First research project

So yesterday we started our conch assessment lab/project thing. This consists of us going into and out of the conch preserve and laying down a 30 m stretch of measuring tape. Then, one person looks at and records the substrate (whether it's sand, seagrass, or something else) while two people swim within 1.5 m of the tape and look for conch. If we find a live one, we put it on the tape to measure where it was, the length and we use calipers to measure the lip size. We do this 3 times (transects) in each area and each group did 3 areas in the reserve and 3 areas outside the reserve. When we write the lab up, we have to talk about whether we found more conch in the reserve or outside of it, why we think that is happening and stuff like that. Our group found many more conch outside the reserve and very few in the reserve which is not a good sign.

Last night I found out which research project I am on. I am doing an inventory of species in Bell Sound, a place where they are building several resorts. They currently have plans to dredge the area to make beaches and possibly an area for a cruise ship. It is our job to get a good idea of what's in the area and figure out what role everything plays. If we do a good enough job, we may be able to get the contractors to change or at least revise their plan (that's our goal).

I almost forgot probably the most important thing that I've done since I've been here........laundry!!!! I did my laundry yesterday for the first time. Three of us put a little bit of water in two buckets (one with soap, one without) and we washed our clothes in the soapy one and rinsed them in the other bucket, then hung our clothes to dry. Other than the fact that my clothes severely need fabric softener, they turned out pretty well.....I won't smell like a foot for a whole week!! I don't know if our method of doing laundry was legal (we used freshwater instead of saltwater) but having clothes that aren't gritty was a priority for me.

Other than those two things, nothing too exciting is going on. Take care everyone!

-michelle