class. The nights have been very interesting as we have learned a great deal about important and interesting concepts, such as global warming, coral reefs, and more. Tomorrow will be our last day of going out into the water to snorkel in the morning. In the afternoon we will head out for a Bahamian lunch at a local restaurant and then prepare to depart on Saturday!

Wednesday, November 26, 2008

Today we headed into town and had the opportunity to visit several local stops, including the beach. We went to a beautiful area that had countless conch shells. We were told by the regular visitors here that we are allowed to bring back one fully mature conch shell so I selected one to bring back to the states. We also were able to visit two areas with coral reefs, Rocky Point and Rice Bay. I accidentally slipped on a wet rock at Rocky Point. I was fine but decided it would be best to take it easy for most of the day. The evening was enjoyable as we got to conduct several tests on the water we had collected from the ocean over the past several days. I chose to do the alkalinity test so I measured the alkalinity levels of three different water samples. We each conducted our tests and provided the results to one of the researchers so they can put this information into a database where they have been collecting information for about five years now. By analyzing the data over time, they will be able to look for different trends, areas of concern, and more.

Lindsay's Reef

Live From the Field

I woke up this morning and was pleased to see blue skies and very little wind. After breakfast, we returned to Lindsay’s Reef, the area of the island where we had done beach profiling yesterday. Fortunately, we were able to start conducting the research that is essential to this program. My partner Jessica and I were assigned to work on PI Frames. We had to throw the PI Frames in the water, and record what we found under each of the 25 orange flags. The categories included hard coral, soft coral, algae, rock, sand, and other. We knew we were off to a rough start when we brought the PI Frame into the water and it broke. We tried to fix it using old duct tape that was already on the frame where it had broken before, a headband, and a hair tie, but simply could not get it to work. We decided to try anyway, and brought the PI Frame into the water. We threw it gently onto the coral reef and collected data as best we could. We got about 5 throws in (the goal was to get about 25 by the end of the morning) but were having trouble with the broken PI Frame, so we decided to wrap up. We headed back to shore and prepared to return to the Gerace Research Centre for lunch.

This afternoon was exciting because we got to visit only one of three manually-operated lighthouses that still exists in the world today. I learned that people in boats use lighthouse signals (San Salvador’s signal is two flashing lights every nine seconds) to identify where they are. Each lighthouse has its own unique code. We learned a great deal of history about the lighthouse and then had the opportunity to go up to the top of it so we could see all around the island (see the pictures above). It was a beautiful sight and allowed us all to get an even better view of the island. Tomorrow we will head back out into the field to complete more beach profiling and possibly working in the water on transect lines depending on the weather conditions.

Beach Profiling

This morning we headed to two spots – Rocky Point and Lindsay’s Reef – in order to complete beach profiling. We learned how to complete the task this morning when we got to our first research area. Beach profiling is when you use leveling tools and meter sticks in order to determine the gradient (how quickly the beach slopes into the water). (See the picture to view my group completing beach profiling).

We recorded our data on whiteboards (like the ones we use in our classroom). The primary investigator of this trip, John, will then use all of the data we collected and put it into a 3-D computer program which will make a simulation of the beach. This way he can compare the beach and how it is changing from year to year.

Tomorrow we hope that the weather will be somewhat more cooperative and we will get the opportunity to go snorkeling again. We also hope to be able to begin some of the research in the water that we came here to do, such as looking at coral bleaching and the types of coral we see in the water with our PI Frames.

Day 1 In the Field

Today we got our first real lesson in doing research in the field. We went to a lab facility at Gerace Research Centre where we learned about the important work we will be doing here. One activity we will do here is working with transect lines. Basically, each research site on San Salvador has three transect lines. They are ten-meter long lines labeled points A, B, and C. At each of the one-meter markers along the transect lines, we learned how to look for and determine the percentage of coral bleaching that has taken place. We also learned to use a PI Frame (see picture) with orange flags to record various types of coral that can be found under each flag (such as hard corals and soft corals). In the afternoon after lunch, we headed to an area on the southern tip of the island, known as French Bay. Unfortunately, the weather was still somewhat rough so we didn’t get to do any research today, but we did have the opportunity to go snorkeling. I had on my full wetsuit so it was fairly warm. I saw a few different types of coral such as brain coral and a type of coral known as “dead man’s fingers”. Some people in my group have underwater cameras so in the next few days I will try and post some pictures of the fish and coral that I see. Talk you soon!

Arriving in the Bahamas

Dear Students,

Thanks for posting on our blog! I have arrived in Nassau, Bahamas. The picture above is the view from my hotel room. I will be staying here just for today and then headed to the island of San Salvador very early tomorrow morning.

To answer some of your questions:

Darrell - as soon as I see a fish I will take a picture of it and post it for you to this site.

Kasai - thanks for offering to help - hopefully I won't see any sharks!!!

Devona - the weather is about 80 degrees Farenheit, so it's pretty warm (much warmer than Atlanta right now!!!)

Anonymous - if I saw a shark, I would swim away - FAST!

Eric - the trip is going great so far. I can't wait to get in the water!

Ansley - the hotel I'm staying in right now is really nice; however, it's just for one night. Tomorrow I will stay in the Gerace Research Centre which I showed you all on the internet.

Mackenzie - yes, I miss you all!

Kadahja - yes, they have jellyfish. Love you too!

Tamya - yes, the have seahorses, sharks, and jellyfish! Hopefully I'll get lots of great pictures for you guys! Love you too!

Tahji - see above. Love you too!

Jordan - things are going great so far. i can't wait to show you all pictures!

Well, I'll be in touch soon everyone. I hope you are being good for Mrs. King and learning a lot.

Talk to you soon!!!

Ms. Russell

San Salvador

Here is a map of the island I will be staying on. It is called San Salvador. This is where Columbus first made landfall on October 12, 1492. The native inhabitants of the territory called the island Guanahani.

Getting Ready for Friday

Here are just a few of the things I am packing for my upcoming expedition to San Salvador in the Bahamas:








My wetsuit to keep me warm in the water.




















My mask and snorkel.















My flippers.