30 Days!

I realize it's been a while since I have updated those of you who read about my adventures here at KML. I've had a busy few weeks! I like to relate my experience here to a rollercoaster ride; some days are downhill (good days! :D) and some days are uphill (bad days! :[) And they fluctuate quite dramatically and about as unpredictable as Buffalo weather.

In the realm of Cassiopea:

I had a few pretty steep uphill days lets just put it that way. Its getting frustrating and disappointing to see them settle out nicely then in 3 or 4 days just die. All those beautiful polyps! I've tried and searched for what I'm doing wrong, consulted Mac, Bill Fitt, Adrienne, and others for help, getting good advice, suggestions and encouragement; all which is greatly appreciated and needed! As of now, I've been inoculating some for the past week or so and have a healthy population of A's, B's and Controls in the lab right now....looking forward (if all goes well and they live over the weekend) to putting them out at a site on Monday I think! Keep praying for those poopsies....the "poor unfortunate souls!" (aka: polyps!) see the resemblance? hehehe













I did successfully put some polyps out in the marina in the "Cassiopea nesting area" as I call it. They were aposymbiotic (no inoculations were made) and I had 4 different tubes that I put out on a cinderblock. This was simply to test to see if they would live in their natural environment versus the lab. I had them out for a whole week, and I checked up on them every day/every other day. And sampled bits of the leaf two times. I was disappointed through the experiment because it looked like from the samples I took that most were just dying. But on the final day when I collected them all 2 of the treatments had polyps on them! One of them (the one that lived the longest in the lab! it still died eventually though) had about 16 healthy looking polyps on the leaf too! I was ecstatic! I sampled them in EtOH and will be curious to see if they picked up any symbionts.














Shelby's Briarium have been doing really well; getting big and have progressed to the experimental set up where we no longer have to change 18 4L containers every other day, but now are in the set-up below and their needs include continually checking the temperature of the chiller and not letting it get to roasty toasty for the cute little polyps. You have to admit, they are ridiculous adorable--as far as polyps go of course!














This past week has been the best yet; despite one or two "uphill days" because my Mom came to visit me from Friday until Tuesday evening! It was a major spirit-booster and I had the greatest time with her here, and showing her what life is like for me at KML. I am sorry to say we didn't do much fun "Keys things" it was mostly lab work (what an awesome help my mom was! She was such a trooper; making up instant ocean, cleaning glassware, transferring polyps, and doing cell counts or whatever else I showed her how to do; all with a smile! I have the best Mom!)


I was thoroughly disappointed that she couldn't go out on the boat with us to get seawater because of insurance reasons or what not. She ended up going over to Long Key State Park and said she had a nice time, but I was very sad that she couldn't come with us. We went to Tennessee Reef and got to snorkel around by the old light structure for a while before collecting seawater further out (120ft deep water) I saw lots of Sargent Majors and thought I was taking some awesome pictures, but was bummed when I saw that my camera wasn't turned on...hahaha smart one. I saw a barracuda that I got a picture of at least.

I took her with me walking the beach for turtle nests, which was a lot of fun as always, although we didn't have any crawls or nests that morning. We went out to dinner twice which was really nice, and on her last day I took some time off and we went to Curry Hammock State Park where we snorkeled in the oh-so-thrilling seagrass beds and then took catnaps on the sandy beach. First time yet going to the beach after about 3 1/2 weeks of being here! hahaha It was really great. So, I was very sad to see her leave; all attempt to convince her to stay longer unfortunately didn't work out. But it has definitely been a highlight of my time here so far!


And on top of that, Cousins Claudia and Mark and Aunt Mary have come down from Ocala, FL and are staying in the Lime Tree Bay Resort just next door! They are here all week, so I'm doing my best to take some time and spend with them while they are here! It has been nice just to go over for sunset snorkels, a swim in their pool (non-salt water--how unusual!) or just hanging out. It's been great having them around, and I'm truly thankful that they want to include me in all their fun activities and also that they understand how important my work is too.

I cooked last week for "Fancy Dinner Night" we had Chris come over too, which was a fun addition to our Thursday! I am most impressed with my meal; Souvlaki on sticks, rice, Greek salad and tziziki sauce....all with complete email instruction from my Dad of course! Followed by a nice bottle of wine and hula hooping, we always look forward to Thursday nights!

Latest news: this morning's events included happy alive polyps horray! I checked out a few under the compound scope, and I saw that the A-treated polyps were infected! Horray again! That mean that I can put them out in the field as soon as I can! The dark green circles in the center are all Symbiodinium in the polyp body:

Also, a week and a half ago, Tommy at the Monterrey Bay Aquarium sent me some Cassiopea polyps....I have been trying to "bleach" them using an herbicide (DCMU) and darkness treatment, but today I found 2 polyps just about to strobilate! (bud off and ephyra--baby jellyfish at the top of the polyp) It's a bummer to know my "bleaching" strategy isn't working, but it's hard to be bummed too long when you look at these little guys!


I went and checked out the critters in the raceways; some other students here found some sea cucumbers and a seahorse. The sea cucumber is my new love. It is so mushy and soft....I want to take it home with me! oh my gosh, look at that: How can you say no to him!!?
Oh love.






Well, that's about it for now.... I'll try to do a better job in keeping you posted on the KML happenings so my entries aren't novel-length!

Week 3

I saw this license plate on a car in Key West....hahaha one of the best quotes from "Ghostbusters"

How on earth is it going on the 3rd week that I've been here? Time is going by fast but at the same time, the days are SO long and I cram a lot into one day!

So since I last posted a lot has been going on. Mac and Anke left on Thursday the 2nd, so I spent two rather lonely days at KML. But I was able to keep occupied by going to Key West on Friday with "The Lobster Girls. It was fun; a bit too much bar hopping for me, but nice to get out and about with some interesting people. hahaha I'll definitely have to go back and see what sights are there other than nice bars on Duvall St..... Down to business: I had several very very frustrating days where nothing seemed to be working. I spent so much time collecting eggs from the Cassiopea I have in raceway tanks here at KML; cleaning the eggs, keeping them in special antibiotic sea water for a good day or two, then transferring them through a mesh filter several times before putting them in a bowl of a special peptide inducer (Z-GPGGPA) with mangrove leaves. (just so you know, these mangrove leaves are collected from the marina water; I have to trudge in stinky egg-smelling muck up to my hips to gather the most degrading leaves possible. Its unbelievable how particular these larvae are about settling on the most rotting leaf!!) Then I wait. About a day or two later I'd see some larvae settling on the leaves! They look circular one day, then tubular with a small opening at the top, then...usually at this point I'd look at them the next morning under the scope and they look this fuzzy, sad disintegrated look. I have gone through literally BILLIONS of larvae. It has been the most defeated feeling to have nothing work. Thank goodness for talking on the phone to family, my friend here with me for support, emailing confidants who know this crazy system, my guitar and chocolate.
hahaha Well, I know. This is science. So,it's been a tough few weeks.












But I'm happy to say at least that (knock on wood, and keep those prayers coming!) I've been having some successful experiments lately!! It has definitely lifted my spirits! On top of that, I've found the Cassiopea nesting grounds by the marina! Shelby and I went out the other day and collected 3 jellyfish in buckets with a net. They were literally the size of dinner plates! I was so excited to find them....however, as I spend more and more time with the cassies, I find I am getting more sensitive to their sting. I end the day with a stinging rash, welts and unpleasantness all over, but especially on my arms where I have the most direct contact.


The neat thing about Cassiopea is that they really have their own unique personalities and colors. The 4 big ones I have collected vary in their colors from blueish-purple tentacles to greenish-brown, they are so beautiful. And certain females like me better....the one stings me as soon as I put my hand in the tank! I must confess something really terrible that happened today though....So I have the 4 that I have captured from the marina in a raceway tank. On one end there are water outputs pumping in water from the bay. On the other end is a pipe which drains it, so there is always a change of water in the tank. Its very handy. However, at the bottom is a drain with an opening. I noticed that the jellies kept migrating toward the draining area. I really didn't think much of it until I went out today and noticed there were 3, not 4 jellies...where did the other one go???! That's when I noticed the bits of tentacles and bell floating around the tank, and large parts of jellyfish that didn't quite get sucked down the drain....oh my gosh I felt so bad!!!! The opening is too small to suck down an entire jellyfish, but definitely bits of it..... I made sure I fixed the set-up so I won't lose any more of my study species.


Great news! I am now the proud co-owner of a bike! It has been great to get out at the end of the day just for a quick ride usually to Long Key Bridge and see all the locals fish off the bridge. I will admit, there definitely are some oddballs around here though.... This little license plate I put on the back of the bike. Shelby and I really couldn't resist.


Shelby's project is going really well....the larvae changes were all day tasks of individually picking out the larvae in18 4L containers....glad to say that is has gotten easier now that they've settled! Her set-up outside is also looking quite nice and getting ready. As we like to say: "It's looking very Science-y!"









On the fun side of fieldwork season, Thursday nights have been declared by Shelby and I as "Fancy Dinner Thursday." This week was Shelby's night to cook and we enjoyed an awesome dinner of Mahi mahi in mango salsa, couscous with veggies and a bottle of Cabernet. With a beautiful Keys sunset it was a perfect way to end one of our more stressful and rough days!

Shelby and I have entertained ourselves with hula hoops bought at the local K-Mart....I won't post pictures right now, but I must say, our skills at hoopin' are getting pretty impressive...we're rapidly running out of space on our patio to
perform our awesome tricks. More on this later!

Last night Shelby and I went "out and about" (other than Home Depot and Publix that is) and met old fellow UB Masters student Chris at Boondocks grille and bar! It was a 45min drive to Ramrod Key, but the two of them were game for going per my request as it is the only place in the FL Keys that has a putt-putt! hahaha. The food was great, the company awesome, and the miniature golf a lot of fun after a long week of working! Plus, it's always really nice to hang out with old friends!

Well, that's it for now.....keep thinkin' polyp settling and uptake of symbionts!

Peace out

Good news at KML!

Its been a beautiful last couple days here at KML....
The winds have picked up and there has been a small craft advisory out on the water, but the breeze makes it feel really nice.

Wednesday morning was turtle nest-hunting morning....no luck again.

However, I am happy to say that we have had some major successes in the settling of larvae!!!! A few days ago I found about 20 little polyps settling on a mangrove leaf in the little glass fingerbowl. In a day or so I found more and have been finding more each day! A bunch of them now have little tentacles and a mouth too! So the brine shrimp feeding begins.
So those of you who know me probably remember that in the past I have tried keeping sea monkeys and other types of artemia nauplii on several different occasions all with pretty miserable failures. I just want to let you know that I am a master at raising sea monkeys now.

Three days ago now (holy cow time flies when you're having fun!) Mac, Anke and I went out into the marina to go "jellyfish hunting" Despite having been out snorkeling around the marina a day ago for 2 hours without success, I was optimistic that we'd find one....and we did!! Mac and Anke found 3 females and I found a male! There was great rejoicing at KML and wine was opened that night in celebration. hahaha

So I have been able to gather lots of eggs from the females and get them to hatch into larvae and hopefully all settle! Keep up those prayers!



Other happenings include spending 2 days at Bill Fitt's home in Key Largo....that night I went with the undergraduate students to the Marine Mammal Conservancy where we volunteered to help rehabilitate 3 pilot whales that had been beached a few weeks ago down in Key West. They were in such bad shape that they couldn't float without help, so we literally stood in the water for 4 hours just holding up the whales! The volunteers recorded their respiratory rate (like many other marine mammals breathing is a conscious effort, so they had about 9 breaths per 5 minutes which is A LOT--the average is about 2!) and also their heart rate. It was an interesting experience and definitely eye opening and taught me a lot about the mammal side of marine biology vs. the invertebrate which is my primary focus. Lets just say it wasn't a bad experience at all--I mean, when else am I going to stand chest-deep in water until 1am holding up a pilot whale?! But it certainly was interesting! This was the only picture I could take, because they didn't allow cameras. This whale below is the one I held for several hours. It was a baby and healthier than the other two, so it was sick of being held. The only reason they kept holding it up was so it wouldn't swim around and bite the volunteers or try to play with the other two who were still in need of rehab. Soooo that made for one "teenage-behaved" pilot whale, who on several occasions tried to bite the supervisors and break free of our hold.... pilot whales are extremely powerful despite it being a baby!


As promised, I had quite the photo-shoot with the Cassiopea at Bill's. It was a lot of fun, but I realized that I have a slight reaction to their stinging! Little red welts that go away were found all over my hands and body since they release their toxin into the water column so it gets allllll over the body. hahaha Its not too bad though, I've been getting used to it!



The Briarium larvae have had a bit of a rocky going lately; they looked great now they are having a hard time settling and staying there...I changed all 4L containers and picked through all the little orange larvae yesterday and transferred them to new water containers...so hopefully they'll start getting better!

Out snorkeling the other day with "The Lobster Girls" (as Anke and I like to call the 3 girls from Clemson University that are studying the Spiny Lobsters) I saw a barracuda in the boat channel in the marina. It was murky and deep, and I felt like Arthur when he is a fish in the moat in the Disney movie "Sword in the Stone." That big fish that chases him around....well because the water was so murky I could barely see in front of me until I was up close and personal with this giant barracuda! It could have eaten me for sure. By the time I backed up enough to get a good picture, this is what I got...but I actually think its pretty funny. Look closely.


Mac and Anke left yesterday morning, so it's been quiet around here until Shelby comes tonight. Next post I promise to put up some pictures of the settling scyphistomae! You will be thrilled.

Keys Marine Laboratory!

Greeting from the sunny Florida Keys! I am working on my masters project at the Keys Marine Laboratory on Long Key, FL. I'm here from May 24th until July 12th working with the upside-down jellyfish Cassiopea xamachana. The plan is to collect larvae from adult jellyfish then to settle them on mangrove leaves in the lab and give them specific Symbiodinium algae cultures and see how their fitness differs between treatments. Then! I plan on putting them out at three sites here in the keys and see if they change what symbiont types they have.
That is the very brief an outline of my Masters thesis project in a nutshell haha

So, upon arriving here at KML me, my advisor Mac, and Anke our Post-doc have been very busy....between snorkeling around trying to find cassiopea, to collecting larvae from spawning Briarium corals, there is never a dull moment! After a long hot day at Craig Key collecting larvae (and of course snorkeling around and exploring the hard-bottom site!), and bringing them back to the lab where we stayed up until past midnight cleaning, sorting and transferring the larvae into fresh filtered sea water, we have had successful settling of Briarium polyps on old gorgonian branches!! It is quite an exciting feat to see them settle almost immediately after placing the branches in their buckets! Now, I can only hope the Cassiopea larvae settle the same....keep those fingers crossed!!!!

May 24th: Anke, Cindy and I went out at 6:30am to scan the beach looking for loggerhead turtle crawls and nests. It was a beautiful morning, we saw no new crawls, but checked out the nesting sites from a few days ago.
No luck finding any cassiopea in Grassy Key Quarry today. :/ They've seemed to have disappeared from KML....! of course as soon as I want to study them.... those tricky little jellyfish!

May 25th: We went out to Craig Key, (Ann's study site for Porites divaracata! we saw all her old samples there too.) to check out Briarium spawning...we're in luck! by the end of the day, we had buckets and buckets full of the pretty little orange larvae!

Mac and Anke collecting Briarium larvae
We got to snorkel around the site all afternoon too, which was great--

Craig key is a hardbottom site and only max 6ft deep, so there was lots to see!





This is Oreaster reticulatus the cushion sea star Cindy and I found Cyphoma gibbosum the Flamingo Tongue







This was quite the find, too! Its a Olgocephalus nastus, Shortnose batfish! We chased him around for a bit...he kind of swims and waddles. It was a funny site to see.


A pretty sunset at Bill's home


Successful Briarium settlement!





I'll keep you posted on the HOPEFUL success of my cassiopea settling...and also post a good picture of a mature cassiopea medusa because I just realized I haven't put one up yet. Ok, thats it for now!!