2011

  I really can't believe you're all gone!  This island is WAY TOO QUIET! When you all first arrived (in the rain and lightening) I was unsure what to expect, but I can tell you what I got - 20 of the most wonderful smiles I've ever seen and 20 of the sweetest and most polite young men I've ever met....

Today marked the beginning of the long awaited marine biology summer course! I have been looking forward to this class because of the trip to the British Virgin Islands ( which I will refer to as BVI) and to use this sweet ipad.. I hope to gain a deeper understanding of the internal body systems different organisms hold. I also...

Today we began by talking about our reading about virus's role in the ocean. We then discussed the biological zonation of the ocean and learned about the different zones and layers, most of which are labled according the amount of light present. We also talked about the role of plankton in the ocean. Plankton can be harmful, for example,...

Rise and shine, I was up and about at 6:30, or 5:30 Dallas time and met over at my good buddy Harrison's hut at around 6:50. We quietly made tea, and headed down the wifi lounge. After a chat and some light conversation with our teachers, we headed to meet the taxi so we could eat breakfast at the...

I want to learn about the coral reefs and how humans interact with them. I also want to learn about the organisms besides Humans that have an impact on the reefs. My favorite marine organism is the whale shark. I am excited to go diving in the British Virgin Islands because I have heard how beautiful it is. Alec Sims

Our first two days on the island have been incredible. Although I would love to give the credit and thanks for this amazing time we are having to myself, the real credit goes to the Dive BVI staff, Casey, Sam, Andrew, and Jeff. They have done an incredible job in planning our activities and meals. The guys are really...

Today is our last class day and we spent most of it discussing our two articles. The first of which we discussed the importance of the fish that can walk on land, specifically its importance in the evolutionary chain. Which we decided it was not relevant or important because it is similar to saying humans evolved from monkeys. It...

Today in class we discussed the different zones of the ocean and different types of plankton. First there are the benthic zones. The benthic zone consists of everything on the ocean floor. It is divided into sub zones: the Superalittoral, the littoral, the sublittoral and the deep ocean. The next zone is the palegic zone. This is composed of...

Today we discussed alternative strategies to protect and conserve coral reefs, ranging from managing coral grazers to using grouper fish to control expanding lion fish populations. The guys then broke up into groups to research the best method to reintroduce an endangered species into the ocean. They are competing with each of the other groups to see who can...