Today was a much needed day. We were all really tired and today was a very relaxed day. Today we helped Casey, our lead marine biologist. She had told us that we were capturing invertebrates. We didn’t capture any thing, pretty much Casey captured everything. We learned about arrow crabs, sea urchins, snails, and a fire worm that injects white needles with a toxin that can itch but for humans it stings as it enters our skin. We learned the different sizes and habitats of each creature. I also held a sea urchin in my hand and felt pressure from its little legs that gain nutrients and allow it to move. We then went to the office for a presentation on sea turtles. We had brief history on turtles and how they have been around for over 40 million years. When the big dinosaurs extinction happened, only seven sea turtle species survived, the same we have today. Some of which are leatherback and green turtles. Green turtles are very populous in the BVI. We found out interesting facts about how feeding them will only bring up the amount of fishermen kill in the open seasons. We also found out that people who dig up eggs 38 hours after laying is a good thing because that leaves space for the second waves of sea turtles that come in. And records show that it has stimulated the population growth. I learned that with sea turtles, proper management is key for success with a healthy population. But after the presentation, we went sea turtle tagging. That was really fun because we got to be dragged behind the boat. We didn’t catch any turtles but we saw lots, maybe next year. After that we had some free time and then ate dinner on the beach. Tonight we had all of the people who forgot things today dance with embarrassment as punishment. I was one of those people unfortunately. I pulled out a few moves though and it was all good. I’m anxious to work on our projects and present them.
