"Commit to the Lord WHATEVER you do, and your plans will succeed." 

- Proverbs 16:3

"That's All Folks!"

The Beauty Around

Close your eyes and feel the cool breeze on your face as it twirls and dances through the air.

 

Let the sun’s warmth wash over you as the sun’s rays radiate around.

 

Hear the gulls cries as they swoop and soar in search of a meal.

 

Watch the boats slowly make their way through the blue river water.

Take a breath and enjoy the beauty around.

It is another glorious day of Spring!

"That's All Folks!"

Wrestling with Seals...

Today turned out to be a very cool day. I got to sleep in, then after getting up made my way over to the Marine Science Center. Once there I went to talk with the people at MARC about volunteering this weekend because the schedule hadn't been made yet.

Then I went to connect with Meagan, someone I'm helping out with research. I ended up working there for a couple of hours. I was looking at pictures of seal populations and numbering how many males, females, and pups were in each picture. I would enter the data into a spreadsheet and make note of things like: how many pups were with females, how many pups were without females, were there any dead pups, any harems(males and females together), was there any mating taking place, any pups nursing. Then I would have to mark that each seal was entered into the data sheet by putting a ^ next each on the picture. It was fun and I'll be doing more of that in coming weeks.

When 2:30 rolled around today I made by way back to the MSC for my first time working at MARC. (I was suppose to work there this past semester, but I had an afternoon shift that was always cancelled because the center was really slow.) Anyways, today I learned how to make the food trays for the 3 Harbor seal pups that we have in (there pupping season just started, so are starting to get them in). Then one of the workers showed me how to restrain the seal, so we are able to tube feed the pups. Tube feeding is required because the pups haven't learned how to feed on fish yet. Hence, we stick a tube down their throat [gently] and put formula into their stomachs. After seeing how to restrain the pups, I got to do it for the other two pups. The first time was a bit of a struggle. Her flippers kept coming out from under me, but eventually I got it restrained. The second one didn't take as long, but he did wiggle a LOT more. :D It was lots of fun and I get to work there all of Wednesday, Thursday afternoon, and Friday afternoon. Yippee!

"That's All Folks!"

Thar She Blows

One awesome about being in Ocean club is that we take fun trips every year. Last year we went to Mystic Aquarium in Connecticut and this year we went whale watching of the coast of Massachusetts. So much fun!!!! The day dawned a beautiful sunny and clear day (turned overcast later in the day). We took off from campus and traveled down to Gloucester, MA. We made it to the whale watching place safely, but with a few minor detours. :D

This was our boat!

Shortly after arriving we boarded and made our way to the top deck where I proceeded to take random pictures of the harbor. Gloucester is one of the oldest and largest fishing towns, so the harbor was filled with lots of different types of fishing boats...

After sitting for a little while and listening to a little intro from the naturalist aboard we were on our way...

Coast Guard to the rescue!!!

Lighthouse on Ten Pound Island

One of two castles of Gloucester.

The breakwater

The other castle

Then we were out of the Harbor and on our way to Stellwagon Marine Sanctuary. It is a very good place to find whales and other creatures because the fish are abundant, which makes it the perfect feeding ground. For an hour and half to two hours we journeyed the Atlantic ocean without spotting any whales. Despite that fact, it was still fun just feeling the wind on my face and seeing water all around me. And then....we arrived at the south end of the marine sanctuary. It was then we finally spotted the whales. There was 10-12 humpback whales and 3 minke whales feeding. It was so awesome seeing these magnificent creatures that God created.

There was even a mom, calf pair there. Some of the whales kept swimming under the boat and one humpback was really curious and kept surfacing next to the boat. We were even sprayed once with the water from the whales blowhole. lol. We spent over an hour watching these guys feed. One very awesome thing about the humpbacks is that they blow bubbles and create a ring of bubbles that capture fish and then feed in that circle. Another cool thing is that their side fins are white, but in the water they glow a greenish color. So when looking in the water, you can see these green glowing things moving through the water. :D

The start of feeding frenzy!

Look, it's waving HI!

If you look closely you can see the baleen.

The mom and calf pair. Abrasion is the calf's name.

The glowing green. :D

A blowhole.

Thar she blows!!!!!

This here is Wizard. The all white fluke it very rare in humpbacks.

Part of a ring of bubbles

Those are all pictures of the humpback whales. The minke ones weren't as close and are more shy. On the way back to shore we did see a couple more of humpbacks. Then we hit very thick fog. At one point it looked like we were in heaven because the sun was shining though the fog making it all very bright and awesome.  Once we reached the harbor, there was no more fog and the sun was shining with bright blue skies. Then looking back towards the ocean, it was all completely covered in fog. So cool!!!Unfortunately, I didn't get any pictures. Overall, I spent between 5 & 6 hours on the boat. :D

"That's All Folks!"