Search Results

On November 2nd, 2024, our head writer conducted an interview with Samantha-Lynn Martinez, a Marine Biologist, Naturalist, Videographer & Graphic Designer from Washington. Samantha-Lynn Martinez is currently a student at the University of Washington, & is working on her Bachelor’s Degree of Science. She is well known for her various design campaigns such as We Love You Puget Sound, numerous short films, & work with the NOAA & aboard the EV Nautilus. In today’s article, we ask her 26 intriguing questions, & get many incredible answers. Please note that all answers below have been edited for clarity, paraphrased, & are not necessarily reflections of the beliefs or teachings of our newsletter. With that being said, let us delve into the contents of the interview. The Contents Of The Interview Question No. 1: What sparked your interest in marine biology? I think my interest in marine biology started when I was very young, I grew up in the Philippines, & then moved to Seattle, Washington when I was about three or four, so I’ve always been near & around the ocean. I’ve always been very fascinated by the ocean, & knew it was somewhere I wanted to be. So much recreational joy comes from the water, such as going fishing, going swimming, & all that jazz, & I knew that working with the marine environment or animals is something that I wanted to do someday.  The Philippines is made up of about 7,000 islands, & so much of the economy is built on fishing industries & things that are related to the water. Similarly in Seattle, we have Pike Place Market is huge, & in their fish market, they are throwing the fish across the counters. Overall, the ocean has always been part of my life, & it’s been wonderful to see how that connects my two homes across the Pacific.  Question No. 2: Do you have a specific moment, person, or place that inspired you to pursue marine biology? Yeah! I think that growing up in Seattle, you find a lot of people working in the field of Marine Biology in many different ways. Honestly, I could pinpoint a lot of different people who have inspired me over the past few years. There is one show that I grew up watching called The Brain Scoop hosted by Emily Grassle, she’s an incredible science communicator. Seeing her YouTube videos come out has been incredibly influential to how I approach science communication nowadays, & I’ve been joking that it is my dream to become a miniature Emily Grassle or Bill Nye for marine biology. One of my other biggest sources of inspiration lately is Erin Rainey, a wildlife cinematographer. She works here in Washington & Alaska, & she’s incredible! She was a video engineer on the EV Nautilus before I even found out about the Deep-Sea Exploration aspect of Marine Biology, but that is another can of worms.  Question No. 3: Do you have a favorite marine animal or terrestrial animal?  That is an incredibly difficult question because I tend to become attached to certain species if I have a personal story involving them. If you’d asked me before this Summer I would have said Steller Sea Lions, as I worked with them on my internship in the Aleutian islands last year. That was a fantastic experience, I got to incorporate all of my previous knowledge into things, work on drone surveys & photo identification surveys, & work with the pups! They are so massive, & can weigh as much as a small car.  For a terrestrial animal, that would be very hard to choose because I have so many experiences & stories with terrestrial animals. Last summer, before I went back to school, I got to see many Grizzly Bears in Alaska, so I would say Grizzly Bears are very high on the list. Question No. 4: You have recently begun doing more work relating to birds, what interests you about birds & what is your favorite species? I’m very glad you brought that up, I’ve recently been having this sort of internal battle with myself as to whether or not I want to focus purely on Marine Biology or open myself up to other animals that I like, such as birds.  I love birds, growing up I had birds as pets & it was the coolest thing ever. I loved Rio as a child as well.  During the first year of my undergraduate degree, I was looking through my email list & saw that someone had emailed me about a project in the Biology department about Hummingbird Ecology. They needed someone to review footage of Hummingbirds in Columbia & design behavior charts based on them, & I joined them. I had to assign different behaviors to them depending on what they were doing & figure out the intervals that they would do them.  It was very interesting to see how video technology was used in that project especially, & I got to work with an amazing graduate student friend of mine, Alyssa Sargent. She helped me figure out which path I wanted to take, & made me realize I didn’t have to choose one option. Question No. 5: What attracts you to science communication, & what is your philosophy regarding science communication? Bill Nye & Emily Grassle certainly helped push me toward Science Communication. I loved how they made others feel comfortable being curious, & encouraged it.  On the EV Nautilus, the vessel I returned from not very long ago, they livestream ROV dives all the time & have everyone wear Microphones so you can hear their live reactions.  My big philosophy when it comes to science communication is to make people unafraid to ask questions because sometimes science can feel very gate-keep-y. It can feel incredibly intimidating to ask a question to a group of people who have all the answers, & almost like they don’t want you to ask the question. At the end of the day, it’s that kind of curiosity that keeps the momentum going in the world of science.  In any way shape or form, I’ve tried to continue doing science communication through media & technology.  Question No. 6: How did you end up studying at the University of Washington? It’s kind of a funny story. When I moved from the Philippines to the United States, my parents would host a lot of international exchange students who would go to the university. So we would spend every weekend doing touristy things around Seattle with a new student that my parents were hosting for the quarter, & take them to the university, so the university has kind of always been in my life. It was just chance & luck that the University happened to be one of the focal points for marine biology, & happened to have an immense amount of resources & wealth of knowledge.  I’m very in my element here, & it is fantastic to be conducting research in what is basically my backyard! It is also sort of the perfect place for me, as it is so close to home.  Question No. 7: How did you get involved in the eco-physics laboratory at the University of Washington & are you currently conducting research? The Eco-Physics laboratory was the laboratory with the Hummingbird Ecology Research! As mentioned before, I worked with them in my first year as an undergraduate, & am still working with them as well as Alyssa on some more hummingbird research.  Question No. 8: What is your involvement in the University of Washington Annual Aquatic Open House Event, & how do you contribute to the event? We hold the Aquatic Open House Event Annually with the School of Aquatic & Fisheries Sciences. It’s wonderful to be working with this university & school because they are very outwardly encouraging of both formal & informal education about marine biology.  We organize a bunch of laboratories to have small workstations or tables at the event, & it is a community event. Some will organize small fake tide pools, while others will bring in miniature ROVs. One of my favorite parts about it is doing the chalk work on the South Campus, we need to lay the groundwork for where the check-in point is, & where the various stations are. I also do large chalk drawings, & draw these massive portraits of marine animals. Many children & their families come to the event & explore the world of aquatic & marine sciences.  I came here as a high-schooler, & remember it very well. Ultimately, it does have a very big impact on some people’s lives & it is a very special thing to be a part of. Question No. 9: What did you do in your role aboard the recent August-September EV Nautilus Mission in Samoa? How were you selected, & what was a day in the program like?   I recently came back from an expedition in American Samoa - which if you're unfamiliar with that imagine the intersection between New Zealand & Hawaii. It was a very fun & fulfilling expedition, & a massive full-circle moment for me. I remember watching live streams from the EV Nautilus as a teenager, & thinking about how interesting of a job that would be.  One of my close friends informed me of the opening of a Deep Sea Video Operator position on board, & told me that I should apply for it. So I did! I spent the most amazing magical 5 weeks out at sea. I got to work with some of the coolest scientists, & work with cutting-edge technology. It was very enjoyable to be a part of that. A day on board was very interesting because occasionally you don’t even know what day it is due to the shift changes.  The boat was operational 24 hours a day, & each crew member would have 4 hours of working, then 8 hours off, then 4 hours working, then 8 hours off again. So for me, my day would begin just before noon! I would wake up at around 11:30, which is Lunchtime for everyone on board. After waking up, I would get ready & into some warm comfortable clothing, because by the time noon hits, I have to start my day as a Deep Sea Video Operator. At around noon, I would trot up to our control room, & check on the ROVs, which stands for Remotely Operated Vehicles. I am not physically in any of the vehicles, however I am operating them from the control room. I like to say that it is like a video game! I control the direction that the camera is pointed in, the amount of light that is fed through the camera, & almost every aspect of the vehicle. It’s very tedious, almost like you are DJing. I would be in that chair from Noon to 4:00 PM, then do a shift change, & pass over responsibilities to the person relieving me.  Once I come out of the control room, I usually get a snack or socialize, then occupy myself until dinnertime. At dinner, I will chow down very quickly, then go up to the control van & relieve the new person of their duties so they can also have dinner. Question No. 10: How did you become an intern for the NOAA Marine Mammal Laboratory?  I got to do the internship through this very cool partnership between the NOAA’s Alaska Department Of Fisheries Science Center & the University of Washington. The internship was explicitly only offered to University of Washington Students. Some internships are blasted out to people across the world, which can make the application process feel very scary, however with this, it felt a lot less intimidating. It was a phenomenal time, it was my first time properly going out on a research vessel. It was interesting to learn how to deal with the challenges of being in a remote research station, & dealing with things such as lack of wifi, & only being surrounded by my science crew. I was surrounded by some of the most beautiful wildlife ever. It was amazing to really through myself into the deep end, literally.  Very few people are in that area other than researchers or commercial fishermen. Question No. 11: What did you do in your capacity as an intern with the NOAA? I worked on drone surveys, photo identification, & on a research vessel studying Steller Sea Lions. Question No. 12: How did you begin Puget Sound Live!, & who are your collaborators? What exactly does the project do & what are its goals? It’s funny that you mention that, because Puget Sound Live was an attempt at doing what the EV Nautilus Does, however at a much smaller scale, & in Washington. It was started by me & a very awesome friend of mine, Drew Collins. He is a marine scientist as well as an underwater photographer native to Washington. He reached out to me just before I had graduated High School, & pitched me the idea for the project. Puget Sound Live has divers, such as Drew, dive into Puget Sound while having a microphone, & being live-streamed while they do so. I was the person top side, who was in the boat. I managed the live streams & interactions between the audience & the divers. Question No. 13: What was your appearance on HiHo’s Children Meet a marine biologist episode, do you mind explaining what you did? Yeah! So recently HiHo Kids had an open call for someone who was a marine biologist in the Seattle Area.  One of my close colleagues who I had worked with at the Seattle Aquarium told me about the opening, & told me that I should apply. Originally one of my other friends wanted to do this, however, his schedule did not align unfortunately. So he shuttled all the information over to me, & I applied! It honestly feels like a fever dream now, I was originally worried that they would want someone more established in their career.  I didn’t hear back from the production company for a few months, however, eventually, they called me & said that they wanted to have me as the main host for the episode. I got permission to borrow some specimens from the Burke Museum, wrapped them in Bubble Wrap, & headed down to the studio for a day & taught these children about fish!  Question No. 14: What would you say was one of the largest struggles or hurdles that you have encountered in your career? That is a great question, I would say managing my time & learning to not over-commit myself. Our Field of work is so spontaneous & so much of the work is seasonal, that when you have multiple positions that you wish to have at once, you have to learn to not overcommit yourself.  This past spring I was at a field station for marine biology for 10 weeks, where I ate, slept, & breathed marine biology for my entire day. I went into it thinking that I could keep up my other outside commitments, however I was extremely wrong. I hurt myself, & many of my big network relationships. That is something that still haunts me. The moment that I realized that I was not fine, & that I did need help, hit me like a truck.  Question No. 15: What would you say is the most difficult thing for new marine biologists or marine ecologists? I think that in the first few years, you have to learn to overcome your imposter syndrome about getting into the industry. Tell yourself that you are fully capable of achieving your goals, & give yourself grace. Additionally, It is alright for your life plan to change from quarter to quarter or semester to semester, as you are still learning & figuring your career out!  Also, Sometimes you have to be the first one to take a jab at things, even if there is no application for something, consider shooting a cold email.  Question No. 16: What is your favorite kind of camera to use underwater? I use a Sony A7 as my primary camera, I’m trying to get underwater housing for it. It’s mildly annoying that if you don’t set things up properly, saltwater can flood your camera & destroy it.  Question No. 17: What attracts you to photography & videography? I think that it is just the fact that videography & photography is the most authentic way to capture the world. It is an incredibly important tool for science communication & showcases what is going on in real-time in the world around you. It is something that can make people interested in what you are doing like you can take a mushroom & make it look like the most beautiful glorious thing ever.  It’s a wonderful tool if you know how to balance the aesthetics & creative side of things, with the education & recording aspect.  Question No. 18: What is your favorite photograph that you have taken, & what is your favorite kind of animal to photograph? Honestly, I don’t know if I have a favorite photograph. When I took my camera up to the Aleutian Islands last summer, there were so many opportunities to film. I got to film a stellar sea lion & her pup, & just watch them interact for a long time. I believe one of them is on the front page of my website.  I also love photographing birds, especially hummingbirds. They are a very easy photo subject as they are everywhere, & they are very mobile. In terms of what my favorite animals to photograph are, birds are a very, very close second. Question No. 19: What was your inspiration for your short film “Behind The Waves: The Importance of Plankton”, & how did you make it?  I made Behind The Waves towards the end of my high school career, while volunteering at the Seattle Aquarium. My boss suggested that we do a 24-hour youth-a-thon in which anyone from around the world could contribute an hour’s worth of oceanic content, & they offered us a spot to contribute an hour’s length film.  So I & the other youth volunteers at the aquarium teamed up to make an hour-long film about the Importance of Plankton, & roped in a ton of educational elements. The cool thing about the film is that we did all of it, shot, edited, & published the film within two weeks. That includes recording time, animating parts of it, voiceovers, practically everything. Question No. 20: What is your latest film project?  I’m working on this Hummingbird research Documentary, the filming for it will take place in Columbia & filming will ideally begin in August 2025. There are talks of getting these expensive slow-motion cameras down there to capture these fast-paced animals in a new light. That is the big project that I am working on now.  The running title for it is “Hummingbird’s Eye View”, & there is going to be a lot of cool research equipment that we plan to test next summer. Apart from that, we want to focus on the scientists themselves working in their home base of Colombia. We want to show you that they are people too, & we want to show their stories. We want to tell stories about their families, & how they got involved in science. Scientists are people you know, we don’t just crunch numbers all day.  Question No. 21: How did you become interested in design & how did you begin doing graphic design commissions? I started designing these silly little club logos when I was in High School because there were a lot of clubs. Many wanted to create Instagram Accounts or have flyers, & on a whim, I thought “Hey, I like drawing”, & began designing things. Slowly my friends started picking up on it, & at first, I gave away designs for free, until many people were reaching out for custom designs. That slowly began to progress into legitimate commissions. During my first year of college, I jokingly brought in this pack of stickers that I had designed because we were doing a show & tell to a group of second graders, & everybody loved it.  My professor of that class, which was a class based around Science Communication, told me that one of the observatories that he was working with was turning 50 that year, & they wanted some sticker & merchandise designs for it. That was my first very large commission where I was being paid by a large organization. So that got me thinking, “What if I offered this as a service?”, & I started taking myself a little bit more seriously.  Question No. 22: How many commissions have you done, & what was the largest commission you have ever done? That’s a really good question because I don’t keep track of it well! I have probably worked on more projects than I can recall, from sticker designs to logos, & even branding packages. I honestly have no idea, however, I’m sure that it is an exponential amount. I think my biggest long-term project & is also my favorite project due to the personal connection that I have with it. One of my good old friends, Natalie, from way back in Middle School & Early High School had a YouTube channel that she started back then. She stuck with it through high school, & committed herself to it. She made these awesome cinematic short films about her life & her own coming-of-age story. We fell out of contact for a little while, until my first semester of college she contacted me. She told me that she was doing this short film series about renovating a vintage camper van & traveling across the country, & asked for my help on it. I absolutely wanted to, so she commissioned me to do the animations & merchandise for her short series.  It was one of the most meaningful projects that I have ever done because I met so many other amazing talented filmmakers & small business owners who were only 1 to 2 years older than me. It kind of burst open this whole community of YouTubers & people in the short film industry, & I’ve been super-close to many of them to this day. I’m actually meeting up with a few of them in December for my Birthday! It took nine months all said & done.  Question No. 23: What was the Puget Sound: We Love You campaign that you designed? So during the COVID-19 Pandemic, all the aquariums closed & we couldn’t do in-person stuff anymore. But that left a lot of people, including me, who were very used to in-person science communication, kind of lost. We were all wondering, “How do we continue the thing that we love now that there is COVID?”. The Aquarium pitched an idea to the Youth of the Aquarium to reactivate their Instagram Account, as it hadn’t been active for a few years. So, Puget Sound We Love You is kind of the Aquarium’s way of reintroducing us to Science Communication, & allowing us to explore things that we wouldn’t get to in an in-person setting. You are actually quite limited when it comes to in-person things, because who can come to our events? People who live nearby, have the means to get to us, & can afford a ticket. In doing Puget Sound We Love You, we opened the door for so many more people to interact with us. I ran Puget Sound We Love You with a team of 5 others for the first year, and then for the second year, I came back in a senior position.  Question No. 24: Do you have any final words or things to say about photography, design, science communication, or the ocean? Truly listen to what makes you tick about Science Communication, or whatever field gets you excited. Also, advocate for yourself, no matter where you are in your career.  Directories / Credits https://samanthalynnmartinez.com/ Strategic Partnerships  Reel Guppy Outdoors SharkedSkooler Marine Enthusiasts Podcast StemScribe Our Loyal Patrons P. R. Ochoa

The Documented History Of The Isle Of Pines, New Caledonia, French Territory Today’s article will discuss the history of the Isle Of Pines, belonging to the French territory of New Caledonia. New Caledonia, is in the South Pacific just north of Brisbane, Australia. It is south of the country of Vanuatu, with its capital being “Noumea”. The Isle of Pines is south of mainland New Caledonia, & it has an approximate population of 2,000. It is approximately 26.91 nautical miles (30.967475 miles or 49.83732 kilometers) from mainland New Caledonia, 793.87 nautical miles (913.56928 miles or 1470.24724 kilometers) from Australia, & 3,784.67 nautical miles (4355.3204536 miles or 7009.20884 kilometers) from the mainland country of Malaysia. The island is famed for its beautiful coral reefs as it is surrounded by the New Caledonian Barrier Reef. It is also known for its beautiful forests of pine trees which contrast with the sea to make a beautiful landscape, which is the reason for its name. It is located in the commune of L'Île-des-Pins, which encompasses many islands, with The Isle of Pines being the largest. This Island has many interesting land, & marine flora, mainly due to its proximity to the New Caledonian Barrier Reef. Not only that, but the island has lush mangroves that directly connect lagoons & forests. The History Of The Isle Of Pines New Caledonia, French Territory Before Colonization By The French   History From 1500 B.C  There is evidence that the Lapita people either inhabited the island or were passing by in the year 1500 B.C. Evidence of their extremely distinct pottery style was found where nearby where the modern-day city of Vao. During the Lapita’s rule over the island, many migrants came from various other islands, & caused a diverse mix of cultures, thus giving birth to the Kanak Culture, as well as a few others. The Kanak are the most predominant modern ethnic group in New Caledonia to date. The Kanak Indigenous Peoples Culture has roots in the Lapita culture, however, it differs greatly from it. These Kanak people occupied the islands until the French government arrived on the island.  After Being Discovered By The French History From The 1700’s In the year 1774, Captain James Cook, the famed hydrographer, on his second voyage, went past the island & noted it down in his ship logs. He named it the “Isle of Pines”, as the most prominent feature of the island from afar is the large forest of pine trees, that contrast with the coast. He did not go ashore on the island himself, but he did see smoke coming from the island, so he rightly presumed that it was inhabited. This island would not be revisited until the 1800’s. After Colonization By The French   History From The 1800’s In the mid-1840s, Protestant & Catholic Missionaries arrived, in search of Sandalwood. This was a major selling point of the island, as Sandalwood can be used to make beautiful fragrances, as well as tables & such. In the year 1853, the French annexed the island, & it officially became French soil. In the year 1872, the island was officially turned into a Penal Colony, & at its peak had approximately 3,000 deportees.  History From The 1900’s  We unfortunately cannot find anything of major interest that happened in this century.  The Aboriginals Of The Isle Of Pines The Kanak Indigenous Peoples Of New Caledonia The Kanak Indigenous Peoples are the main ethnic group of New Caledonia. Currently, there are approximately 105,000 Kanak people or 41.2% of the total population. They originate from the Lapita, & various Polynesian migrants who came in during the early B.C. era. Currently, there are approximately 28 distinct languages spoken by the Kanak Indigenous Populations of New Caledonia. These languages are primarily spoken, & not written down usually. Unfortunately, at this time, there is extremely little information available about the Kanak culture. The Most Destructive Man-Caused & Natural Disasters To Affect The Isle Of Pines Disaster No. 1: Tropical Cyclone Erica  Tropical Cyclone Erica lasted from the 1st of March, 2003, to the 17th of March, 2003. The Cyclone peaked on March 12th, 2003. The island first made landfall in the Municipality of Iles Des Pins, close by to the Isle of Pines. It caused 2 fatalities, & left approximately 1,000 people without a home. It is estimated that during the storm, it left approximately 60% of the people on the western coast of Grand Terre without electricity. The highest wind speeds sustained for 1 minute were 240 kilometers per hour (149.129 miles per hour). The Cyclone mainly affected New Caledonia, The Solomon Islands, & Papua New Guinea. It left approximately 15 million dollars in damages.  Disaster No. 2: The Zika Virus Outbreaks Of 2013 to 2014 During the year 2013, the Zika Virus came from mainland Asia & infected New Caledonia, as well as the rest of French Polynesia. The outbreak lasted from approximately October of 2013 To April of 2014. In total, there were approximately 30,000 cases of the Zika virus in French Polynesia, although unfortunately, we were unable to determine how many of these cases were in New Caledonia. Additionally, only 8,477 cases were confirmed, so the numbers are not verified. The Zika virus is transmitted through the bite of a mosquito or transfusion of blood. It can also be transmitted through having sexual relations, or from a mother to her child while pregnant, which has been linked to birth defects. Once transferred the victim may experience eye redness, vomiting, skin rashes, conjunctivitis, joint pain, & headaches. It can on rare occasions cause muscle paralysis, & extremely rarely, death. Symptoms usually appear after 3-14 days, but those who contract this disease don’t always get symptoms. It can evolve into Guillain-Barré syndrome, which causes your immune system to attack your nervous system, although this usually happens with pregnant women & their babies.  The Economic State Of The Isle Of Pines Overall, the economic state of the Isle is decent. Unfortunately, there is extremely little data on the economic state of the Isle Of Pines. For this reason, we cannot properly evaluate the state of the economy on the Isle of Pines.  Directories / Credits Citation 1: “The Island’s History”, Written by Unknown & Published at an Unknown Date. Published by The Isle Of Pines. Retrieval Date: July 15th, of 2023. https://www.isle-of-pines.com/history.html Citation 2: “The History Of The Zika Virus” Written by Unknown, Published on February 7th, 2016. Published by the World Health Organization. Retrieval Date: July 15th, of 2023. https://www.who.int/news-room/feature-stories/detail/the-history-of-zika-virus Citation 3: “Zika Disease Infection Outbreak, French Polynesia”, Written by Unknown & Published on February 14th, 2014. Published by the European Center For Disease Prevention & Control. Retrieval Date: July 15th, of 2023. https://www.ecdc.europa.eu/sites/default/files/media/en/publications/Publications/Zika-virus-French-Polynesia-rapid-risk-assessment.pdf Citation: “Transmission Dynamics of Zika Virus in Island Populations: A Modelling Analysis of the 2013–14 French Polynesia Outbreak” Written By Adam J. Kuchaski, Sebastian Funk, Rosalind M. Eggo, Henri-Pierre Mallet, W. John Edmunds, & Eric J. Nilles, Published Presumably after 2014. Published by the Public Library of Science. Retrieval Date: July 15th, of 2023. https://journals.plos.org/plosntds/article?id=10.1371/journal.pntd . Citation 5: “Discover The Island Of Pines”, Written By Unknown, & Published on March 1st, Of 2018. Published by the My New Caledonia. Retrieval Date: July 15th, of 2023. https://www.mynewcaledonia.com.au/discover-isle-pines/ Strategic Partnerships Reel Guppy Outdoors Our Loyal Patrons Ms. Paloma Rodriguez Ochoa

Marine Biological Hall Of Distinction:  Melissa Cristina Marquez  This article is a part of our collection known as the Marine Hall Of Distinction. It is a different series from our main monthly series & has no connection to the main monthly series. In this special collection, we will discuss marine biologists who we feel have served marine biology & oceanography the most. We do this in order to commemorate these marine biologists & to show gratitude for everything they have contributed to our oceans. This collection has no relation to the main monthly series. This series is published on the 25th of every month, shortly after our article on the oceanic environment of a certain region on the 20th.  Today’s marine biologist is the astounding Melissa Cristina Marquez. Melissa Cristina Marquez is a Puerto Rican Marine Biologist, Children’s Book Author, Science Communicator, & Podcast Host. She is well known for her book series “Wild Survival!”, her podcast named ConCiencia Azul, & her impactful scientific work.  As of 2024, she has 5 published books, almost all of which are fiction & involve the ocean or wildlife. One of her most popular books, Mother of Sharks, follows her personal journey from a child who loved the ocean in Puerto Rico to a groundbreaking oceanic researcher in Australia. For this, she has earned the moniker “Mother of Sharks”.  As a Hispanic Marine Biologist, she wishes to promote intersectionality in science, & inspire people from all different backgrounds. One of her core principles is that quote “…All women of all backgrounds should have the freedom to live their lives as they choose.”  In this article, we are going to delve into the Formative Years & of Melissa Cristina Marquez, The Career of Melissa Cristina Marquez, & the Honorables, Awards, Accomplishments, & Achievements of Melissa Cristina Marquez. With that being said, let us delve into this magnificent shark biologist.  The Formative Years & Education Of Melissa Cristina Marquez  Melissa Cristina Marques was born in 1993, in Puerto Rico. Even as a child, she always has a fascination & enthusiasm for the ocean. Her passion for marine biology was sparked by watching documentaries about Sharks as a child, especially documentaries during Shark Week. Her childhood inspirations include Sylvia Earle, Eugenie Clark, & most strongly, David Attenborough.  She attended the New College of Florida for her Bachelor’s degree & the Victoria University of Wellington in New Zealand for her Master’s Degree. As of 2024, she is at Curtin University, pursuing her Ph.D., & conducting research on Elasmobranches. The Career Of Melissa Cristina Marquez  In 2014, Marquez self-published her first book titled “Sharks, Skates, & Rays of Sarasota Bay, Florida”, which discussed the Chondrichthyans of Sarasota Bay.  While filming an episode for Shark Week, she was unfortunately attacked by a Shark. It seems that she has recovered, & didn’t sustain any critical injuries.  In 2021, she published the first 2 books in her Wild Survival Series, with the first book being titled “Crocodile Rescue”, & the second being titled “Swimming With Sharks”. The same year she visited Perth, Australia, to give a Ted Talk about Sharks & Female Scientists. This speech can be found on the official Ted Talk YouTube channel.  She added the third installment to the Wild Survival series in 2022, & has yet to add any more books. Her most famous book, Mother of Sharks, was published in 2023, chronicling her journey from a child who loved the ocean to a marine biologist.  Her latest book, Sea Of Constellations, was published in 2024, & is a picture book that follows a young girl Maren & her whale Shark friend embarking on a quest to bring light back to the ocean. As of 2024, she is working on research about Elasmobranches in Sydney, Australia. She is also co-hosting the podcast ConCiencia Azul, which is a podcast that interviews Spanish & Hispanic scientists about marine life, & the unique struggles of various Hispanic countries.  Her contributions to marine biology are immense, & continue to be relevant as well as impactful. She frequently publishes short ocean-oriented videos or posts on her social media platforms, most of which can be found at “@melissacristinamarquez”. The Honorables, Awards, Achievements, & Accomplishments Of Melissa Cristina Marquez She has a fiction book series involving marine animals & terrestrial animals called “Wild Survival!”, with 3 books currently. These books are, in order of publication “Crocodile Rescue (Wild Survival #1)”, “Chasing Jaguars (Wild Survival #2)”, & “Swimming With Sharks (Wild Survival #3). She has published 2 other stand-alone books, both being fiction & involving the ocean.  She is an active contributor to Forbes in the Science sector.  She gave the TED Talk “Sharks & Female Scientists: More Alike Then You Think”, at the Perth Ted x Youth conference in 2021.  She created a series of lessons known as the Fins United Initiative Lesson Plans, with the goal of increasing knowledge & interest in Chondrichthyans. Directories / Credits Citation No. 1: “Meet Melissa Marquez, a shark scientist passionate about the diverse representation of sharks, their relatives, and the scientists that study them!”, Written by Melissa Marquez, & Published on June 27th, 2017. Published by The Female Scientist Magazine. Retrieval Date: September 9th, 2024. https://thefemalescientist.com/portrait/melissa-marquez/1048/meet-melissa-marquez-a-shark-scientist-passionate-about-the-diverse-representation-of-sharks-their-relatives-and-the-scientists-that-study-them/ Citation No. 2:  “Melissa Cristina Marquez: Marine Biologist & Shark Expert”, Written by Unknown, & Published at an Unknown Date. Published by Ted & Kingspark. Retrieval Date: September 9th, 2024. https://tedxkingspark.org/person/melissa-cristina-marquez/ Citation No. 3: “Melissa Cristina Marquez”, Written by Unknown & Published at an Unknown Date. Published by Homeward Bound Projects. Retrieval Date: September 9th, 2024. https://homewardboundprojects.com.au/profile/melissa-cristina-marquez/ Citation No. 4: “Author Feature: Melissa Cristina Marquez”, Written by Isabel Rodriguez, & Published at an Unknown Date. Published by FEMINIST. Retrieval Date: September 9th, 2024. https://www.feminists.co/discover/author-feature-melissa-cristina-mrquez Citation No. 5: “Melissa Marquez”, Written by Unknown & Published at an Unknown Date. Published by the Australian Academy of Science. Retrieval Date: September 9th, 2024. https://www.stemwomen.org.au/profile/melissa-marquez Citation No. 6: “Melissa Cristina Marquez”, Written by Unknown, & Published at an Unknown Date. Published by Forbes. Retrieval Date: September 9th, 2024. https://www.forbes.com/sites/melissacristinamarquez/ Citation No. 7: “Meet the Shark-a-holic: Melissa Cristina Marquez”, Written by Poornima Peiris, & Published on July 12th, 2018. Published by the Scientista Foundation. Retrieval Date: September 9th, 2024. http://www.scientistafoundation.com/women-in-science-news/meet-the-shark-a-holic-melissa-cristina-marquez Strategic Partnerships Reel Guppy Outdoors SharkedSkooler Marine Enthusiasts Podcast StemScribe Our Loyal Patrons  Ms. Paloma Rodriguez Ochoa

The Oceans Surrounding The Isle Of Pines, New Caledonia, French Territory  Today's Article will discuss the Oceans Surrounding The Isle of Pines, New Caledonia. New Caledonia, is in the South Pacific just north of Brisbane, Australia. It is south of the country of Vanuatu, with its capital being “Noumea”. The Isle of Pines is south of mainland New Caledonia, & it has an approximate population of 2,000. It is approximately 26.91 nautical miles (30.967475 miles or 49.83732 kilometers) from mainland New Caledonia, 793.87 nautical miles (913.56928 miles or 1470.24724 kilometers) from Australia, & 3,784.67 nautical miles (4355.3204536 miles or 7009.20884 kilometers) from the mainland country of Malaysia. Malaysia seems to be the closest mainland country to this island.  The island is famed for its beautiful coral reefs as it is surrounded by the New Caledonian Barrier Reef, as well as its excellent hiking trails. It is also known for its beautiful forests of pine trees which contrast with the sea to make a beautiful landscape, which is the reason for its name. It is located in the commune of L'Île-des-Pins, which encompasses many islands, with The Isle of Pines being the largest. This Island has many interesting land, & marine flora, mainly due to its proximity to the New Caledonian Barrier Reef. Not only that, but the island has lush mangroves that directly connect lagoons & forests. This makes it so that the clash of terrain can accommodate a wide variety of creatures, that it ordinarily would not be able to host. Many of these creatures are endemic or rare, making the Isle of Pines especially unique. Additionally, Since The Isle of Pines is in the southern Pacific, it is in one of the most tropical places on Earth. This isle has approximately 56 Kilometers of Coastline, which is not all documented. Certain parts of the wilderness have not been explored on this island, leaving the possibility for unknown species. In this article, we will discuss the Salinity, Tides, Temperatures, & Marine Geography, of the island, the most prominent ecosystems of the island, The documented marine flora & Fauna, & Finally how the Marine Resources of the island have been used, & how ocean acidification has affected the island. With that being said, let us delve into The Isle Of Pines.  The Salinity, Tides, Temperatures, Marine Geography, & Basic Information Of The Isle Of Pines, New Caledonia  Unfortunately, the exact salinity of The Isle of Pines or New Caledonia has never been measured. Since The Isle of Pines rests in the Pacific Ocean, it has a lesser salinity than the Atlantic. Salt deposits or brine pools have not been proven to be found around the island in higher concentrations than other areas. However, this could change. Since the average salinity of the water in the southwestern Pacific is 35 parts per thousand at any given time, it can be assumed that the salinity level is somewhere around that. Salinity is measured in 1,000 grams. For every 1000 grams of water, there will be a certain number of grams that are pure salt. This is the way that salinity is currently measured. There are no external factors currently that seem to be affecting the salinity either. The tidal charts of this island can be found on surprisingly few amount of websites, & the most user-friendly are https://www.tideschart.com , https://www.seatemperatu.re , & https://surf-reports.com . The Sea Temperature charts are also accessible at https://www.seatemperatu.re . The average yearly temperature is 24.9° Celsius (76.82° Fahrenheit). The high tide seems to never go over approximately 1.8 meters (5.90551 feet). The island is safe to swim around, with Oro Bay being the most attractive spot to do so on the island. A wetsuit is not needed to comfortably swim around the island. The water is clear & pristine, & free from pollutants. Eco-tourism is a massive industry on the island because of this lagoon, along with its astounding natural beauty. There are very few forming currents, & riptide is not common. This makes the island very safe, but you should always check for warnings from the French Coast Guard just to be safe. Many water-based activities such as kayaking, snorkeling, swimming, & wildlife watching are very accessible on the island, though this is not a very good place for surfing due to how small the waves are. The deepest oceanic point currently known to man within 5 nautical miles (5.7539 miles or 9.26 kilometers) of the island is 656.2 feet deep. There are very few oceanic mounds, & the lagoon is rather shallow making that virtually impossible. The oceanic floor of the island usually will consist of Sand, Rock, or most often, Coral. The island is not itself a part of the Natural Park of the Coral Sea, however, it is close to it. The Natural Park of the Coral Sea is the 5th largest marine protected area in the world & it is located around the greater New Caledonian area. The island is in the center of this marine park, but it is not a part of it. There is much government research going on due to the presence of the marine park, & many different stations to monitor various aspects of the marine environment.  The Most Prominent Marine Ecosystems Of The Isle Of Pines, New Caledonia  Ecosystem No. 1: Mangrove Forests As of 2024, there are Mangrove Forests found on all sides of the island. A mangrove forest is a place where the ocean, & the tree line meet, & saltwater mixes with the freshwater. This creates a mix of terrains, in which the salt water is interacting with the forest. Often, there will be some sort of stream, or river that will take saltwater further into the forest. In these forests, the trees will grow so that their roots elevate them out of the water, creating a cage-like underwater environment for species to thrive in. These mangrove forests are not restricted to any one area, but the most pristine mangrove areas are in the northern, & northeastern areas of the island. This ecosystem is considered one of, if not the most important ecosystem on the island. There currently is little to no data as to what creatures are found specifically in this ecosystem. Additionally, there is no data on the designated mangrove forests on the island. This is a very closed-off area, where animals usually live in instead of passing through it. Currently, 2 known species of mangrove trees grow in these forests. These mangrove trees are known as Rhizophora samoensis (Samoan Mangrove), & Avicennia Marina (Grey / White Mangrove). However, since there is such little data on the mangrove forests of the Isle of Pines, we may discover more species shortly.  Ecosystem No. 2: Rocky Lagoons & Caverns There is a massive lagoon on the Isle of Pines, which caused this kind of ecosystem to be formed. This type of ecosystem is most commonly found in the deeper area of the lagoon, which has little to no coral. In these areas, there are often small to mid-sized rock formations for animals to hide in. These areas are usually just a passing zone, & most creatures don’t live in these areas. Occasionally seagrass may grow here, but that is semi-unusual. These areas are usually the farthest from the coastline as well. Ecosystem No. 3: Fringing Coral Reefs Due to the Climate of the Isle of Pines, the coast of the island is covered in coral. These coral reefs are known as Fringing Coral Reefs, not barrier reefs. These Fringing coral reefs are found most commonly in the lagoons of the Isle of Pines & within proximity to the coast. Coral reefs tend to be found 3-50 feet deep, though they can be found deeper. These coral reefs usually are used as breeding grounds, hunting grounds, & fish nurseries of sorts. This type of ecosystem is incredibly common around the island, & is found on all sides of the island. Unfortunately, there is no data on what species of coral are found on the Isle of Pines, but there is data on the species of coral found on New Caledonia as a whole. This ecosystem is extremely important to the biodiversity of the island because it provides the most biodiversity of any ecosystem on the island.  The Documented Marine Flora Of The Isle Of Pines, New Caledonia  Unfortunately, data on all of the island's seagrasses are not available yet in the public domain. Currently, there are approximately 12 documented seagrass species on the main New Caledonian Island of Grand Terre. It is unknown whether or not all 12 of these seagrasses are found around the island as of now. As stated in the subsection titled “Ecosystem No. 1 Mangrove Forests”, there are currently 2 species of native Mangrove Tree. These species are Rhizophora samoensis (Samoan Mangrove), & Avicennia Marina (Grey / White Mangrove). There is no current data on the number of species of algae, or the kind of algae found around the isle. Surprisingly, a kind of beach flower known as Melanthera Biflora (Sea Daisy), is known to commonly grow on the island. Generally, there is just little to no data on what kind of marine flora are found on the island. The Documented Marine Fauna Of The Isle Of Pines, New Caledonia  The Isle of Pines is extremely biodiverse when it comes to marine creatures. The reason for this is due to their unique clash of terrain, their wonderful climate, & their large amount of plankton & nutrients. Additionally, the New Caledonian government outlawed single-use plastic bags, which helped to improve the quality of the oceanic water, to reduce pollution. Many animals will migrate throughout Oceania, & stop in the Isle of Pines & Surrounding New Caledonian, so the populations of certain creatures will vary throughout the year. Even though the marine creatures are flourishing, many conservation efforts are being made by both the New Caledonian government & locals. These efforts are largely centered on the coral reefs & the mangrove forests. Now, for this article, we will not include nudibranchs, sea slugs, sea snails, planktons, lichens, sea worms, or sea urchins, as there are just too many of them. With that being said, the list of all the most prominent species currently found around The Isle Of Pines is as follows: Hippocampus Spinosissimus (Hedgehog Seahorse), Osteohinchus Neotes (Miniature Cardinal-fish), Chrysiptera Leucopoma (Pacific Surge Demoiselle), Chromis Ternatensis (Ternate Chromis), Iracandus Signifer (Decoy Scorpionfish), Mahidolia Mystacina (Smiling Goby), Xiphophorus Hellerii (Green Swordfish), Charybdis Hellerii (Indo-Pacific Swimming Crab), Ablabys Taenianotus (Cockatoo Waspfish), Pentapodus Caninus (Canine-toothed Midwater Bream), Pomacentrus Imitator (Imitator Damsel), Stenella Longirostris (Spinner Dolphin), Tursiops Aduncus (Indo-Pacific Bottlenose Dolphin), Tursiops Truncatus (Common Bottlenose Dolphin), Arctocephalus Fosteri (New Zealand Fur Seal), Orcinus Orca (Orca / Killer Whale), Dugong Dugon (Dugong), & finally,  Megaptera Novaeangliae (Humpback Whale).  How The Oceanic Resources Of The Isle Of Pines Have Been Utilized & How Ocean Acidification Has Affected The Island  The marine resources of the Isle of Pines, have most often been used for ecological tourism. Fishing isn’t very common in the Isle of Pines, or New Caledonia for that matter. Mostly, the marine landscapes are used for ecological tourism. Ecological tourism is touring for the specific purpose of seeing the environment of the island, such as touring for the specific purpose of snorkeling. That is one form of ecological tourism. Ocean acidification does affect the island, specifically the coral reefs of the island. Ocean acidification is caused by increased levels of carbon dioxide in the atmosphere.  Atmospheric carbon dioxide levels have increased, largely because of human-caused burning of fossil fuels, & deforestation, for the past 150 years.  When carbon dioxide contacts sea water, it forms carbonic acid.  Carbonic acid gives off positive H+ ions, which causes increased oceanic H+ concentrations & decreased oceanic Ph. The decreased oceanic Ph causes the coral to bleach, which in turn causes a decrease in biodiversity, & a decrease in nutrients. If we do not monitor ocean acidification, it could have devastating consequences.  Directories / Credits   Citation No. 1: “Mangrove Plants”, Written by Unknown, & Published at an Unknown Date. Published by newcaledoniaplants.com . Retrieval Date: July 5th, 2023.  https://newcaledoniaplants.com/plant-catalog/mangrove-plants/ Citation No. 2: “Where We Work: New Caledonia”, Written By Unknown & Published at an Unknown Date. Published by the Dugong & Seagrass Hub. Retrieval Date: July 5th, 2023.  https://www.dugongseagrass.org/where-we-work/new-caledonia/ Citation No. 3: “New Caledonia”, Written by Many, Published at various times. Published by iNaturalist. Retrieval Date: July 5th, 2023.  https://www.inaturalist.org/places/new-caledonia Citation No. 4: “Act in New Caledonia”, Written by Unknown, Published on the 27th of March, 2019. Published by Race For Our Water. Retrieval Date: July 5th, 2023.  https://www.raceforwater.org/en/news/act-in-new-caledonia/ Strategic Partnerships  Reel Guppy Outdoors SharkedSkooler Marine Enthusiasts Podcast StemScribe Our Loyal Patrons  Ms. Paloma Rodriguez Ochoa

Ode To Oceanography: An Antique Nautical Chart Of Cape Cod This is the sixteenth article in the Ode to Oceanography series. This series will publish on the 15th of every month, until we run out of antique nautical maps to analyze, though that will not be for many decades. Once that happens, we will keep the series running, but we will change the article format. In these articles, will take an antique nautical map & analyze it in its entirety. These maps will not strictly be on open oceanic waters, they may be on rivers or occasionally, bays. We will also discuss the methods that may have been used to make the map, considering the time period, & the country of origin. These maps will come from a variety of sources, though they will mainly come from Maps Of Antiquity, a wonderful New England map shop. These maps will come from varying time periods, & will not be in any particular historical order. Today’s map, is an antique map of Cape Cod. Cape Cod is a cape along the southern coast of Massachusetts, a state located in the north east area of the United States. It is approximately 70 miles in length, & extends 65 miles away from Massachusetts into the Atlantic Ocean. The map is in excellent condition, with all information clear & visible, & there being very few signs of damage. The map is approximately 29 inches tall, by 35 inches wide.  In this article we will discuss the map itself, the translation of certain sections of the map, & analyze this antique nautical map. With that being said let us delve into the tranquil area of Cape Cod. The Map Itself As the Map is in English, there is no need for translation. The map is uncoloured, & has many terrestrial topographic features outlined. The chart is incredibly detailed, &  has the name of many small villages & towns that are located along Cape Cod outlined on it. It is centered around the cape itself. It does have some information regarding tides on it, along with information concerning the oceanic depths near Cape Cod. An Analysis Of The Map This map was designed & created in 1836, based off of information collected in 1833 & 1835. The chart was designed by the United States Topographical Engineers, a branch of the United States Military which officially existed from 1838 to 1863. The map was likely produced in New York State, as this is where many of the Topographical Engineers were located at the time. The map encompasses the entirety of Cape Cod, Cape Cod Harbour, & Provincetown. At the time, it was designed for use military use, specifically use by the Army & the Navy. The map does not have a particular name, & does not seem to be a part of any collection. This map was most certainly made via the lithographic process, due to its maker, & the time that it was manufactured in. The lithographic method was most popular for map making between the early 1820’s, & the 1910’s. In the lithographic method, the artist will draw directly onto a printing surface, such as zinc, or copper, until they are satisfied with the drawing. After this, the surface will be covered with a chemical etch, which will bond it to the surface. With this process, the blank areas will attract moisture to the plate & repel the lithographic ink, while the areas that are drawn on will hold the ink. Water is then wiped onto the unpainted areas to help prevent the ink from deviating. After the map wanted is inked, the paper is laid over it & covered with a tympan, & the tympan is pressed down. Finally, these materials pass through the scraper bar of the litho press. Afterwards, an exact copy of whatever was supposed to be printed is revealed. Directories / Credits All credit for this map analyzed today goes to Maps Of Antiquity, a wonderful New England map shop. To purchase this map, any other maps, or any other cartographic objects, please visit mapsofantiquity.com . To be clear, this is not an advertisement for Maps Of Antiquity, as we do not have a partnership with them. Strategic Partnerships Reel Guppy Outdoors SharkedSkooler Marine Enthusiasts Podcast StemScribe Our Loyal Patrons Ms. Paloma Rodriguez Ochoa

On October 7th, 2024, our head writer conducted an interview with esteemed Cuttlefish Cephalopod & Visual Ecology Researcher, Dr. Lydia Mäthger. Lydia Mäthger is a German Cephalopod Researcher, Professor, & Children’s Book Author. She’s well known for her work with Squid & Octopus, Visual Ecology, & research at the Marine Biological Laboratory at Woods Hole, Massachusetts. Her personal website can be found at lydiamaethger.com . In this interview, we ask 21 insightful questions to Dr. Mäthger, & get equally insightful & intriguing answers. Please note that all answers below are not direct quotations, & have been edited for clarity. With that being said, let us delve into the contents of the interview. The Contents of The Interview 1: What sparked your interest in biology in general? It goes right back to when I was a kid, I basically at a very young age seemed to have known what I wanted to do. My mother told me that at the age of 5, that my dream was to become a zoologist. I’m German, & at the time that I was growing up there were 2 very well-known zoologists who were working as a father-son team, & had a TV show, so occasionally I would hear about them. That is why I wanted to become a Zoologist. I kind of stayed true to that dream & by the time I went to high school, I continued with Biology.  I ended up going to England for my undergraduate degree in Zoology.  2: What led you to marine biology? I was led down the path mainly by the people around me. I kept on meeting & interacting with people in the field, & before I knew it, I was doing my Ph.D. at a marine laboratory in England. While doing my undergraduate, one of my professors was John Messenger, & he was a very well-known scientist in the Cephalopod Biology realm. I met him through an undergraduate course, & then did a sort of undergraduate thesis with him. I got hooked on cephalopods that way, & he ended up being one of my Ph.D. advisors! The other advisor was Sir Eric Denton, who was also very well-known in marine biology. So that is how I ended up getting into marine biology.  3: Do you have a favorite oceanic creature or terrestrial creature? If so, what are they? I have to say, it would probably be the color-changing animals. It would have to be the color-changing Squid or Octopus. On land, it would also be the color-changing animals you know, the reptiles, & amphibians—those kinds of creatures. 4: What is your favorite species of Cuttlefish, & what is your favorite attribute of Cuttlefish? That’s very hard. I’d say Sepia Officinalis, just because I know so much about them. There are some very cool cuttlefish out there too, like the Flamboyant Cuttlefish, but I’d have to say Sepia Officinalis. Questions About Her Research In General: 5: How did you begin your career as a marine biologist?  Essentially, when you study whatever it is as an undergraduate, you become interested in a particular direction. I was led into academia at an early point in my undergraduate career by meeting people such as John Messenger. As a Ph.D student, you aren’t necessarily signing your life away to academia, some people get their Ph.D.s & go into teaching or industry, so you don’t have to stay in academia or research. I got my Ph.D at a laboratory dedicated to pure research, called the Marine Biological Association. There is not much teaching, they do run courses every once in a while, however, it is not a teaching institution. So, I was inspired by the people doing pure research, & that is how I discovered my passion for research. From there I went to Australia, & did two post-doctoral fellowships. 6: How many institutions did you work with in your career? I didn’t move around all that much! I did my undergraduate degree at Sheffield University in the UK, & my Ph.D. work was done at the Marine Biological Association as a joint degree with Sheffield University. After my Ph.D., I left for Australia.  I worked at the University of Queensland in an interesting institution that doesn’t exist anymore. There was a center at the time called the Vision, Touch, & Hearing Research Center, & it was led by some really amazing scientists in the field of vision. During my time there I worked with Justin Marshall, a very famous neuroscientist & ecologist. From there, I came to the United States & worked at the Marine Biological Laboratory at Woods Hole where I stayed for almost 20 years. I am now primarily teaching courses at Roger Williams University, in Rhode Island.  7: How did you get attracted to the Marine Biological Laboratory at Woods Hole? To tell you the truth, I was trying to stay in Australia, however funding wasn’t available. Roger Hanlon, another fantastic cephalopod biologist, had been watching my career unfold, & offered me a job, & I took it! I came to the United States without knowing very much about Woods Hole.  8: What were your first & last research projects? My first research project, my very first project was as an undergraduate looking at Zebrafish, for my undergraduate project with John Messenger. I believe we were testing them on learning and memory, & behavior, specifically spatial learning by putting them in very simple mazes. Unfortunately, I don’t recall it all that well. My first real research project was looking at Squid, with Eric Denton in Plymouth.  For my very last research project, I am currently working with a student at Roger Williams studying colorblindness in Peppermint Shrimp.  9: Do you have a most memorable moment from your career as a marine biologist? I had one thing jump into my head instantly when you asked that! My most memorable moment was probably while doing research on an island off the coast of Australia, called Stradbroke Island. One of my favorite colleagues that I have had who also was an examiner for my thesis, is Mike Land – he was one amazing and well-respected scientist – was on sabbatical when I started my post-doctoral fellowship in Brisbane. I worked with him for 3 months while he was there. The two of us were standing at this tank after being out on the boat all day & collecting specimens, & we were looking at these fish called Paradise Whiptails. It was late in the evening after we had all had dinner, & both of us at the same time looked at each other & said “Did you see that?!”. These fish were changing color right before us! So we stared at the fish for a while, & that led to a paper.  This goes back to one of the key principles of science, which is that we have to observe the world around us. Nothing beats going back to basics, & making observations when you are a scientist. I’m currently homeschooling my son & we recently came back from the beach, & collected a few crabs. He was observing them, & sure enough he was coming up with questions.  10: What attracts you to Visual Ecology & Camouflage? That was my time in Australia, as I was surrounded by Visual Ecologists. 11: What did you study in Cuttlefish? I primarily studied their color-changing attributes, & their eyes.  12: What was your work concerning birds & insects? We did some work on Birds of Paradise feathers, however unfortunately nothing got published on that. We collected a lot of data though. The same goes for insects, I always use bird feathers & insects in my teaching, especially with children. You can always use them to demonstrate pigmentation, & structural coloration principles.  Questions About Outreach With Schools & Local Programs: 13: How did you get the idea to do outreach with Schools? I think when your field is that specific it’s difficult to do continuous outreach. I think it's primarily because of my children, while communicating with them & their school teachers I realized that other people were interested in it. It's a subject that is so suited to visual learning & hands-on activities, which makes it easier to teach to children. There is an island just off the coast of Woods Hole, Penikese Island, & I have taught there almost every summer since the program started. I have also taught down in the Caribbean with places that have one-off programs.  14:  If there is one thing or group of things you wish to have children know about Visual & Sensory Ecology, what is that thing? Every organism that has eyes sees everything differently from the way we do. In terms of colors, spatial frequency, & everything else. Every eye is different.  Questions About Her Children’s Book & Passion For Illustration: 15: What attracted you to doing illustrations? As a child, I grew up in a very artistic family. My father was a singer, & my mother did a lot of artwork with us as children. This led to my love of art, I’ve always been an artist.  Even in my science work, I’ve always done my own illustrations whenever there was a need for them. I always do hand-drawn illustrations, I prefer them to computers. 16: What is your favorite thing to illustrate? Growing up on a farm, my favorite thing to illustrate was horses. Now I like illustrating just about anything. 17: How did you get the idea for your children’s book? For years, my children were bugging me to write a children’s book. I was busy for years until the Pandemic hit in 2020. I had just lost my funding for the laboratory, & everything fell perfectly into place.  Being home while my children were home was a blessing, if I had been forced to also run a laboratory, it would have been very, very difficult. I just used that time, I wrote primarily in the early morning hours before the children got up. I love writing, & the book sort of wrote itself in a way. 18: What is the story of Scholle und Timm - Unterwegs mit Janko? My children are very particular about the kinds of books they like, & don't enjoy books that are too gripping. They both enjoy books like Pippy Longstocking that are calm & pleasant, yet still have a storyline.  They were very specific about what they wanted; it had to have dogs, it had to have a farm & farm animals, & it had to have a veterinarian. So I pulled that all together for the book. The story revolves around a family who lives on a farm when this dog suddenly appears. The dog had been hit by a car so take him in & keep him. They do a lot of dog training & agility training with him, & he ends up being such a wonderful pet to them. 19: What are your plans for the remaining books in the trilogy? The second book is written but, I haven’t found time to edit it for publishing. I already have my plans for the third book, however I am quite busy right now. It’ll get done eventually, I’m hoping to finish at least 3 of them, but, I could keep going too. I’ll see!  This was primarily for my children, it wasn’t something I did for my career or anything.  Questions About Her Personally: 21: How did you get the idea to keep chickens? We’ve always had chickens, we’re vegetarian so we don’t have chickens for meat eating. Love the eggs, it's nice having the chickens around. My dogs are good with the chickens as well.  My neighbors are very appreciative of them as well, they get eggs every now & then.  22: Do the chickens influence your illustrations at all? Yes, they do! I love drawing animals. I think if there is going to be a chicken involved in one of the chapters of the next book, there will be a chicken illustration.  Directories / Credits https://lydiamaethger.com/english/ Strategic Partnerships Reel Guppy Outdoors SharkedSkooler Marine Enthusiasts Podcast StemScribe Our Loyal Patrons Ms. Paloma Rodriguez Ochoa

Hello valued readers, The Persaud Foundation is pleased to announce that we have officially released our online marine biological course about Sea Turtles! This course can be found in the Online Courses tab on our website, & is 9 modules long. We are actively working on developing more educational courses, so please sign up to our mailing list to be notified about them. For any questions, please submit a form in the contact section of our website. We appreciate & value each of our readers, & thank them for their contributions to this newsletter. Strategic Partnerships Reel Guppy Outdoors SharkedSkooler The Marine Enthusiasts Podcast StemScribe Our Loyal Patrons Ms. Paloma Rodriguez Ochoa

The Documented History Of Nanumanga, Tuvalu In today's article, we shall discuss the history of Nanumanga. Nanumanga is also known as Nanumaga, however, for this article, we are referring to the island as Nanumanga. Unfortunately, Nanumanga does not have much of a traceable history, so please forgive us as this article may be shorter than previous history articles. For this introduction though, we will be giving the demographics of Nanumanga & Tuvalu. Nanumanga is an island in the South Pacific, it belongs to the country of Tuvalu. It has a very small population as it is only 1 square mile in total. There are approximately 491 people who inhabit the island. It is approximately 3556.56 Nautical / Marine Miles (4092.816154 miles or 6586.74912 kilometers) from mainland Asia, specifically the country of China. It is also approximately 1706.54 Nautical / Marine Miles (1963.851159 miles or 3160.51208 kilometers) from Australia. The island is known for its beautiful coral reefs & scuba diving experiences. The country of Tuvalu is most well known for being built on massive coral atolls, with a large percentage of their ocean having some presence of living coral. This attracts many other marine species which in turn diversifies the area. The area also has a quite favorable climate, with it being quite warm for the entire year. The oceanic temperature changes very slightly through the seasons, so this may attract species that require lots of prey as prey will be available year-round. Approximately 491 people inhabit the island of Nanumanga. With the size of the island, this is approximately 420 people per square mile. It is currently somewhat unclear what the highest elevation on the island is, however, it is clear that the highest point in Tuvalu is not on the island of Nanumanga. Likely, the highest elevated area of Nanumanga is somewhere in the mangrove area, as it extends up to 12 meters (39.3701) above sea level, from what is currently known. In this article, we will discuss the discovery & documented history of the island known as Nanumanga, The known aboriginals of the Nanumanga, the most destructive man caused & natural disasters that have affected Tuvalu & finally a segment on the economy of Tuvalu. With that being said, let us delve into the interesting atoll paradise.  The Documented History Of Nanumanga, Tuvalu Before Colonization  The first people known as Tuvalu, were the Polynesians. The Polynesians came from Taiwan, most likely through the region of Melanesia. It is theorized that the Polynesians arrived approximately 3,000 years ago. However, there is some evidence of fire in Nanumangan caves suggests human activity Polynesians on this island, have been documented to have built canoes to travel to each island of Tuvalu. Eight of the nine islands of Tuvalu were constantly inhabited, which is where the name Tuvalu comes from. Tuvalu means “eight standing together” which refers to the islands. Not much is known about the history of Nanumanga itself other than the possibility of cave people living in Nanumangan cave.  After Colonization  16th Century History of Nanumanga  Tuvalu was described first by some sailors on a voyage by Europeans. They first spotted the island of Nui, which is approximately 87 miles from Nanumanga. It was seen on the 16th of January, 1568. This is all the behavior of Nanumanga in this century.  17th Century History Of Nanumanga No activity related to Nanumanga took place in this century.  18th Century History of Nanumanga There is no documented historical record of any sailors going near or past Nanumanga in this century.  19th Century History Of Nanumanga Nanumanga was finally first seen by Louis Isidore Duperrey who was captain of the ship La Coquille. He sailed past it during his circumnavigation voyage of the earth in May of 1824. This voyage lasted from 1822-1825. A United States chartered ship for exploration visited the island in the year 1841. A successful trader, & writer arose in Nanumanga a few decades later. He went by the name of Louis Blecke, working with the liver pool firm “John S. de Wolf & Co.”. He worked with them from April 1880 until the trading station was destroyed later that same year in a cyclone. After the destruction of the station, he rose once again to trader-dom on the nearby island of Nukufetau. He wrote “The Rangers of Tia Kau”. This work of his entails a shark attack that took place between the islands of Nanumea & Nanumanga. During the European age of exploration in the Tuvaluan in the late 19th century, Nanumanga was not visited as much as the other islands. It is not exactly clear when the first census of Nanumanga was conducted, but records indicate that it was first in 1860. The population of Nanumanga was from the years of 1860 to 1900 approximately 300-335 people.  20th Century History Of Nanumanga The first post office in Nanumanga called the “Nanumanga Post Office” was opened in the year 1925. In the year 1986, many flooded caves around the island became known. For this, it became a spectacle to many European & American geologists. When the caves were explored, they found some evidence for what remains were argued to be the remains of fire by prehistoric inhabitants.  The Aboriginals Of Nanumanga   The Native Polynesians Of Nanumanga The Polynesians were a sea-migrating group of people who dominated Oceania before the Europeans came. They would migrate by sea & take over each island. They most likely originated in Taiwan or Vietnam. They had their languages that were, unfortunately, completely lost to time. They developed the majority of their languages between 3,000 & 1,000 B.C. They had their Polynesian mythology. This religion is still practiced by some Polynesian tribes to this day. This mythology is meant to recount ancient times & the adventures of their gods, which are known as Atua. Their religion also involves traditional tattooing. One of the most interesting of their Atua is the atua known as Tāne Mahuta. Tāne Mahuta is the creator of all life, the Sky father, & the earth mother. Tāne Mahuta is male in traditional mythology. He may also be known as Tāne-nui-a-rangi. The Polynesians would often fish around the island & effectively have a system of trade with the fish. They most often caught Tuna & it seems that Tuna was incredibly high value. The ancient Polynesians would cultivate Taro, sweet potato, banana, coconut, & breadfruit. This along with seafood & a few other meats would compose an ancient Polynesian diet. They made canoes from the trees, these canoes were what are now known as dugout canoes. They would make these by removing the wood from the center of a large tree but leaving the bottom & the sides intact. They also had a practice in which they would bind 2 canoes together, which made way for the double-hulled sailing canoe. They also developed their navigational system. This system was developed to utilize the stars & the clouds to guide them. The Polynesians from this area most likely migrated from Taiwan to Papua New Guinea, Then from Papua New Guinea to Vanuatu, then to Samoa, & finally to Tuvalu. However, they did not just come from Taiwan. There is dual evidence that suggests they came from both Asia & Melanesia. Melanesia is a region of Oceania just southwest of Polynesia. Also, it is believed that people from Kiribati in Micronesia may have migrated to the northernmost Tuvaluan island of Nui & vice versa. Tuvalu is also believed to play a significant role in west-to-east expansion in Polynesia due to its placement. Overall, Polynesians migrated throughout Oceania & to southern parts of Asia. They migrated in a pattern that is kin to a triangle. This pattern is now officially known as the Polynesian Triangle. However, it will never truly be known the exact way they dispersed. It seems they also were a very social society, as they would often have many festivals & celebrations.  Tuvaluan Mythology  Each island of Tuvalu has its unique mythological explanation for its ancestors, for example, on the island of Nanumea the founding ancestor is said to be from Tonga. This ancestor was also named Tefolaha & was part human, part spirit of Tonga. On Nanumanga the main story of the founding ancestor is depicted as being as being in the shape of a sea serpent who originated from Fiji. This spirit's name was Tepuhi. This is the predominant one, there are other stories told that explain the founding ancestor. Those other stories usually state that the founding ancestors came from Tonga & Samoa. Very little else is known about the main founding ancestral myth of Tepuhi. There is one story that all the islands seem to agree upon, this is the myth of the Pusi mo te Ali, or the eel & the flounder. This is the myth that the state created the 9 Tuvaluan islands. Te Ali who is the flounder, is believed to be the one who created the atoll islands & islets of Tuvalu. Te Pusi who is the eel, is the model for coconut palm trees. These palm trees were incredibly important to the lives of the native Tuvaluans.  The Most Destructive Natural, & Man-Caused Disasters To Affect Tuvalu No. 1: 2011 Tuvaluan Drought The Tuvaluan drought of 2011 was a severe period of drought affecting Tuvalu. At this time, Tuvalu had approximately 50,000 people, all of which were affected. A state of emergency was declared by the Tuvaluan government on September 28th, 2011. This was due to the result of a La Niña event. A La Niña event is an event in which the ocean across the east equatorial area of the Pacific Ocean. It will cause the oceanic temperature to cool rapidly by 3-5° Celsius. This event usually lasts for a few months at a minimum. By October of 2011, the island had not received the normal rainfall in 6 months. Funafati was the most affected out of the inner islands & Nanumanga was the most affected of the outer islands. This drought also affected a staple crop of Tuvalu, Pulaka, which is also known as swamp taro. Additionally, during the drought freshwater was limited to 40 liters of water per household. This limited the ability to practice proper hygiene, so skin diseases & skin infections were rampant.  No. 2: The Sinking Of Tuvalu Tuvalu is, unfortunately, sinking. The islands of Tuvalu are extremely low-laying, with the highest elevation being 15 meters high. The ocean around the island is rising very slowly. The effects of this are already being seen in that during high tide the capital of Tuvalu is 40% underwater. Within the next 100 years, it is predicted that Tuvalu will no longer be habitable at all. This is a tragedy in itself.  The Economic State Of Tuvalu  Tuvalu’s economy is rather stable. In Tuvalu, the primary currency is the Tuvaluan Dollar. This currency does not have dollar notes, but rather coins. These coins are in denominations of this currency 5 cents, 10 cents, 20 cents, 50 cents, & 1 dollar. The unofficial symbol of this currency is TVD. The exchange rate on this is 1 U.S.D equals 1.5037218 Tuvaluan dollars. This is also used alongside the Australian dollar. Their current nominal GDP is 0.074 Billion Dollars. Their GDP per capita is currently 4,154.475$ U.S.D. Their current main economic output is through maritime transport, & fishing. A large proportion of their income also comes from the sale of their domain name which is “.tv”.  Directories / Credits https://placeandsee.com/wiki/nanumanga https://placeandsee.com/wiki/tuvalu ReliefWebhttps:// reliefweb.int › disaster › dr-2...Pacific Drought - Sep 2011 Strategic Partnerships  Reel Guppy Outdoors  SharkedSkooler Marine Enthusiasts Podcasts StemScribe Our Loyal Patrons Ms. Ochoa

Marine Biological Hall Of Distinction: Professor Anders Sandøe Ørsted This article is a part of our collection known as the Marine Hall Of Distinction. It is a different series from our main monthly series & has no connection to the main monthly series. In this special collection, we will discuss marine biologists who have served marine biology & oceanography the most. We do this to commemorate these marine biologists & to show gratitude for everything they have contributed to our oceans. This collection has no relation to the main monthly series. This series is published on the 25th of every month, shortly after our article on the oceanic environment of a certain region on the 20th.  Today’s marine biologist is the accomplished Danish Marine Biologist, Anders Sandøe Ørsted. Anders Sandøe Ørsted, or Anders Sandøe Oersted, was a Danish Botanist, Marine Biologist, Naturalist, Zoologist, & Mycologist.  He is well known for his research on Nematodes in the Arctic, & the hundreds of plant taxa he described. His primary field was botany, and he worked as a professor for the University of Copenhagen. In addition to his scientific career, he was decently known for his relationship with a politician that he shared a name with, Anders Sandøe Ørsted. The second Ørsted was Anders’s uncle, & the Prime Minister Of Denmark from 1853 to 1854. This, however, wasn’t the only notable relative of his. Another of his uncles, Hans Christian Ørsted, was an incredibly influential physicist & chemist. Hans Christian Ørsted is well known for discovering that electrical currents create magnetic fields, which led to the formation of Ørsted’s Law. This also led to him having a unit of magnetic field strength, the Oersted, named in his honor.  In this article, we will be discussing the formative years & education of Anders Sandøe Ørsted, the personal life & career of Anders Sandøe Ørsted, & the awards, achievements, accomplishments, & honorables of Anders Sandøe Ørsted. With that being said, let us delve into this interesting Danish Marine Biologist, & Botanist. The Formative Years & Education Of The Anders Sandøe Ørsted Anders Sandøe Ørsted was born on June 21st, 1816, in Rudkøbing, Denmark. Unfortunately, very little is known about his childhood or his Education. The Personal Life & Career Of Anders Sandøe Ørsted  At the beginning of his career, Ørsted traveled the Arctic to study Nematodes, a kind of worm. He published multiple papers on these Arctic Nematodes. Later on, he would study the density & zonation of marine algae in Øresund, a strait between Denmark & Sweden. In 1845, Ørsted traveled extensively through Central America, & the Caribbean to study the plant life in the regions. He had a focus on the families Acanthaceae, & Fagaceae. He continued his travels until 1848. In 1851, he was appointed as a Professor of Botany at the University of Copenhagen, a position which he held until 1862. During his professorship, he mentored esteemed ecologist Eugen Warming.  Across his career, he described hundreds of plant species, the majority of which are still in use today. His research is still highly relevant to this day, with over 100 papers using his taxa in some way.  His contributions to biology, ecology, botany, & marine biology will not be forgotten, or neglected. The Awards, Achievements, Accomplishments, & Honorable Of Anders Sandøe Ørsted He collected or identified approximately 1,970 species of various plants, fungi, & marine animals.  Directories / Credits  Citation No. 1: “Anders Sandoe Oersted”, Written by Unknown, & Published at an Unknown Date. Published by The Virtualology Project. Retrieval Date: August 25th, 2024.  http://famousamericans.net/anderssandoeoersted/ Citation No. 2: “Ørsted, Anders Sandø (Professor)”, Written by Unknown, & Published at an Unknown Date. Published by Conchology. Retrieval Date: August 25th, 2024.  https://www.conchology.be/?t=9001&id=90978 Citation No. 3: “Anders Sandøe Ørsted”, Written by Unknown, & Published at an Unknown Date. Published by Binomia. Retrieval Date: August 25th, 2024. https://bionomia.net/Q491270 Strategic Partnerships Reel Guppy Outdoors SharkedSkooler  Marine Enthusiasts Podcast Our Loyal Patrons  Ms. Paloma Rodriguez Ochoa

The Oceans Surrounding The Island Of Nanumanga, Tuvalu  Todays article shall be to discuss the oceans surrounding the island of Nanumanga, Tuvalu. Nanumanga is an island in the South Pacific, it belongs to the country of Tuvalu. It has a very small population as it is only 1 square mile in total. There are approximately 491 people  who inhabit the island. It is approximately 3556.56 Nautical / Marine Miles (4092.816154 miles or 6586.74912 kilometers) from mainland Asia, specifically the country of China. It is also approximately 1706.54 Nautical / Marine Miles (1963.851159 miles or 3160.51208 kilometers) from Australia. The island is known for their beautiful coral reefs & scuba diving experiences. The country of Tuvalu is most well known for being built on massive coral atolls, with a large percentage of their ocean having some presence of living coral. This attracts many other marine species which in turn diversifies the area. The area also has a quite favourable climate, with it being quite warm for the entire year. The oceanic temperature changes very slightly through the seasons, so this may attract species that require lots of prey as prey will be available year round. The species that are attracted, form new ecological structures & make others more feasible, an example where this is seen is seagrass meadows. The oceans have many small scattered atolls in the region that belong to Nanumanga. Atolls, are a kind of ring shaped coral reef that protrudes from the surface of the ocean, or a ring shaped island with a coral rim. This shows that the coral is healthy enough for these atolls to be sustained. There are dozens of many small islets that exist around the island. The oceans are also very clear & as pollutants are not very present in most areas. For this reason, many recreational activities commonly take place along the surface, such as swimming, kayaking, scuba diving & snorkelling, & surfing. In this article, we shall be discussing the salinity, tides, temperatures, marine geography, & basic Information about the oceans surrounding Nanumanga, the most prominent marine ecosystems of Nanumanga, the documented marine flora & fauna of Nanumanga, & finally how the marine resources of Nanumanga were utilized & how ocean acidification has affected Nanumangas ecological health. With that being said, let us delve into this reef island paradise. The Salinity, Tides, Temperatures, Marine Geography, & Basic Information Of The Oceans Surrounding Nanumanga, Tuvalu Unfortunately, the exact salinity of Nanumanga or Tuvalu has never been measured. Since Nanumanga rests in the Pacific ocean, it has a lesser salinity then the Atlantic. Salt deposits or brine pools have not been proven to be found around the island in higher concentrations then other areas. However, this could change. Since the average salinity of the water in the southeastern Pacific is 35 parts per thousand at any given time, it can be assumed that the salinity level is somewhere around that. Salinity is measured in 1,000 grams. For every 1000 grams of water there will be a certain number of grams that are pure salt. There are also zero current on going factors that would affect the salinity levels in such a harsh way that the salinity would change. The temperatures can be found on a plethora of webpages but the best for navigation, are https://www.tideschart.com & https://www.meteoblue.com .  The oceanic temperatures for Nanumanga go between 76° Fahrenheit & 85° Fahrenheit (24.4444° Celsius to 28.3333° Fahrenheit). The tides go can also be found on said webpage & usually don’t reach higher then 2.1 meters (6.88976 feet). There is a high riptide so it is important that you stay safe in order to not get sucked out by the current. There are no randomly forming currents other then the harsh riptide. This makes it very good for surfing as waves reach somewhat high. It is unknown what the deepest oceanic point within 5 Nautical / Marine Miles of Nanumanga is. There are very few sea mounts within close proximity of Nanumanga. There sea floor around Nanumanga largely consists of Coral & Sand.  The Most Prominent Marine Ecosystems Of Nanumanga, Tuvalu  Fringing Coral Reefs Fringing coral reefs are the coral reefs that are found along the coast. These are the coral reefs that are not coral islands. These coral reefs are the most attractive to fish & other marine species. This is because the fringing coral reef provides a hunting ground, fish nursery, & home for many species. It acts as a refuge for thousands of species. It is one of the most important marine ecological features of Nanumanga. These fringing reefs are found scattered around the coast line. They do not have 1 specific area around the island. It is unfortunately, unclear as to what exactly the coral species are. These fringing coral reefs, may also completely line the coasts to the point where the island is considered a “Reef island”. Nanumanga is at that point. Specifically, Nanumanga has beautiful & colourful coral reefs.  Coral Atolls Coral atolls are circular coral reefs that encompass lagoons. Tuvalu has very many of them, the majority of them are near Nanumanga. These coral reefs are usually very small & do not protrude farther then a few feet. There are currently 6 atolls in Tuvaluan jurisdiction. These atolls were largely formed by oceanic volcanoes. These atolls usually are somewhat polluted, as the above ground areas are some of the only places were Tuvaluans can live. By them moving in, they begin polluting the area. Atolls are usually not found directly off the coast of another island.  Seagrass Meadows Seagrass meadows often embellish coral reefs. Seagrass meadows are large amounts of seagrass forming patches or meadows. These are fairly common as seagrass congregates in the area due to the favourable conditions. These areas are most commonly fish nurseries as fish will lay their eggs in these areas. These areas can be coastal or further out. These areas are extremely delicate as they do not have a hard exterior like the coral reef. The actual species of seagrass that make up these coral reefs will be discussed in the subsection below known as “The Marine Fauna Of Nanumanga”.  The Documented Marine Flora Of Nanumanga, Tuvalu There are very many different species of marine flora found around Nanumanga, many of which are foreign. During an assessment, it was discovered that there are algae approximately 59 species of algae from 4 different Phyla. It is unfortunately, unknown what exact species of seagrasses there currently are on the island. The Marine Flora unfortunately, is very under documented. There also is a semi-small patch of mangrove forest near Tonga which is the main village on the island. The main mangrove tree species found there is known was Rhizophora Styloza (Small-stilted mangrove). Since Nanumanga is a very low island, these trees are sinking & so is the land. This puts them at a great disadvantage & soon most likely, these mangrove forests will no longer exist.  The Documented Marine Fauna Of Nanumanga, Tuvalu  The marine fauna of Tuvalu is strange & expansive, so for the purpose of this article we will not be discussing plankton or things of that nature. One of the main creatures found around this island is known as the diamondback squid, who we covered in the article prior to this one. Since the island had many coral reefs & a stable temperature year round, it attracts many species seeking favourable climate & food. Many of the creatures are migratory & will migrate to other islands & back, this is for the purpose of catching food usually. The locals on the island also make sure that the island stays relatively unpopulated so this keeps the ecosystems undisturbed. Also since the population of this island is very low the pollution output from the locals is minimal. This specific island does not have much to offer other then fishing. What is meant by this, is that there are not many other marine resources to utilize, other then the wildlife. The island also does not have much of a harbour, so boat emissions are minimized as well. There have currently been 12 species of Cetaceans spotted in Tuvaluan waters. There have been a total of 69 main marine species spotted in this specific area, many of which are predatory sea snails belonging to the genus “Conus”.  How The Marine Resources Of Nanumanga Were Utilized & How Ocean Acidification Affected Nanumanga’s Ecological Health  Many of the marine resources that have been taken out of Nanumanga, have been fish. Fishing is a somewhat common practice around the island. These are usually personal fisherman rather then commercial fisherman. This causes a population decrease, however it also causes a different issue. This issue is that when a species decreases in population, its prey is no longer as likely to be eaten. This causes the prey population to increase, which can cause issues. A good example of this happening is the crown of thorns environmental disaster on American Samoa, which is just a few islands away. Ocean acidification has also affected the coral reefs around the island. Ocean acidification is caused by increased levels of carbon dioxide in the atmosphere.  Atmospheric carbon dioxide levels have increased, largely because of human-caused burning of fossil fuels, & deforestation, for the past 150 years.  When carbon dioxide contacts sea water, it forms carbonic acid.  Carbonic acid gives off positive H+ ions, which causes increased oceanic H+ concentrations & decreased oceanic Ph. This PH difference, is causing coral to bleach at a rapid rate. This is devastating the coral reefs of Nanumanga & surrounding islands.  Directories / Credits https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S0025326X21003428 https://spccfpstore1.blob.core.windows.net/digitallibrary-docspdf Strategic Partnerships  Reel Guppy Outdoors Our Loyal Patrons  Ms. Ochoa

Ode To Oceanography: A Nautical Chart of The Western Pacific Ocean This is the fifteenth article in the Ode to Oceanography Series. This series will publish on the 15th of every month, until we run out of antique nautical maps to analyze, though that will not be for many decades. Once that happens, we will keep the series running, but we will change the article format. In these articles, will take an antique nautical map & analyze it in its entirety. These maps will not strictly be on open oceanic waters, they may be on rivers or occasionally, bays. We will also discuss the methods that may have been used to make the map, considering the period, & the country of origin. These maps will come from a variety of sources, though they will mainly come from Maps Of Antiquity, a wonderful New England map shop. These maps will come from varying periods, & will not be in any particular historical order. Today’s map is an antique map of the Western Pacific Ocean. Our map shows the south of Japan, the eastern tip of China, & the northern tip of Papua New Guinea. The map covers an area of approximately 2,300 nautical miles. The map has some slight moisture damage in the upper right portion of the map, & creases in the center & lower area of the map. This, however, doesn’t distort any of the information on the map, & overall the chart is still in a premium condition. The chart is approximately 49 inches high, & 40 inches wide. In this article, we will discuss the map itself, the translation of certain sections of the map, & analyze this antique nautical map. With that being said let us delve into the Western Pacific Ocean.  The Map Itself As the chart is in English, there is no need for translation. The chart is uncolored, & has the names of various cities, towns, & settlements on it.  An Analysis Of The Map This map was created in 1864, by the famous Scottish cartographer & hydrographer pair James Imray & James Frederick Imray. James Imray was the father of James Frederick Imray. The map was created & published in London. This map was made available for purchase by Maps of Antiquity. It is unclear whether or not the map is a part of any particular collection. The map has many different islands across it, & a few different sea routes instructing sailors how to get between said islands. There are no major topographical features outlined other than the ocean, & the islands. The island is very accurate, & there are very few islands missing from the chart. The chart is not centered around anything in particular. It was not made for militaristic purposes, & was only intended for informal use. This map was most certainly made via the lithographic process, due to its maker, & the time that it was manufactured. The lithographic method was most popular for map making between the early 1820s, & the 1910s. In the lithographic method, the artist will draw directly onto a printing surface, such as zinc, or copper, until they are satisfied with the drawing. After this, the surface will be covered with a chemical etch, which will bond it to the surface. With this process, the blank areas will attract moisture to the plate & repel the lithographic ink, while the areas that are drawn on will hold the ink. Water is then wiped onto the unpainted areas to help prevent the ink from deviating. After the map wanted is inked, the paper is laid over it & covered with a tympan, & the tympan is pressed down. Finally, these materials pass through the scraper bar of the litho press. Afterward, an exact copy of whatever was supposed to be printed is revealed. Directories / Credits All credit for this map analyzed today goes to Maps Of Antiquity, a wonderful New England map shop. To purchase this map, any other maps, or any other cartographic objects, please visit mapsofantiquity.com . To be clear, this is not an advertisement for Maps Of Antiquity, as we do not have a partnership with them. with them. Strategic Partnerships Reel Guppy Outdoors SharkedSkooler Our Loyal Patrons Ms. Paloma Rodriguez Ochoa

“Using Colour To Talk”, An Interview With Squid Biologist, Science Communicator, & Nonprofit Founder Dr. Sarah McAnulty Today’s article is very special, as it contains an interview with Squid Biologist, Science Communicator, & Nonprofit Founder, Doctor Sarah McAnulty! Our main writer interviewed with this intriguing Squid Enthusiast on September 11th, 2024. Doctor Sarah McAnulty is well known for her Squid & Cuttlefish Research, Founding of the Skype-A-Scientist Project, & courses with Atlas Obscura.  In this Interview, we ask 20 impactful questions, & get many insightful as well as intriguing answers. Before reading the article, please note that all of these answers are paraphrased & are not exact quotations. With that being said, let us delve into the Contents of the Interview.  The Contents Of The Interview How Did You Become Interested In Marine Biology? I grew up right outside of Philadelphia which is not on the coast, however it helped. I got interested in marine biology by going to the library a lot as a kid, as I was very interested in Dinosaurs. One day, I took a VHS tape out of the library that was a National Geographic Kids Tape called “Really Wild Animals”, which was all about the ocean. About halfway through, they began discussing Cuttlefish, which are very very closely related to Squid.  I was interested in them because of how cool & weird they were, & fascinated by how they changed colors so quickly. I became kind of obsessed then, & wanted to figure out how to become a Marine Biologist. 2. Was there a specific moment, person, or place that helped to spark your interest in Marine biology? Probably that National Geography Kids Tape. I guess the person & the moment that I truly realized this was possible was at Boston University when I was getting my undergraduate degree in biology was during a Lecture Series in the Marine Sciences Department. The person who came to do the guest lecture’s name was Lydia Mäthgur, & she worked on cuttlefish! I went to her talk, & I couldn’t believe someone had that job, & realized that that was the job that I wanted to have. After the talk, I went up to her & told her “Hi I’m Sarah, you have my dream job, how do I get involved or work at your laboratory?”. She responded with “Well, you’re kind of young to be working in our laboratory, why don’t you apply next year? You can work with me & the scientist who works above me, Roger.”. I thought about it & wanted to apply for the job sooner, so I found out where Roger, the head of the laboratory, was giving a talk, & decided to go. He was giving a talk at Brown University, so I decided to take the day off from school & take the 45-minute train ride to Brown, & talk to Roger directly. So that is what I did, & he told me “Well you’re a little young, but you can apply if you want to”.  So I wrote this deranged cover letter explaining “If you don’t hire me this year, you’re just going to hire me next year, so why waste our time?”, which in retrospect was a very silly thing to do, but it worked, & they hired me!  3. What was your first major research project? My first research project at the laboratory was figuring out what pattern cuttlefish decide to put on their backs. So we would put them in these checkerboard arenas & figure out what size of checkerboard causes them to switch between the most common patterns. I suppose my first research project that I was involved in was at all was during my Freshman year of College.  There was a project looking at different populations of these fish called Sand Lance, which are these little fish that a lot of animals eat including Humpback Whales. My job was counting the scales on the sides of Sand Lance to figure out if there were 2 morphologically different populations off the coast of Massachusetts, which was boring. I was also doing Fish Gut analysis on old frozen fish organs, & trying to figure out what the fish had eaten. 4. What attracts you to Squid & how did you discover your passion for them?   I think Squid are so interesting because they have such complex communication systems & behaviors, but they diverged from us evolutionarily so long ago. Over 600 million years ago is the last common ancestor between us & them.  So I think that we have this cool opportunity to look at an animal that evolved on Earth but evolved as independently as another animal could evolve from us. We can see how complexity evolved similarly, like our eyes are very similar to their eyes, or differently with their communication systems. We are using sound to communicate right now, whereas they can’t hear all that well. Some species of cephalopods can hear, but their hearing is not great. They are using color to talk, which I think is just so cool.  5. What is your favorite species of Squid? I have 2 favorite species of Squid, & I can’t pick one because they are both so weird & lovely, but in much different ways. My first favourite squid is the Caribbean Reef Squid (Sepioteuthis sepioidea), I like them because they are really easy to get to. They live around Florida & throughout the Caribbean. They are curious, rainbow-colored, & we have a really good understanding of their color communication system. We understand them pretty well compared to other species of Squid. My other favorite squid is the Magnapinna Squid, they live the deepest of any Squid. They are the best! They are such strange animals, they are so creepy. I adore their freakishly long legs.  6. Do you have a favorite attribute about Squid? I like that they have Donut Shaped Brains. You know, I drive the Squid Mobile, I’m fairly identifiable as the Squid Lady, so sometimes people will just yell “Hey give me a Squid Fact!”, & I’ll yell that Squid’s have donut-shaped brains.  One of my other favorite things about Squid that I like to tell people is about this species of Squid called Grimalditeuthis. Grimalditeuthis is a deep sea Squid & what is strange & interesting about them is that a Squid has 8 arms & 2 tentacles, with their tentacles typically only have suckers or hooks at the end. However this squid has a modified tentacle club, that looks like a miniature Squid. So they will puppet that Squid around to attract food, & when something attempts to attack the little Squid, they will attack & eat that animal. 7. How did you get your idea for the Squid Mobile? The year was 2017, & I was scrolling on Twitter to talk to the other scientists on there. So I saw that one scientist had put a piece of construction paper on their back car window, & it said “Have a question for a scientist? Email yourneighbourhoodfriendlyscientist@gmail.com .”. I kind of loved that, because you don’t have to follow a scientist on social media for people to know that & access that. I wasn’t sure if it would work, but I wanted to try it anyway. So I turned my car into the Squid Mobile, & I believe I put a piece of paper saying “Have a Question? Email thesquidscientist@gmail.com ”.  Then I realized that I’m asking people to have a question about Squid, & then they need to remember my email address to send me & email. I realized that was kind of a lot of steps to go through, & that I needed to make this easier. That was when I developed the Squid Facts Hotline.  I then changed it to “Ever wonder about Squid? Text this phone number”, & that is when things began to pick up. I later changed it to “Want a Squid Fact? Text Squid to this phone number.”. At the time it was a Google Voice Phone Number, & I was individually replying to everyone.  At some point I was having 10 different conversations every single day & realized it was too much, so I switched to a robot, & now a robot texts everybody back.  8. Do you have any more plans for the Squid Mobile? I added some Squid recently that will hold up against the winter salt a little better. A friend of mine, Meg Mendlin, an octopus biologist, printed them out & sent them over to me. I like the homemade look of the Squid Mobile, I think it makes it look even more weird & approachable.  I think one of the real problems we have as scientists is that people think that we are so smart that we are not approachable, & that we are intimidating. So, I think making myself quite silly, relaxed, & homemade-looking, really helps. 9. How many Squid are currently on the Squid Mobile?  About 15 to 20 Squid, the majority of which are hand-drawn.  10. How did you get the idea for your “Squid’s Across America Tour”, & how many speeches did you give on it? At the time I was writing my Phd thesis, & when you are writing your Phd thesis you are sitting in a room for months at a time just writing & researching. I was bored & sort of antsy, & I knew I would be graduating soon. So I put out a message on Twitter stating “Anybody want a talk on science communication or my Squid Research this fall? Here is a general circle of areas I intend to go, if you are in that area please message me”, & 50 people reached out from that. I asked for payment from these people, which whittled it down to 30 groups.  I mainly spoke to University Departments & Nonprofit organizations, & I mostly giving talks about how scientists can better communicate science. I gave a few talks on my Phd thesis as well. Also, some organizations would ask me to do multiple speeches on both of these things.  11. What was the route that you took & how many states did you travel through? I started in Connecticut, & drove down to Key West. I spoke at Mote Marine Laboratory along the way, & spoke in every state I traveled through. Then I traveled west to San Diego, gave a talk & San Diego, & gave talks in almost every state along the way. After that, I drove back across through Oklahoma, Virginia, Tennessee, & back to Philadelphia. 12. What were your accommodations like on the tour? I stayed in Roadside Motels, I camped sometimes, & I stayed in the University provided accommodations occasionally. When I was speaking at one of Mote Marine Laboratory, I stayed in the research facility for one night. I stayed all over the place. 13. Do you have a most memorable moment from the “Squid’s Across America Tour”?  When I was going to go on stage to give a talk at Duke, my father called me & told me that my adoption agency had sent me a letter. I thought that it was weird, & that something terrible had happened. So I give the talk & the entire time I am giving the talk I am freaking out. After the talk was done, I ran off the stage into the next building over, & popped into a random conference room. I probably wasn’t allowed to be in that conference room, however I went in anyway. So I called the Adoption agency & asked them what was up, & they said “Oh, your birth mother wants to meet you”. I told them that I wasn’t in Philadelphia at the time, & took down her contact information. She didn’t pick up my call, so I just continued. My next stop was Georgia, & I don’t believe I had been to Georgia before. I was at the agricultural school there, so I was truly in the middle of nowhere.  I was staying with this really sweet lady, & I feel really bad because I was sort of an emotional wreck at the time. I was staying in between 2 cotton fields, & I was so far out of my comfort zone. So I told her “Hey, I have to call someone, & the next time I see you I might be crying, but everything’s fine, it’s just you’ve met me on a very weird day.” So I called my birth mother & we talked for about an hour, & made plans to meet up in Philadelphia in November. So that was pretty wild. 14. What Inspired you to begin the Skype-A-Scientist Project? I had been doing science communication on social media for a couple years at this point, & many scientists were afraid that they had failed to communicate the direness of climate change to the public & politicians. There was a lot of energy going around, & everyone was wondering “What do we do?”. So I was brainstorming ways that we could mobilize scientists to connect with people, & attempt to overcome this problem that I had been trying to figure out how to solve for years.  I thought we should just try it, so I put out 2 forms on social media, one for teachers, & one for scientists. About 500 scientists signed up, & I was curious to see if any teachers would sign up. 800 classrooms signed up in the first month, so I matched them up, & it worked! This was January of 2017 when it started, & I didn’t finish my thesis until August of 2019. By the time those 2 years had passed, I was able to run the thing full-time. 15. What is most fulfilling to you about Skype-A-Scientist? The freedom to pursue unconventional Science Communication Projects. I run the program & it's amazing, we serve between 5,000 & 10,000 classrooms a year. During the height of the Pandemic, we were serving about 11,000 classrooms. Now we serve closer to 5,000 classrooms a year.  I don’t see the impact of those sessions because I’m not in those sessions, & I know the impact is distributed throughout many many people. I want the most scientists possible from the broadest array of fields to be having these conversations. While it’s good & it's impactful, It doesn’t hit my feelings very much.  16. How many staff does Skype-A-Scientist have?  We have 1 full timer, & 1 part timer. 17. Do you have plans to develop more programs or merchandise for Skype A Scientist? Just running the existing program that we have is a pretty heavy lift, so we’re not looking to grow because we don’t have the staff to do so. But, I love playing with new things all the time.  Right now we are celebrating Squidtember, which is the month of September when we celebrate Squid. We’re working with OceanX which is an advocacy group, & we made these Squid Zines. So you can learn about Squid in these little zines, I designed them! We’ve never done a zine before, so we’re doing one!  I’m waiting on a second grant to make this project fully work, however, I am looking to hire 5 local artists to do a biodiversity zine for Philadelphia. It is going to be a simple straightforward guide to biodiversity in Philadelphia.  18. What was the most difficult part of starting Skype-A-Scientist? Learning IRS bureaucratic paperwork is not one of my strong suits. It is not something I am good at, & it makes me paralyzed with fear that I am going to screw something up. I messed up some paperwork however we got that fixed. That is the worst, it is hard & scary.  Every year keeping our organization funded is also quite difficult. I’ve written 10 grants this year & gotten rejected for 2, the rest of them I don’t know the results of yet. 19. What are the murals like?  We’ve done a couple science education community murals. What I love about them, is that we bring people out to these science education projects that do not show up to science events. They don’t think of it as a science event, I believe they think of it as an art event or simply something fun, & it's great. I survey these people when they show up, & when I ask them about how much they know about the topic.  We had one community paint day that was beautiful chaos, where we had 130 people come out to paint this mural. When I look over the survey, a lot of these people can’t even name a single animal in the Delaware River, & that's great. That means that we are hitting people who aren’t already reading science books or following science on social media.  I like getting deeply involved with communities out here in Philadelphia, & it is so fulfilling & I love it a lot.  20. How many murals do you currently have? We have 2 huge ones in Philadelphia, & one electrical box-sized one in Boston. However, we have street art all over the place, but street art isn’t a mural. From Los Angeles to Australia, to New York. Everywhere I go that has a street art culture already there, I put stickers up.  I’d love to do more murals, I’ve submitted 3 grants over the summer to do murals in 2025. I’m hoping that I’ve written enough in 2024 to support murals in 2025. My philosophy with murals is that you need to put in a lot of effort before the paint hits the wall, on community engagement. The murals take a lot of time. If there were a group of scientists far away from me who had someone willing to conduct community meetings, gather community input, & vote on what the community wants in the mural, then that would be ideal. We begin the process about 2 months before we start painting because we want to give the artist time to design a quality piece after community input. The painting itself takes about 3 weeks. Strategic Partnerships Reel Guppy Outdoors  SharkedSkooler Marine Enthusiasts Podcasts StemScribe Our Loyal Patrons Ms. Paloma Rodriguez Ochoa

The Diamondback Squid Of Nanumanga, Tuvalu This months article series, will discuss the palmate octopus of Nanumanga, Tuvalu. Nanumanga is an island in the South Pacific, it belongs to the country of Tuvalu. It has a very small population as it is only 1 square mile in total. There are approximately 491 people who inhabit the island. It is approximately 3556.56 Nautical / Marine Miles (4092.816154 miles or 6586.74912 kilometers) from mainland Asia, specifically the country of China. It is also approximately 1706.54 Nautical / Marine Miles (1963.851159 miles or 3160.51208 kilometers) from Australia. The island is known for their beautiful coral reefs & scuba diving experiences. The country of Tuvalu is most well known for being built on massive coral atolls, with a large percentage of their ocean having some presence of living coral. This attracts many other marine species which in turn diversifies the area. The area also has a quite favourable climate, with it being quite warm for the entire year. The oceanic temperature changes very slightly through the seasons, so this may attract species that require lots of prey as prey will be available year round. The species that are attracted, form new ecological structures & make others more feasible, an example where this is seen is seagrass meadows.  One of the species that is attracted to the area, is known as the Thysanoteuthis rhombus (diamondback squid). It is a species of squid which inhabits the surrounding waters of the island. The diamondback squid is a small squid usually pinkish in colour, that is found throughout the South Pacific as well as the Atlantic. They are not venomous & usually do not attack humans. This species is found in semi-high density around the island. The reason for this most likely is the favourable climate & the high amount of prey. It is easily identifiable as it has large fins that run the approximate length of the mantle. The fins are most likely the reason for the name “diamondback” as their fins appear similar to a cut diamond. It is quite easy to identify them by sex as well, as the females may be up to a full meter in length while the males may be as small as a few centimeters. In this article we will discuss the life of the diamondback squid, the mating procedures, tactics, practices, & cycles of the diamondback squid, the distribution of the diamondback squid , & finally the scientific detailings of the diamondback squid.  The Life Of The Diamondback Squid The Diamondback squid was first described in the year 1857 by Frans Herman Troschel, a german zoologist. The first work that they were described in is unclear. It is also unclear how exactly this species was discovered. The diamondback squid differs wildly in size between males & females. The species may grow to be up to 100 centimeters (1 meter or 3.28084 feet). However it rare that they will grow to be this size, it is more likely that they will be 85 centimeters long & lower (0.85 meters or 2.78871 feet). They may have a maximum weight of 30 kilograms, however they average at 20 kilograms (66.1387 pounds or 44.0925 pounds) between both sexes. The life span of the diamondback squid is approximately 1 year to 1 year & 3 months. As a species, they do not seem to exhibit any more intelligence then an average squid species. Squids as a whole are incredibly intelligent. They demonstrate problem solving skills. They also occasionally use their tentacles to pull themselves into small crevices. Much like octopi in a way. They also seem to be able to recognize humans & to maintain a sense of identity. It is incredibly hard to tell when this species started existing. However, we do know that the oldest squid species that we know of, began existing at least 328 million years ago. This narrows it down considerably. They tend to not interact with humans & keep their distance. However they are known for occasionally jumping into boats. They also do not seem to show aggression towards humans. They have been captured before & are often sold in Japan & places around Japan. They are migratory creatures & do not seem to stay in one place. However it is a slow migration. They do not seem to be territorial or have a sense of territory. It is unknown how solitary they are & how much they tolerate each other, but they do tolerate each other. This is seen in that they will pair with each other. Pairs of monogamous diamondback will gather in groups of up to 20. They have many natural predators, most commonly sharks, whales, Dolphin fish, lancet fish, certain species of tuna & swordfish. They are somehow, able to make powerful contractions using their mantle in order to escape predators & other threats. These species will all consume diamondback squid if given the chance. A strange behaviour of the diamondback squid, is that they will slowly go deeper into the ocean over the course of their lives. Juveniles will usually stay at subsurface levels for this sector of their lives. Then once they mature, they will begin venturing deeper & deeper. This makes it so that the majority of adults are found in the Mesopelagic zone, & most juveniles are found on the surface. It had been proven, that most adults beyond 400 meters deep (1312.34 feet deep) mostly consume nonactive fish. Most squid on the top consume crustaceans, other cephalopods, & fish of various species. The squid on the top will usually feed in the day time, while the squid in the mesopelagic zone are nocturnal feeders. It is unknown how much it consumes per day. Since it swims rather slowly & usually does not seem like it has that high of a metabolism. It is also unclear as to how exactly it hunts. They are not very active swimmers, they are able to propel themselves slowly using their large fins. It is not exactly clear at what speeds the diamondback squid is capable of swimming at. It unknown as to how exactly they are able to sleep. The diamondback squid is a nice light redish-pink. They have incredibly long mantles with triangular fins & at the bottom they have a set of stubby  tentacles.  The Mating Cycles, Practices Tactics, & Procedures Of The Diamondback Squid  The Diamondback squid mate via sexual reproduction. They are the only known cephalopod species that are monogamous. The females will mature at a mantle length of 500 to 650 millimeters (50 to 65 centimeters or 19.685 to 25.5906 inches). The males will mature at 400 millimeters to 550 millimeters (40 to 55 centimeters or 15.748 to 21.6535 inches). However, they will mate prematurely & will usually do so at a mantle length of less then 100 millimeters (10 centimeters or 3.93701 inches). They are not hermaphroditic & cannot change sexes. Mating occurs in a head to head position, which in the male will use his hectocotylus to attach to the females buccal membrane to transfer his spermatophores. After this the female will produce secretions of an egg mass from her nidamental glands. The eggs will enter the water & will begin to swell. This swollen egg mass will then be molded into a cylinder by the female, after which the females oviductal glands will begin to form two mucous threads, both of which will be containing a double row of eggs. She will then fuse them into a single cord.  The fused cord then exits through into the water through a funnel where the eggs are met & fertilized with the spermatozoa from  the males seminal receptacles that were attached to the female's buccal membrane. The fertilized egg cord is then wound by the female onto the cylinder. A female can produce 8 to 12 masses if properly utilizing its vitelline oocytes. After this, it seems as if the female will simply swim off, leaving the babies to fend for themselves. It is unknown exactly how many fertilized eggs are produced in the end. It is also unclear how long it takes for the eggs to hatch. It is also unclear exactly how many times the female & male will engage in this action throughout their relationship. It seems, that there will be a 2-3 month block in their relationship where they will engage in this action, then will not engage for the rest of their lives.  The Distribution Of The Diamondback Squid  The diamondback squid is found throughout the majority of most tropical & subtropical regions of the world. They are found in approximately 101 countries throughout the world. They are found throughout the Caribbean, the North Pacific, the South Pacific & all through Africa. They prefer warmer temperatures & seem to die in temperatures below 15° celsius (59° Fahrenheit). This is also why they usually prefer to stay in the subsurface area. These tropical areas that they are found in, are usually quite shallow. For example, they are found quite commonly throughout the sea of japan, in the center of the sea of Japan, there is a very shallow area known as Yamato bank. This is most likely very appealing as Yamato bank is both warm & shallow.  They are found around 6 of the 7 continents on earth as of publication. They do not seem to be decreasing in population, so they can be expected to make their presence well known. It is also hard to say if there has been a migrational trend or not, as we are not entirely sure how long they existed for in these areas.  The Scientific Detailings Of The Diamondback Squid  Without a doubt, one of the most interesting things about squids is their ability to produce ink. They produce this ink a means of defence. By producing this ink, their attacker will be blinded as it obscures their vision, allowing the squid to make a swift escape. This is not a common technique of defence seen in oceanic species. The diamondback squid in particular has a reddish brown colour of ink. Chemically speaking, the squids ink contains melanin, enzymes polysaccharides, catecholamines, metals cadmium, lead, & copper, as well as amino acids, such as glutamate, taurine, alanine, leucine, & aspartic acid. The ink is stored in an ink sack in the center of the mantle next to the liver. The squid releases this ink through the siphon, which is located just below the mantle on the opposite side of the mantle that the eyes are upon. Another interesting thing about squids, is that they are completely compressible aside from their beak. Whatever crevice that the beak can fit through, the squid can fit through. It is proven that a squid can fit through an area that is a quarter of the size of the squid. Their beak is their only real hard area on their body, with the rest being compressible. The beak is located underneath the mantle & at the base of the tentacles. This species of squid is not venomous in any capacity. The squid has 3 hearts, 2 branchial & one systemic. The systemic heart rests in the middle of the mantle. The gill heart rests slightly further up. The gill heart takes in oxygen in the blood, & then sends the oxygenized blood to the systemic heart. The systemic heart will then send the blood about the squids body. Their brain rests in their lower mantle. However, this brain is not how we think of it traditionally. It is rather small & does not control much. As stated in our previous article on the European squid, squids do have small brains, they do not have a central nervous system. They do not have a centralized brain that controls the body as humans do. Their neurons are in various clusters around their body. These clusters are known as ganglia. These clusters will control various parts of the body. They also have very are very strange when it comes neuroscience. This is best said by Jade Zee, A professor at northeastern university. She says & we quote “We humans have white matter, which causes electrical signals to travel much, much faster in our neurons. Invertebrates don’t have that. So the invertebrate solution, if you want electrical signals travel faster, is to have a wider diameter axon of a neuron. The very first action potentials were recorded in what’s called the squid giant axon. It’s about a millimeter in diameter, which I know still sounds small, but that’s actually really, really big compared to other nerves.”. Their blood is also blue instead of red. The reason for this is due to a copper rich protein known as Hemocyanin existing in their blood. The existence of this protein in their blood causes their blood to be blue. This is very similar to the iron in Hemoglobin in human blood. This blue blood exists in all cephalopods. This blue blood can be used a pigment if used properly. Their phylum is known as Mollusca. Mollusca is the 2nd largest phylum, just behind Arthopoda. Mollusca is however the largest marine phylum as it comprises approximately 23% of all documented marine species. The three most commonly found features defining modern species categorized under molluscs are the following: a mantle with a significant cavity used for breathing & excretion, the presence of a radula, and the structure of the nervous system. Their class is Cephalopoda. This class includes almost all species of cuttlefish, octopi, squid, & nautilus. Their order is Octopoda. This order contains the same types of species as Cephalopoda. A universal characteristic of this order is that all species classified under this are invertebrates, as well as the presence of arms or tentacles. Their order is Oegopsida, an order of squid, similar to Myopsida. A few universal characteristics of squid under this order is that they have a mantle without tentacle pockets, their eyes lack a corneal covering, & they have buccal supports without suckers. Their family is Thysanoteuthidae, a family comprised of just 1 species, however this is may change. Their genus is Thysanoteuthis, which is a genus of squid. Once again, this genus only contains Thysanoteuthis rhombus. Their binomial name is Thysanoteuthis rhombus.  Directories / Credits  https://animalia.bio/thysanoteuthis-rhombus https://www.dawn.com/news/1286288 Strategic Partnerships  Reel Guppy Outdoors  Our Loyal Patrons Ms. Ochoa

Hello loyal readers, the administration of The Persaud Catalog has decided to merge The Persaud Catalog: Journal Of Marine Biology, with The Persaud Catalog. Additionally, we decided to change its name. From now on, any seagrass survey articles will simply be titled with the phrase "Seagrass Survey" at the beginning of them, & there will only be a single newsletter. We appreciate everyone's support, & attention. Strategic Partnerships Reel Guppy Outdoors SharkedSkooler Marine Enthusiasts Podcast StemScribe Our Loyal Patrons Ms. Paloma Rodriguez Ochoa

This article is a part of our second newsletter, The Persaud Catalogue Journal of Marine Biology. In this second newsletter, we will publish information concerning the various marine flora & fauna of certain places. This newsletter will publish sporadically, & not on a timed basis like The Persaud Catalog. This second newsletter is in affiliation with The Persaud Catalog, however it is a separate entity.  In today’s article, we will catalog the various species of seagrass found in & around Las Tunas Beach, California, United States.    On September 1st, 2024, we sent 2 field agents to Las Tunas Beach to survey the marine flora of the beach. The results they came back with are documented in this article.    In this article, we shall delve into the density of the certain marine plants found around Las Tunas Beach, the areas in which these species are found, & a detailed description of each species.    Please note, this was done with the correct permits or permissions & with previous research, do not attempt to imitate this survey without being aware of the permits or permissions that may be necessary to do so. With that being said, let us delve into the intriguing marine plants of Las Tunas Beach, California.   The Survey Results Please note that all of our data was collected from 3:00 PM to 3:37 PM on September 1st, 2024. The tidal positioning at the time of collection may influence the results of this survey.    Specimen & Seagrass Species No. 1: Zostera Marina (Common Eelgrass) Zostera Marina was the most common species of marine plant found along Las Tunas Beach. It was found in single blades littered around the sandy areas of the beach. This species is extremely easy to identify as it is long, thin, & green. Our specimen was found at the coordinates of Latitude 33°2’22” North, & Longitude 118°35’52” West. Our specimen for this species was approximately 9 inches (22.86 centimeters) long. Unfortunately, it was not attached to any sort of root, so the true length of the main plant it came from is unknown. It seemed to have snapped off from its main stem, though we cannot confirm this. Usually, the stem & root of the seagrass is white. This species is a true seagrass, meaning it grows rooted on the seafloor, like a grass. It usually grows in water of 10 meters (32.8084 feet) or less.    Interestingly, it is the only species in the Zostera Genus along California’s coast. Eelgrass usually grows in meadows, & it often consumed by waterfowl. It is extremely important to the coastal ecosystem as they provide a natural spawning area for many different marine species. This species is distributed from Alaska, to Baja California.    Zostera Marina has existed for at least 8 million years, & has practically always been fundamental to California’s estuarine ecosystems.    Specimen & Seagrass Species No. 2:  Corallinales (Red Coralline Algae) Our next specimen that was found, was Red Coralline Algae. Red Coralline Algae was found the most infrequently as it grows off the coast, & due to the way that the beach is structured, is difficult to wash up. Our specimen was approximately 4 inches (10.16 centimeters) long, & 1 inch (2.54 centimeters) wide. Our specimen seems to have been a part of the thallus of a large Red Coralline Algae colony.    Due to there being at least 2 different taxonomic families of Coraline Algae that grow in the nearby area, it is not clear which species this specimen belongs to. Red Coralline Algae is extremely important to the marine ecosystems of California, as they provide food & shelter to many marine animals. When growing in the wild, they grow upright in large patches, or grow against rocks. They appear purple or pink, have look similar to rough coral. Typically, individuals in this species will reach 8 inches in length at maturity.    Specimen & Seagrass Species No. 3: Unidentified Bright Green Species Of Algae We found a bright green species of algae along the beach, washed up on the sand. Unfortunately after much research, we were unable to identify the specimen. It is very small, at approximately 1 inch (2.54 centimeters) long, & seems to be a large clump of algae that broke off of a larger colony.    Specimen & Seagrass Species No. 4: Unidentified Species Of Kelp Our field agents found a large piece of kelp washed up along the beach, however were unable to identify its species. The kelp broke apart, with the smallest part measuring 7 inches (17.78 centimeters). It has a very long, flat, stalk, with many leafs coming off of its sides.   Strategic Partnerships Reel Guppy Outdoors SharkedSkooler Marine Enthusiasts Podcast StemScribe   Our Loyal Patrons Ms. Paloma Rodriguez Ochoa