Field Assessments

For part of our job, we have to actually assess the coastal resources in our community. From a biological standpoint, this means mangroves, seagrasses, and coral reefs. Today we learned how to do a seagrass assessment (plop down a box and count, essentially), but I took the time to don a mask and snorkel. I went snorkeling once in Hawaii in 8th grade, but that's it. I'm not the most confident swimmer in the world, and so I was a little nervous about it. But it's AWESOME! We were in an area with only a couple little patches of coral, but I still saw a few clown fish (Nemo), a puffer fish, crazy urchins, and many other fish I recognize from the aquarium. Saturday we are learning how to assess coral reefs by slowly snorkeling behind a boat. I am sure there are going to be challenges, but honestly, my job seems pretty sweet. As soon as I can, I'm going to buy a mask, snorkel, and fins and make snorkeling a regular hobby of mine. Soon we're going to Apo Island and it's going to blow my mind.