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BIOL232 Field Marine Ecology Student Blog Posts

Student blog posts from our spring break 2024 trip to Jamaica!

Friday, March 1

Maddy

Today we got to trek through the most wondrous cave system. It's said to have played a role in the war and the escape of one of Jamaica's presidents. It was also used as a concert area founded by the previous owners of the cave. We started by entering a large space which showed a stage, seating and a bar. We immediately were pointed to a group of bats huddled together in the ceiling crevice of the cave, then we were told that people with yellow helmets might be visited by attracted bats haha. We continued on over lit up pathways and small bridges and made our way to a middle ground which was outside, where we then entered a second part of the cave. There we saw a stairway which led down into a small body of limestone purified water. The guide said some organisms like fish and shrimp lived in the water but they were limited. Apparently there used to be boat tours but an incident occurred where the boat flipped during a power outage and a little girl lost her life which ceased the continuance of those tours. Lastly we went through some smaller holes and got to push our flexibility to its limits. Overall the tour was interesting, interactive and fun, I would definitely recommend it.

Isabelly

Due to the rain from the night before we weren’t able to snorkel this morning. Instead we worked on our assignment due for the class, which in my opinion worked out perfectly. My morning was spent collecting results from our recorded videos and putting them on a table for further use. As well as editing the video for our research. After hours spent on assignments, lunch time arrived. I’m beyond thankful for Auntie Precious, not only for providing us with delicious food but for going above and beyond to fit everyone’s pallet. After lunch, Caitlyn and I went back to the lab to collect specific footage to include in our video that we were missing. Our afternoon was filled with laughter, amusement and wisdom. We were able to explore the Green Grotto Cave. During the 17th century the English invaded Jamaica and the Spaniards used the cave as a hideout. Slaves also used the cave in order to escape, which is why you see signs throughout the visit indicating where the escape routes were. Later on the cave was used as a club, where people could party. They don’t use the cave as a club anymore due to the loud sounds that affected the bats living inside of them. A cool location inside the cave was the map of Jamaica, which was formed from coral replicating the Jamaican map. In conclusion, I learned a lot today, had fun, and completed a lot of work that I had to get done.

Jenna

I woke up and I couldn’t get up for breakfast… But still got ready for snorkeling however it got cancelled due to the heavy current and visibility. My group and I decided to work on our projects. We identified the rest of our species from the videos we took at the Boardwalk (DBML). We then ate a very good lunch. We got ready and we were off to the Green Grotto Caves! It was beautiful. We walked into the cave and all I see were tables and a bar… which was a little weird but the tour guide told us that they used to party there to get rid of the bats! Amazing right. We continued to walk and duck and ended up into a wishing well where we can make a wish by throwing a coin into a pool of water! We proceeded to walk down the stairs specifically 65. We were 40ft under! There was an amazing crystal blue lake and when it’s dark the lake mirrors the rocks that covers it! FUN FACT: James Bond filmed one of his movies there! We then had to go into a loop hold which was very small and not meant for tall people like me! We finished the tour by hitting the rock from the cave and our friend rapping to it. It was really funny! We all went to the gift shop and got our little souvenirs! We went back to the lab and got ready to play volleyball! We got ready for dinner and the food was so good!! At the end of dinner I finally got my blue mountain coffee apparently it’s supposed to be the best coffee ever! If you are in Jamaica BUY IT! We are getting ready to go watch a movie in the conference room with everyone! 

Thursday, February 29

Bria

With two days left on our trip, everyone is in full swing. Between snorkeling and working on our projects, we all stay busy. Personally, I spent my day identifying plant species around the campus. Throughout our stay we have developed great relationships with the staff and with each other. To finish our evening off today, we played volleyball with the staff and created more fun memories. With the trip coming to an end, we try to absorb each experience. I can speak for myself and my peers when I say we have enjoyed every part!

Caitlyn

Today our day started like any other with a yummy breakfast that consisted of toast, eggs and my favorite, the fruit. Then we discussed our agenda for the day ahead of us. Today was a stay at the Marine Lab day continuing working on our group projects. Maddy and I went snorkeling to get footage of our collected items while Isabelly was helping Dr. Woods with some plant identification. After Maddy and I collected our items we got Isabelly and all headed to the saltwater lab to conduct some experiments. Once we finished we got cleaned up for lunch. After lunch Isabelly and I sat going through the videos we had taken earlier that day renaming them and sorting them out. We created a table to help us organize our data and saved the needed videos. After that, I went back to my dorm and read my book while enjoying my view from my back patio. Soon I heard loud cheering and came outside to a very intense volleyball game between the staff and the students. We ended our day with dinner and our afternoon conference watching the videos from Dr. Woods and Dr. Lords night snorkeling. Can’t wait to see what we get to do tomorrow.

Wednesday, February 28

Kim

Today we started our morning with a delicious breakfast as usual, and then immediately got to work and prepped for our morning of snorkeling. So far, we have been mainly exploring, but today we began prioritizing gathering what we need for our experimental projects during our snorkeling session. Some groups had a lot more to do than others. My group and I snorkeled with the intention of gathering algae and dead coral from the boardwalk on our way back. Getting to start our experiment was a bit rocky, as we had to change what our plan was, but everything turned out okay as it always does. After lunch, we spent some time setting up tanks and placing our species in the tank along with the algae and coral, and first thing tomorrow we will be working on our actual experiment. After dinner, we begin to wind down and play with the adorable cats that roam the marine lab.

Ella

Over the past few days we have been in Jamaica we have been thinking of research projects to conduct. Today we got to go into the field and conduct our research. We started off our day by eating breakfast before we went out snorkeling. My group was fortunate enough to be able to go in the first round of snorkeling and the second round. In the first round of snorkeling we observed a new area known as the “trenches''. This area has underwater trenches where fish typically will go and hide. During our exploration of the trenches we saw numerous groups of parrotfish in the area as well as a pufferfish! The water was rough today and there was lots of wind which made it harder to see the species inhabiting the trenches. In the next snorkeling round we went to the outer reef. The conditions here were a lot rougher than the trenches but in a different aspect. Since we were by the outer reef waves were crashing on top of the reef which got over to the side we were on. It was hard to stay in control as you continuously got pushed back from where you wanted to be. At the reef we saw lots of other species of fish which was exciting since the visibility wasn’t the best at the trench. Thankfully, we were able to obtain the results we wanted for our project!

Tuesday, February 27

Jaden

This morning we woke up and left pretty early in the morning. We were headed off to Seville Heritage Park, which was our first stop on a busy day. Our tour guide began the tour by talking about the Taino people who lived on this land first before being wiped out by Christopher Columbus and Spanish settlers. I found it interesting, all of the tools that they used which were out on display for us, like stone knives, cannonballs, pots and pans. We also learned about all of the invaders that took over the land from the Taino and brought in enslaved people from Africa. The tour guide also said that at some point every nation has come to Jamaica. The tour was very informational and we all enjoyed it.

Janella

Afterwards, everyone wanted to try KFC because they heard the KFC out here had the best chicken, and I have to say it was pretty good. After a good meal we were headed off to Dunn's River Falls which everyone was excited for! As someone who had never heard of the place I would certainly recommend it to others! It was a great time and was also relevant to our study since there was algae. There was also a beach that we went to. Everything there was beautiful and everyone in our group was extremely helpful. To conclude, today was amazing and we can't wait for tomorrow!

Monday, February 26

Helaena

We start every day with a great breakfast; today I’d say the highlight was the French toast, tropical fruit and bacon. We were eager to get in the water with the sun shining and hearing about all the cool stuff people were finding like lobsters and sand dollars. We saw a stone fish and a beautiful lavender-colored sea fan. The conditions today were more rough than we were used to but it was definitely worth it! We have been able to see and experience once in a lifetime moments while developing long lasting relationships on this trip! I’m so excited to see and learn more over the next few days! 

Emilio

The day began with meeting up at the boardwalk to snorkel for our 3rd time, this time with more knowledge and intentions of looking for ideas for our projects. We snorkeled closer to the outer reef and saw different kinds of pufferfish, starfish, sea cucumbers, a sand dollar and the group who snorkeled before us even saw a lobster. Closer to the outer reef we noticed more and larger urchins and observed their spikes and how they point to whatever they think is going to attack them. The ocean was pushing us all over the place but this was still an enjoyable experience. 

Sunday, February 25

Grace

Today we snorkeled the coast from the boardwalk. We swam over lots of seagrass before getting to the reef. The was a ton of species diversity in the corals. We saw things including eels, parrotfish, tangs, pufferfish, sponges, worms, and plenty of urchins! One of the coolest things I stumbled across in the reef was a heart urchin (sea biscuit sand dollar). When we swam back to shore, we found multiple terrestrial hermit crabs and it was so cool to see them in their natural habitat!

Alayna

Today, the snorkeling groups were split up so that there were fewer people snorkeling around at once; while the first two groups went in the morning, the other groups stayed back. Logan, Grace, Helaena, and I followed the first group down to the beach to spend time searching through the tidepools. One fo the most interesting things found during that was some chitons. THen, later on we gathered to snorkel off theboardwalk. We actually went farther than the first group and got to see some awesome reef structures! Grace and I went off kind of on our own journey and found some interesting shells such as two big conchs and a sand dollar! The reef is like its own underground world and it has been really cool to see all of teh species together utilizing the reef for shelter and hiding places.

Saturday, February 24 - Day 1 & 2

Zanya

On Friday we left for our four-hour flight to Jamaica and the drive, TSA, and whole airport process wasn’t too bad. Upon landing in Jamaica the weather was perfect and getting through customs didn’t take too long. When finally arriving at the Discovery Bay Marine Lab we unpacked and were served dinner after orientation and a tour. The dinner was delicious with it consisting of fried chicken, steamed veggies, rice and beef. The next day everyone woke up bright and early to eat breakfast. I am a huge foodie so three meals a day is my type of vibe. We had eggs, toast, plantain, bacon and fried corn fritters. After breakfast we all suited up to go receive our gear and go snorkeling. We snorkeled for about an hour and grabbed lunch and went to get snacks. The past two days have been filled with scenic views and delicious food. I cannot wait to continue snorkeling and looking for different species in the water. There are also beautiful cats all around. 

Logan

Today we were awoken by the local vultures. The day was incredibly productive; the team and I learned how to snorkel! It was scary at first but I'm excited for tomorrow. The water was super sandy, so it was a tad difficult to observe the environment. We are beginning to discuss what our group projects will be. My group is thinking of observing the massive amount of coral that is at our fingertips. There was a lot going on today, but in the best way. This trip is helping me in getting over my own fears about the ocean and I cannot wait to see my growth as the trip continues!