Change of Plans!!
Thursday, May 16
The day started out very hectic. The girls and I attempted to wake up at five in the morning to ready ourselves for the adventures that laid ahead. We hit snooze several times before accepting the fact that it was time to wake up. However, that did not matter because today was the big day where I would go snorkeling along the coast of Isla San Jorge surrounded by sea lions. With excitement in my eyes and several anxious thoughts for the two and a half hour boat trip to this island, I rushed to put on my bathing suit. I'm not much of a coffee drinker but today I decided to start the day with some coffee and half a bagel. Unfortunately, the winds of Puerto Penasco decided that today was the day to produce strong winds, and therefore, the trip to Isla San Jorge, or Bird Island, was postponed. Instead of wasting the day, Dr. C readjusted the itinerary. The group and I traveled to a rocky intertidal area near the Playa. There was huge boulders that were covered in algae and barnacles. The algae was very slippery, and the barnacles created a sturdy foot holder but created some nasty cuts for some students. The tide pools were swarming with brittle stars, sun stars, and sea cucumbers. Interestingly enough, sun stars, brittle stars, and sea cucumbers are types of echinoderms. Echinoderms reproduce by broadcast spawning which means each creature releases their eggs and sperm in the water and hope that they find each other. Echinoderms are excellent healers and generate quickly. A starfish is the perfect example because they can lose one or two arms and still have the ability to regrow them. Although the day is to yet over with a few more lectures that will occur today, it was a beautiful day to explore the tide pools, get our feet a little wet, and sit on the deck.
The day started out very hectic. The girls and I attempted to wake up at five in the morning to ready ourselves for the adventures that laid ahead. We hit snooze several times before accepting the fact that it was time to wake up. However, that did not matter because today was the big day where I would go snorkeling along the coast of Isla San Jorge surrounded by sea lions. With excitement in my eyes and several anxious thoughts for the two and a half hour boat trip to this island, I rushed to put on my bathing suit. I'm not much of a coffee drinker but today I decided to start the day with some coffee and half a bagel. Unfortunately, the winds of Puerto Penasco decided that today was the day to produce strong winds, and therefore, the trip to Isla San Jorge, or Bird Island, was postponed. Instead of wasting the day, Dr. C readjusted the itinerary. The group and I traveled to a rocky intertidal area near the Playa. There was huge boulders that were covered in algae and barnacles. The algae was very slippery, and the barnacles created a sturdy foot holder but created some nasty cuts for some students. The tide pools were swarming with brittle stars, sun stars, and sea cucumbers. Interestingly enough, sun stars, brittle stars, and sea cucumbers are types of echinoderms. Echinoderms reproduce by broadcast spawning which means each creature releases their eggs and sperm in the water and hope that they find each other. Echinoderms are excellent healers and generate quickly. A starfish is the perfect example because they can lose one or two arms and still have the ability to regrow them. Although the day is to yet over with a few more lectures that will occur today, it was a beautiful day to explore the tide pools, get our feet a little wet, and sit on the deck.
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