Horseshoe Crab Surveys & Backscatter East
I woke up early on Tuesday and Thursday and headed to Swifts Beach in Wareham, MA. During the two high tide points in the early morning and night (during the full moon period), Senior Marine Fisheries Biologist Vin Malkoski and I counted the single, mobile, and spawning pairs of horseshoe crabs. After we randomly picked which end and how far down to start on, we set up our transect and moved down the beach. We end up counting a few single crabs (and recording their sex), and several mobile and mating pairs. The surveys were pretty short, especially with teamwork, and it was really cool to do actual field work for the state!
After the morning counts on Thursday, I made my way up to Derry, NH to Backscatter East. Fred Dion spent his afternoon teaching me how to work my Sony HD Videocamera in my Gates housing that John Ellenbrock from Gates Underwater Products donated to the Scalli Internship! He showed me everything I need to know about my Gates housing, told me about his business, and even lent me his camera light to use in Bonaire. Then, Dave Morton met me at Backscatter East to give me even more dive gear. Bill and Lisa O’Malley from WJO Sales donated a 5mm Henderson wetsuit and a rolling gear bag, which was perfect for my upcoming trip! Also, I received Sherwood Kinesis fins to use with my dry suit (which fit over my DUI rock boots!). By the end of the day, I was ready for bed…and Bonaire!
