AUSTRALIA!

Dominique McCowan

2010-08-04T19:01:00.000+10:00

This summer I was lucky and privileged to work with Dominique McGowan. From the first day she took me all around and showed me everything I needed to know in order to complete my project! She is a brilliant chick that also happens to be cool as ever! We went to Orpheus Island to collect samples and had such a great time! Dominique taught me valuable lab skills and we often spoke about her research on Coral Reef Ecology. Let me tell you a little about her! She moved here three years ago from the states. She has never left and I know why! Australia is awesome. As soon as she arrived she finished up her undergrad degree and jumped straight into research with Dr. Morgan Pratchett due to her advanced experience working with mosquitoes and West Nile Virus. Her first thesis was on the Synergistic Effect of Salinity and Temperature with Bleaching Events. She is now working towards her PHD and also her second thesis which has to do with variability and susceptibility of corals to mass bleaching events. She is looking into how much variation there is in one species and how much time it takes them to bleach. She has measured many, many factors that affect variation. She is now comparing the thermal thresholds of 2 species at 3 locations along the Great Barrier Reef. Lizard Island, Orpheus Island, and Heron Island. They all have varied thermal histories so she is really interested in the results. Right now she is also taking a dozen species from eight different families and measuring their susceptibility to bleaching. She is finding some are bleaching tolerant. She is working on one of kind research and the first to use such a large number of species to research! Dominique is awesome, energetic, and intelligent. You go girl!!!!!

On our way to Orpheus Island

Counting Zooxanthellae

THANKS FOR EVERYTHING DOMINIQUE!

The Lab is heating up!!!

2010-08-02T21:41:00.000+10:00

Slide with homogenized sample.

Tools

Acropora Nasuta samples

We are now on a mission to finish our projects. We are spending a great deal of time in the lab!

Counting...............and more counting!

Castle Hill with PIP : )

2010-08-02T19:19:00.000+10:00

Literally climbing the face of Castle Hill!

Liz, Elise, Pip, and Samy the cute woff.

A very common workout in Townsville is to hike Castle Hill. Castle Hill is a pink granite monolith standing in the heart of the north Queensland city of Townsville. It rises to a height of some 938.3 feet above sea level and dominates the city skyline. Castle Hill has formerly also been known locally as Mount Cootharinga - a name of aboriginal origin. During World War II, the city was host to over 50,000 American and Australian troops and air crew, and it became a major staging point for battles in the South West Pacific.

Half way up!

Most people walk up the goat trail which is hard but hiking Castle Hill with Pip was a whole other story. Pip is a wonderful New Zealand born lady that moved to Australia and married Paul. They are friends with Jay "the man with the plan" that sent us here to do research. Thanks Jay we love you! We also love this great family who took us into their house, fed us a great dinner, and finally took us on the hike of a lifetime. Following Pip up the mountain was a task in itself harder than we ever though. We climbed the face of Castle Hill and prayed for our life the whole long way up. Once we got to the top, it was very well worth it. There were breathtaking views one only sees very rarely.

It was quite a workout!

After hiking Castle Hill we all decided to go to a Zumba dance class. Can you say overly exausted? We had a blast anyway!

Cruising in yachts

2010-08-02T03:43:00.000+10:00

Sun bathing was great!

Australia is such a friendly place it is almost unbelievable! We went down to the Whitsunday Islands this weekend to swim and snorkel. There are 74 islands in the heart of the Great Barrier Reef! You can easily island hop all day if you wanted or pick one out and hang out awhile. We did both! We met so many people with yachts and boats and one friendly bloke (guy) took us out in his yacht! All we had to do was pile up the fridge with grog (beer). We stocked up and we were off! Fishing, snorkeling, and island hopping filled our days and we had a blast. We had lunch on Long Island and dinner on Hamilton Island. We rented buggy's and toured around Hamilton Island for a few hours which was also fun! Australia is amazing!

Fishing....... and you don't have to hold the poles!!!

Buggy riding at Hamilton Island

The kitchen

Snakes on Campus

2010-07-29T11:25:00.000+10:00

Today as we walked to the lab we noticed something rather huge under the bridge. A Python has just finished a meal. We are guessing it was a bush turkey. Either that or a small person!

Things we've learned to live with

2010-07-25T23:50:00.000+10:00

1. Ants in our pants.................literally they are everywhere.
2. Beef Jerky chicken for dinner often. We are still chewing.
3. Living in a tiny room together.
4. College kids everywhere and we thought the ants were bad!!!
5. 7 dollar coffee breaks.

6. 50% of us have internet---JCU Technology fail!

Australian Lingo

2010-07-22T22:02:00.000+10:00

jumper (sweatshirt lol)

joggers (not sneakers, we don't sneak around in them.)

Often we find ourselves laughing hysterically when we speak with Australians. Luckily we have made some friends who have enlightened us to the hilarious terminology down under. We also learned if a word can be shortened it is for example.....

brekkie- breakfast
uni-the university
bevvy- beverage
sunnies- sunglasses
whacka- idiot
bathers- bathing suit
pokies- slot machines
mozzies- mosquitoes
roadie- beer you take with you
shelia- woman
pommy shower- using deodorant instead of taking a shower
Hit the froggin toad- hit the road
root- a polite curse word "root off"
bugger- still not sure but we think it is a term of endearment
kangaroos loose in the top paddock- lost your marbles
bring your own grog bludger- bring your own beer moocher
amber fluid- beer

The funniest of the funny........................................

budgee smugglers (speedo's)

snag

mystery bags (yes it is found on the menu)

The Dorms

2010-07-20T22:48:00.000+10:00

The dorms here at John Flynn College are pretty nice. John Flynn College is a smaller college located on the James Cook University Campus. They have the best food on campus. We have had enough cafeteria food for a lifetime.

John Flynn Dorms

It is nicer with the door open

Outside our door

A salamander climbing our walls.
They bark haha

Wallabies feed on grass right outside our rooms.

Having Fun with Giant Clams

2010-07-18T22:40:00.000+10:00

Click Play to see the video.

Wombats - Nature's New and Improved Koala

2010-07-18T21:45:00.002+10:00

Click play to see the Tonka the Wombat in Action!

Ray the Koala Tonka the Wombat

Koala's are known to bring in many tourists to Queensland, giving over-exorbitant amounts of attention to the cuddliest looking of all marsupials.

But, they are among the least intelligent of their kind and native Australians roll their eyes as they explain that the Koala's brain is only the size of two peas. Their most exciting part of their day is looking at the branch in front of them, spending 23 hours a day sleeping in order to build enough energy to poo.

Our new favorite member of the marsupial clan (yes, it carries it's young in a cool pouch too) is the wombat. It is the smartest marsupial in all of Australia.

Why, you ask?

1. Wombats have a hard cartillage rear end. This comes in handy because the wombat is hunted by Dingoes and have managed to outsmart the wild dog by luring it nears it burrow. Once the Dingo is interested and sticks it head into the burrow up comes the hard cartillage butt to crush the Dingoes skull. If that is not enough, the wombat then drags the body atop his burrow mound to warn other predators lest they share the same fate.

2. The wombat is able to sense Bush fires long before other animals and during these dire emergencies, video has been taken of dingoes, snakes, padmeleons, and all other animals living in harmony in the wombats burrown while fire rages. A notable exception to this is the Koala, who is just a tad bit too "slow" to come down from the gum trees and realize there is any danger at all.

3. The hairy nosed wombat is actually in the top ten most endangered species in the world and there are only about 50 left. Farmers might be to blame, poor little buggers. (not the farmers) Our friend Tonka, is the common brown wombat and not on the brink of extinction, but super cuddly!

We hope you think that wombats are just as rad as we do! Silly cute Koalas. :P

Which do you prefer?

a. the cuddly koala

b. the wily wombat

Post your preference below!

(don't be shy now...)

Maggie Island!

2010-07-18T19:42:00.002+10:00

Geoffry Bay

Did you know?

The name of the island came about because of the apparent "magnetic" effect it had on the ship's compass of Captain Cook as he passed the island when sailing up the east coast of Australia in 1770. People have since explored the general area of Magnetic Island with various instruments to discover what might have caused the effect that Cook reported, but nothing has been discovered. It's a mystery!

sailing over on the sun ferry

Went to dinner at a restaurant called Man Friday and made some stinky friends! These possums were very keen on tortilla chips...

yum yum in my tum! shooters? give me a chip!

now i'm happy! possum on the menu (literally)

Hanging out for the day on Horseshoe Bay! So gorgeous, we went sailing on a Hobie Catamaran!

lovely day on the bay

cruising around the island in style

Tridacna gigas

2010-07-18T19:28:00.000+10:00

Giant Clams (Tridacna gigas)

Kingdom Animalia

Phylum Mollusca

Class Bivalvia

Order Veneroida

Family Tridacnidae

Genus Tridacna (1)

Size Length: up to 1.3 m (2)

Weight up to 300 kg (2)

Life span up to 100 years

Giant clams evolved over 65 million years ago in the Eocene, along with modern corals. Both clams and corals lead symbiotic lives along with millions of single cell dinoflagellate algae called 'zooxanthellae'.

Adult clams can obtain over 90% of their food requirements from the photosynthetic products of the algae, but when particulate organic matter (POM) is present an adult clam can obtain about 33% of its carbon requirements from POM. The third source of nutrition is dissolved organic matter (DOM) but it is probably more important in larval and post-larval stages than in sub-adult and adult clams. Clams also act as natural biofilters as they take up dissolved ammonia and nitrate from the surrounding seawater to supply their symbiotic zooxanthellae with nitrogen for growth.

This enormous shellfish is the largest species of bivalve mollusk in the fossil record, and the heaviest of all the living mollusks (4). Like all bivalve mollusks, the shell consists of two valves, although in the larger giant clams these cannot close completely (5). The shell is extremely thick and lacks bony plates; when viewed from above, each valve has four to five inward facing triangular projections (5). The mantle of the clam is visible between the two shells, and is a golden brown, yellow or green, although there may be such an abundance of small blue-green circles that the overwhelming impression is of a beautiful iridescent color (5) (6). A number of pale or clear spots on the mantle, known as 'windows', allow sunlight to filter in through the mantle (5). The mantle is completely fused with the exception of two holes (or 'siphons'). The gills are visible through the inhalant siphon, while the exhalent siphon is tube-like and is capable of expelling a large volume of water during spawning or if the clam’s shells close suddenly (7) (6).

See video.

These huge bivalve mollusks are found in shallow waters of the Pacific Ocean, from Thailand and Japan to Australia and Micronesia (1). However, the giant clam’s range has reduced since the 1970s due to over-harvesting (6).

Adult giant clams are completely sessile, unable to move from their position on the coral reef. They reproduce by expelling sperm and eggs into the sea (5), where fertilization occurs. The fertilized eggs quickly enter a swimming stage, (where they are known as trochophores), before entering a planktonic stage (6). During this stage, the larvae, (known as 'veligers'), inhabit the open ocean for one week, before settling in the substrate. If a clam is disturbed it will close its shell valves (5).

Giant clams have an inhalant siphon, which they use to draw in seawater that is then filtered for planktonic food (5). The majority of the clam's nutrients however, are obtained by a mutually beneficial relationship with minute algae known as zooxanthellae (5). These plant-like algae exist in delicate tubules which are extensions of the stomach (8). The algae gain protection from predators by being associated with such a large organism, while the clam obtains the carbon by-products of photosynthesis (9). Giant clams also provide protection for a species of pea crab (Xanthasia murigera); a single pair will often be found living within the cavity of the clam (7).

References

IUCN Red List (February, 2008)
http://www.iucnredlist.org
Spalding, M.D., Ravilious, C. and Green, E.P. (2001) World Atlas of Coral Reefs. University of California Press, Berkeley.
CITES (August, 2002)
http://www.cites.org/
Wye, K. (1991) The Illustrated Encyclopedia of Shells. Quintet Publishing Limited, London.
Animal Diversity Web (August, 2002)
http://animaldiversity.ummz.umich.edu/accounts/tridacna/t._gigas$narrative.html
Braley, R.D. (2008) Pers. comm.
Mead and Beckett Publishing. (1984) Reader's Digest Book of the Great Barrier Reef. Reader's Digest, Sydney.
Norton, J.H. and Jones, G.W. (1992) The Giant Clam: An Anatomical and Histological Atlas. ACIAR Monograph, Canberra.
Monterey Bay Aquarium (August, 2002)
http://www.mbayaq.org/efc/living_species/default.asp?hOri=1&inhab=411
Braley, R.D. (1992) The Giant Clam: Hatchery and Nursery Culture Manual. ACIAR Monograph No. 15, Canberra.
Norton, J.H., Braley, R.D. and Anderson, I.G. (1993) A quarantine protocol to prevent the spread of parasitic diseases of giant clams (Tridacnidae) via translocation. In: Fitt, W. (Ed) The Biology and Mariculture of Giant Clams. ACIAR Proceedings No. 47, Canberra.

Video of Algae taken at Liz's Lab!

2010-07-14T21:39:00.001+10:00

Click the play button

I'm just proud of myself for being able to take the video and manage to get it online! Sweet! Now you can see live action of algae swimming around under the microscope.

Cell Culturing with Liz

2010-07-14T21:36:00.000+10:00

mad scientist? liz working on cultures

The past couple of days in the lab have been dedicated to culturing. This means spending 2 – 3 days transferring each type of algae to new medium, thus supplying it with enough nutrients for another 3 – 6 weeks of survival. Cultures need to be aerated in order to ensure that each organism gets a fair shot at the light and to ensure that bacteria won’t be able to feed off of dead culture.

just some of species of algae in the culture bank

Marine and freshwater species are cultured, of both flagellates (remember, algae with flagella to help it get around, and diatoms (those with the hard armored exterior, composed of silica). There were a few other types of algae that will be culture tomorrow as well: cyanobacteria, epiphytes, as well as cryptophytes. The classification of all the different species still eludes me and I will be wikipeda-ing the heck out of all these terms this evening.

algae (optical microscope) algae (scanning electron microscope)

An example of a growth medium that is commonly used by many of the organisms is called L1. It involves taking sterile sea water from the reef near Orpheus Island (where Elise collected her coral samples!) The reason seawater is used from this area is because there is no contamination by runoff near largely populated areas, lets say like Townsville. Into this then goes .5mL of a vitamin solution, and 1mL of each of the following: trace metals, phophate, nitrate, and silica. Interestingly, only the diatoms use the silica to make their glass armor and if it isn’t used it starts to form sheets. This growth media can be stored until needed for culturing.

silica sheets

So all of this might not sound too hard (and once you get the gist of it, really it isn’t) but try learning all of this from Stan with his kiwi accent. At one point he asked me to get the white tips from the next room, so I brought him the white box of pipette tips and he laughed at me! “Tape! The white tape, I said” he goes… I’m telling you it’s like I’m in my very own episode of Flight of the Conchords.

Hello, my name is Brit (Brett). You’ve got to just watch the show. J

Running by the Lake

2010-07-14T21:21:00.000+10:00

After a day spent staring through a microscope, we both needed a good run.

Wallabies on Campus!

2010-07-14T21:18:00.000+10:00

The name wallaby comes from the Eora Aboriginal tribe who were the original inhabitants of the Sydney area. Young wallabies are known as "joeys", like many other marsupials. Aren't these guys adorable?

Want to Know More About Coral Bleaching? Here is a Summary of Current Literature!

2010-07-13T23:40:00.002+10:00

Effects on climate change were first recognized on coral reefs. Climate change affects coral reefs in many ways. Increased intensity of tropical storms and increasing ocean acidification both have a negative effect on coral. Bleaching refers to the whitening of zooxanthellae organisms due to the loss of the symbiotic relationship between corals and zooxanthellae. Since 1964 scientists have found 7 major bleaching events affecting corals. The threat of climate induced bleaching has caused many scientists to look into associations between zooxanthellae and their host corals.

Scientists have found that coral bleaching almost always results from declines in zooxanthellae densities. They have also found there are many causes to coral bleaching such as aerial exposure, cold shock, insecticide, pollutants, sedimentation, and of course temperature changes. Researchers have found that during bleaching events corals must rely on stored energy or utilize heterotrophic feeding to stay alive.

Severe bleaching usually results in the mortality of the coral because the animal tissue that house the zooxanthellae become damaged. It looks as if more research must be conducted to account for natural variation of zooxanthellae and bleaching events that cause lower levels of zooxanthellae in coral.

There are many natural occurrences that give way to mortality of coral such as seasonal and depth related differences in zooxanthellae densities. Scientists have found it is important to distinguish between families of coral when assessing natural densities of zooxanthellae because some types of coral have naturally low levels of zooxanthellae.

It has also been found that some coral species are more susceptible to coral bleaching than others. Scientists know that coral bleaching is disturbing whole reef ecosystems and the health of coral reefs worldwide is expected to decline. From the various articles discussing coral research I have learned we as teachers should follow in the footsteps of research scientists and educate our students as they educate about our everyday behavior that is attributing to the degradation of our precious coral reefs. I will be sure to involve my students in the incredible importance of learning about our coral reefs.

Classroom Application of Elise’s Lab Experience

2010-07-13T23:14:00.003+10:00

So I have been thinking long and hard on how I can introduce my students to coral reef conditions and I have thought of a few ideas. First I will familiarize them with sea surface temperatures and the use of satellites to detect them. NOAA has some great free online programs that I have used with my students before in addition to many other free programs that help monitor conditions on earth. http://coralreefwatch.noaa.gov/satellite/

http://geo.arc.nasa.gov/sge/coral-health/

Second I would like to introduce students to the effect of sea surface temperature on overall coral health. I will have students look into coral reef ecology and the impacts of climate change. At Curtis High School we have many available laptops that students can use during class to look at simulations about coral bleaching. I plan on having students look at past mass bleaching events and what the sea surface temperatures were when these bleaching events occurred.

Students will come up with reasons why bleaching events have occurred by researching some journal articles and literature that discuss climate change. I will also have students familiarize themselves on how to find educational sources online using webquests. Students will answer questions together as groups on why coral reefs are important and what would happen if they were destroyed.

Since I have looked into zooxanthellae I will teach students about the symbiotic relationship between coral and algae. I have preserved slides of my samples that we can look at in class and discuss further this partnership.

Background information will be provided in the beginning of the week’s lesson so students get a broad idea of what is going on in terms of coral conservation and research.

I will plan some discussion questions as well as have students come up with questions about coral reef conservation and connectivity. This will help students come up with problem solving techniques that are important in critical thinking. There are also additional satellite programs I will look into to monitor other aspects of the earth and link how technology can be found elsewhere besides just in video games.

Artwork on campus

2010-07-12T23:07:00.001+10:00

The students are very creative on campus. From their graffiti to their mosaics, we were thoroughly impressed!

The Rough Outback

2010-07-12T22:57:00.000+10:00

The Outback will seriously ruin any shoes you own. Elise’s shower shoes are destroyed with a rip in the sole and Liz’s fabulous flip-flops are currently held together by a safety pin. “Got a busted thong?”, a friendly Aussie remarked. It took us a moment to realize he wasn’t being fresh.

Vodofone (Ugh.)

2010-07-12T22:43:00.000+10:00

vodofone. discover nothing.

A bit about communications in this country:

We would like to tell you a little story about our adventures trying to use modern devices here down under, lest you take for granted your ability to text your friends and check your email regularly.

We land in Australia with an Australian local phone (thanks jay) and expect to be able to just grab a sim card to start using the dang thing. Well the counter girl at Woolworths (no sweaters sold here, imagine a Stop and Shop) says the phone we have is probably unlocked and sells us a telestra sim card. Now a bit about phone companies here in Australia: Telestra is the equivalent of AT&T, wheras Vodofone is the Verizon in the locale.

Our phone is Vodofone and our sim card is Telestra. You would be surprised how long it took us to finally have someone explain that alas, this combination is an exercise in futility.

If you refer to previous blogs, ie: the bus, you might recall that it takes an hour to get anywhere on the bus. So, after an hour to get back to Woolworths, only to then be sent to the Telestra store and afterwards, another Woothworths. To do an exact exchange, you need the exact same person, at the exact same store, to refund you exactly which item you bought and now we finally have a simcard/phone combination that matches!

However, our story is just beginning:

One must retain all paperwork ever created about the particular sim card in order to know the top secret confidential activation code. This gem of receipt, liz threw away not 3 day ago. This pretty much brings you up to speed on our phone situation. Go online for a solution, you suggest? IMPOSSIBLE! The internet is currently down. Again. And when the moon next aligns with the Sun and the Southern Hemisphere of Earth we just may get a signal to investigate this predicament further.

So props where they are due: thank you to Elise’s husband, Alex, who insisted that she get the international plan on her blackberry. You rule.

Stay tuned…..

Liz Lab Update

2010-07-12T22:38:00.000+10:00

Things have been a bit slow moving in the lab at the beginning of this week. Turns out MBD (the company funding much of the research) has delays with getting the correct equipment to the lab in order for the research to be done. So meetings were held all day today in order to update the company on what experiments have been finished. You can see how this was one of the more frustrating days for everyone.
So what did I do?

I had a chat with Stan and we came up with some wonderful ideas on how to take some of this stuff into my classroom!
I would love to look at samples from benthic (bottom) sediments in marine and fresh water environments both in Australia and around NYC! Stan says that although there are dinoflagellates that will be specific to each region, but there are other species that are pretty much ubiquitous. I can’t wait to collect the NYC samples with some students.

dinoflagellates are micro-algae that have two flagellae to help them get around!

Using these dinoflagellates I can investigate some key points in the curriculum back home. Thus far I would like to use them discussing:

Earth’s Early Atmosphere – These cyano-bacteria are what was responsible for supplying all of the oxygen in the seas and atmosphere millions of years ago. I want to measure oxygen and carbon dioxide levels throughout the culture growth to show how during the day, dinoflagellates make oxygen!

Evolution of Land Plants - Both dinoflagellates and plants use photosynthesis to create energy for themselves. I would like to introduce the idea of evolution and how initially only these micro-organisms from the sea photosynthesized. Eventually after millions of years, plants use the same processes on land. Where is the link? I think this would be a great way to start off this unit in class.

So while the important people worry about MBD funding, tomorrow I will be growing the micro-algae and culturing it. Stan and I will be working together the next two days on how to take the super-science-y methods using autoclaves and laminar flow tables and making them work in the classroom. Once cultured, keeping the micro-algae alive long enough to do the experiments that we want to might be quite the task. Here at the lab, an entirely new culture is grown every two weeks! And that is necessary to do any test whatsoever on these little guys. I wonder what will be necessary back at the Manhattan East lab?

Orpheus Dive

2010-07-12T22:26:00.001+10:00

I collected Pocillopora Damicornis and Acropora Nasuta from Orpheus island. Both of these species are important to study because fish recruit to them and they are dominant at many sites. Looking into the bleaching of these particular coral is a staple in determining coral health in particular areas.
To collect the samples small branches were taken from marked coral on the reef and placed in natural sea water where they were stored on the research boat until we returned to the lab. At the Orpheus Island lab the coral samples were placed in Formalin for transport back to James Cook University.

The samples were then placed into jars of 5% HCL to dissolve the skeleton. After the decalicification process the soft tissue samples will be analyzed for zooxanthellae densities. Zooxanthellae are dinoflagellates that have a symbotic relationship with coral. Coral get 90% of their energy from zooxanthellae.

To find the zooxanthellae densities small tissue samples will be taken from each of my 52 coral samples and homogenized (blended) and placed on a haemacotometer (special grid slide used with blood samples). I will be using a 40X optical zoom microscope to count zooxanthellae.

Natural variation will still need to be determined.

Cheers Mate

This was hard to get!!!

Dominique grabbing some samples! She is amazing!

Orpheus is beautiful from the water!

Trip to AIMS Research Compound

2010-07-11T21:52:00.000+10:00

The Australian Institute for Marine Science is basically like driving into Jurrasic Park. Once we got past the huge metal gates, it ended up being a pretty cool place. AIMS is committed to the protection and sustainable use of Australia's marine resources. Its research programs support the management of tropical marine environments around the world, with a primary focus on the Great Barrier Reef World Heritage Area, the pristine Ningaloo Marine Park in Western Australia and northwest Australia.

All in all, our tour guide was about as knowledgeable as a small dingo, but the institute had some truly cutting edge science going on. And the views were absolutely spectacular!

Orpheus Island

2010-07-11T21:12:00.001+10:00

Driving to Orpheus

research boat

Orpheus Island is a continental island providing access to an unusually wide variety of Great Barrier Reef habitats. This granitic island of 1300 hectares is largely undisturbed as it is a National Park surrounded by a Marine Park. It is covered by sclerophyll and woodland communities dominated by eucalypts with patches of rainforest in the moister areas and some patches of grassland. James Cook University maintains the Orpheus Island Research Station, a facility with very good accommodation, cooking, classroom, diving and boating facilities that are important in running effective field schools such as the Maritime Heritage Field school, as well as a base for researchers. The topography of the island and resultant sediments are studied by students studying Earth and Environmental Sciences. Off-shore habitats include, well-developed fringing reefs, mid-shelf reefs as well as sand and mud bottoms which separate the reefs. Marine Biology undergraduate and graduate students regularly visit the island to study the diverse fauna particularly on the sand and rubble intertidal reef flat as well as fauna associated with the mangrove community. The coral and amphipod flora is particularly rich on this island. The waters off Orpheus Island also provide a number of different types of submerged historic sites, from indigenous sites to recent shipwrecks. In association with the traditional owners, field school participants can learn about the importance of this area to aboriginal people and record some of their material remains. The shipwrecks and other coastal landing facilities allow for effective training in search and survey techniques.

Campus

2010-07-11T21:04:00.001+10:00

the poolelise's lab

lots of turkeys - and they dig. weird.

Campus is amazing! We love it! We take walks everywhere (not that there is much of a choice – everthing is so spread out here) Perhaps that is just the New Yorker in us coming out. We are definitely used to quite a bit more building density. It is roughly 10 miles from our dorm room to the labs where we work. And together we have lost at least five pounds already just getting from point a to point b.

The Bus

2010-07-11T20:48:00.000+10:00

We. Hate. The. Bus. It sucks. It is about 45 minutes everytime we need to get into the city. This of course does not include the waiting time. We have met quite the crowd of folks on the bus, waiting for the bus, and consensus is the same: the bus sucks.

Running on Campus

2010-07-11T20:43:00.000+10:00

Australia is amazing. Every time we go for a run we run into wallabies and kangaroos. Liz is whippin my butt into shape. She is an avid runner and I struggle to keep up with her. I am more of a walker myself. Regardless of the pain I try my best to keep up.

Liz at the Lab

2010-07-11T19:37:00.000+10:00

Well into the lab, finally after a weekend of having no contact with the outside world. (ie: no internet, phone, and precious few souls on campus to annoy with questions like where are laundry rooms?)

Perhaps I just lucked out, or maybe it is just a general Australian demeanor, but everyone that I am working with is so fantastic! In stark contrast with other labs I have been in, here folks are coming at me with questions about how I want to use their labs and expertise to enhance my teaching curriculum. I am not just another pair of hands to help with the immense amount of sample analysis, but rather a key player in relating what is going on in science to future researchers! Whew – don’t I sound important?

Ok, so into the actual lab work:

The lab I am in is called the National Queensland Algal Identification/Culturing Facility or NQAIF. That gets written on everything. Samples, machines, papers, people….

Here at Kirsten Heimann’s lab (a German scientist who seven years ago came to Townsville to do research and hasn’t left yet) there are many graduate students working on various projects. I am super lucky to be paired with Saskia de Jong, a Canadian who transferred to JCU in her second year of college and again is still here. Hmm, what could it be about this gorgeous tropical paradise that keeps ‘em here? Saskia has started by going over the basic lab skills with me – as I explained to her that last bio lab I have been in was as an undergraduate. I have been catching on very quickly and all of my turbidity data is on par, pippeting skills up to snuff, and I can autoclave with the best of them. J My old genetics professor would have been so proud.

Once I have re-learned all the basic lab skills, I will be applying them to my own micro-algae samples that will be collected this weekend on a dive up in Port Douglas. (5 hours north of Townsville) The basic projects with these little buggers is as follows:

Salinity Experiments – getting salt data on the marine environments of all our specimens

Nutrient Composition – determining what amount of nitrates, nitrites and phosphates are being absorbed

Lipid Staining and Quantification – this is really cool and involved glowing or phosphorescent dinoflagellates! (Which is just a type of micro-algae with two flagella to help them get around.)

Cell Counts and Turbidity Analysis – yup, you guessed it, counting cells. BORING.

Protein Profiling – determining protein content

Some of this work is really amazing and some of it us just well, repetitive and necessary. But I think the results will be well worth it and I can’t wait to start thinking of how to use this in the class room! Well, until next time…Cheers mates!

Elise at the Lab

2010-07-11T19:33:00.000+10:00

I am working with Dominique M. McCowan a PHD student at James Cook University in Townsville, Queensland ,

Australia

. Dominique is researching rapid and reliable estimates of zooxanthellae densities obtained using decalcified corals and fixed area of sample tissue. Quantification of zooxanthellae densities in tissues of reef-building corals aids in the assessment of the extent and severity of coral bleaching.

Dominique is a student under Dr. Morgan Pratchett. She is an excellent researcher and has taught me so much about coral research. We recently went to Orpheus Island to collect some samples of Pocillopora damicornis and I will begin replicating her research. Orpheus Island is an island dedicated to research about coral. It is about 2 hours from Townsville and you have to take a 45 minute ferry to get there. I finally had a chance to drive on the wrong side of the road! It was strange and I kept on accidentally putting my windshield wipers on instead of my turning signal. It was a beautiful ride and the smell of sweet sugar cane burning filled the air as we drove to the ferry. Students live there for months at a time. Luckily I only stayed there for a few days while Dominique and I free dived and collected samples of coral. The reef was amazing. We were snorkeling with huge Manta Rays and dolphins. There were many kinds of reef fish and endless new coral reefs to look at. We lost track of time for a while and realized we were in the water for 3 hours. Collecting the samples was hard. We had to hold our breath and dive down to the bottom of the reef where Dominique tagged corals. It was about 8 or 9 feet. We then took a hammer and flat instrument and hammered off a branch. We then filled up the sample jars with sea water until we returned to the lab to put them in Formalin. Lab work will begin tomorrow and I will spend many endless hours counting cells under a microscope. Field work is so much more exciting. But research isn’t always exciting but always necessary and extremely important. This research will help broaden my horizon with reef research so I can bring it back to the classroom.

Welcome to Australia

2010-07-11T17:58:00.002+10:00

Welcome to Australia!

So we have finally landed! After 3 sleepless days on various planes and lugging baggage through immense airports, we find ourselves in the land of Oz. We still don’t know why it is called that just yet, by the way…