Will Cormier '13

The last day in the BVI began with an exciting snorkel in Little Dix Bay. The purpose of the snorkel was to find turtles to tag. By tagging turtles, other marine programs around the world can track how far the turtles have come, their migratory patterns, and their population size. Our snorkel consisted of teams of 4 who would...

Although we didn't scuba dive today, it was just as fun and exciting. We began our day with a fulfilling morning of service in which we painted a wall and planted palm trees. It was hard work, and it was hot outside, but seeing the fully painted wall and newly planted trees was extremely satisfying and personally rewarding....

The majority of my fourth day on the BVI was spent on the Seadragon, and I have the sunburns to prove it. We had our breakfast at the marina again, and we headed out to Long Bay for coral transplants and harvesting. We began our venture with a lengthy snorkel to the shore from our boat. We looked for...

I spent the majority of the day on the Seadragon. We drove straight to the marina in the morning, and had breakfast on the boat while readying our scuba gear in preparation for our two tank dive around and in the RMS Rhone. The Rhone was a British ship that sank in 1867. I have never seen so much...

My second day on the BVI began rooster-less and beautiful. Hearing the beautiful songs of the tree birds, I got out of bed. After eating breakfast, Laura, a member of Dive BVI, shared her breadth of knowledge on the abundance of marine organisms that can be found on the BVI. Many intriguing facts in her presentation grabbed my...

It is a good feeling to wake up in the BVI. After only 5 hours of sleep, I was woken up by the harmonious songs of roosters. Although exhausted, I eagerly got out of bed to see the island in the daylight, and to face the challenges of the day. Everywhere you look you are surrounded by beauty. Our...

There were four articles that were presented by groups of students today. The first group that went was my group. I explained to the class the benefits of ecotourism, including the awareness and protection of endangered species that is developed from the increased economy of an area with ecotourism. Because ecotourism provides jobs and boosts the economy, federal bans...

The goatfish is a bottom feeding fish can be found in reefs and coral areas. The goatfish family contains 55 species, one being the spotted goatfish. It gets its name because, like goats, it will eat just about anything such as mollusks, worms, crustaceans, and other invertebrates. It has a pair of long barbs protruding from its face, which...

Today is a pretty good day to be in the marine biology class. We kicked off our second week of class with two student led article discussions. One was about climate change and the other was about whaling. They were both pretty good and pretty informative. I learned that climate change directly affects small organisms such as krill. When...