Pam, UR - Scientific research has a plan of its own.

I have given my mid-term presentation, received my reviews, and have much to work on. But that's not my problem.

As planned I've pulled my 80 um plankton net behind the boat during our water testing lab in the Tomoka River. As not planned I have a net full of small ~ 1/2 inch salps. They clogged the net, and filled the inside with shiny transparent globs. Not a microscopic organism could get by this mess.

What are salps? They are oval gelatinous organisms that take in water at one end, eating plankton in the process, and with ribbed muscles, ejecting the water out the other end thus efficiently propelling themselves though the water column. How efficient! The ultimate of eat and run.

They are of the order Salpeda, inhabit all oceans and it appears our river too! I wonder if I'll find any in the northern Indian River Lagoon this Friday. I wonder if they are the same. I wonder if the 'blooms' are from the same source. Hmm... sounds like a new Scientific Question to me.