Victoria Czupta- UR "There's plenty of fish in the sea"

      Have you ever wanted to meet someone who you idolize and want to be like? I haven't made it quite that far, but since my last post, I have had the opportunity to talk with a shark researcher who works in Cape Canaveral for the environmental group. He emailed me some of the information they collected on black tips, which are one of the most common shark species in the area. He also sent me a few papers he wrote and co wrote about sharks in the area. Once I have the chance to review the papers, I'll have more information to post about it.

      In order to identify the species of shark being caught out in the field, I found a website that had links for a dichotomous key. I took the information and pictures and spread it out in a Microsoft Word Document. This will be used for identifying the species caught as well as general information about that species to help understand it better.

     

Pictured dichotomous key

I am also making a spreadsheet of the information that will be recorded for this project, including the lengths, species, gender, and umbilical scar.                                                                                                                                                      The umbilical scar is basically like a belly button, but on the sharks underside. It can show how healthy the shark was growing up and whether it grew up in a high oxygen or low oxygen environment. The umbilical scar is located on the belly either near the pectoral fins or closer to the anal fins, depending on the species. Also, if the shark is still a "newborn" the umbilical scar will still be slightly open and more pink in color, just like a fresh wound on a human.

Q&A: Aleecia Sec. 65 You say the information you recieve will reduce our fears. How is that possible? I say the more sharks you catch the more fearful I'll be! (LOL) But really what value is your information? What will you be doing with it?

Well, the idea is that knowledge is power. That is how we as humans have worked our way up to the top of the food chain is by knowledge, which allows us to create things to help our survival. But we aren't just animals that go around killing things we fear. The more we understand these animals, the better it will be for us and them, as well as keeping the food chain going. Once a species dies off, the whole web gets altered and can cause a giant disruption to the ecosystem. Once we understand what species come through our waters though, we can get an idea as to what fish are their food, which makes it important to know how much of a species should be fished and during what season. Some of these species just pass through, while others live here year round. With information like this, we can get a better understanding of when it might be a good time to stay out of the water, instead of splashing around in their home. Plus, it would prevent a lot of needless slaughter of the sharks, and injuries to surfers and swimmers.

Renee; UR: Finally making some head way!

Remember RZ stands for Root Zone (6 inches from the plant base)
and C for Contrast (3 feet from the plant base)

Good news everyone! I finally finished my redox and pH tests! Isn't the table lovely? >>>>>>>>

Sadly there are no smoking guns apparent from the table about why the hooded pitcher plants are so sporadic at my site.
At first glance everything appears to be within pH and redox parameters that these plants find acceptable. They love acidic soil that is not heavily compacted. If you remember my last post and the lovely redox chart the higher milli-Volts means more available oxygen and thus less compacted, more aerobic soil.

Now looking at the data in the paired fashion I collected it (RZ-1 compared to C-1 and so on down the number line) the redox potential in the Contrast samples are mostly higher in milli-Volts than the Root Zone samples.  In practical terms this also implies that the soil is looser and probably contains more organic material. Knowing that the site is home to lots of pine trees the organic material is probably pine needles which would help explain why the pH is lower in high redox samples. Really all this table does is confirm what I already suspected and knew. I will have to do some thinking outside of the box to see what other info I can tease out of the data.

Anyway, I got carried away there. A preview of next week: I will have some correlation data and probably some graphs for y'all to see statistically how these numbers relate to one another and what it implies about the soil

Q&A

Q: Joseph Sec1
Thanks for your answer. So what are the favorable weather conditions for this plant? and do they die off when conditions become unfavorable?

A: Sarracenia minor prefers warm, sunny weather with regular afternoon rain storms to keep the soil wet but not flood out the area. So our late spring and summers are the pitcher plant's favorite time of year. These plants are perennials.(plants which go dormant and die back when it starts getting cold then come back when it gets warm like oak trees) They are well adapted to Florida's mild winters and have been shown to benefit like all perennials from the 'rest period' that winter brings. Unfortunately unusually cold winters like we experienced a few years ago can result in damage and even death of the plant. The International Carnivorous Plant Society website has tons of great information about S. minor and other carnivorous plants found in Florida and abroad.

Chris Browne, UR - Expectations

The Outgoing Tides Path from Canal Street

     Bacteria is naturally found everywhere. Fecal coliforms are no exception. E. coli is more commonly found in warm blooded animals, and can live for smaller periods of time outside the gut track. A recent link to the Tomoka River's median expected water levels stated that 46.00 colonies of bacteria were found in the average water sample taken from the river.

Hypothetical Graph

http://www.sjrwmd.com/watershedfacts/factPages/27010024.html
   

Hypothetical Graph 

     My research will tell us what is found after a 24 hour incubation, in the Canal Street outlet, and the Tuscawilla park retention pond, which surrounds the Nova Road area. The map presented shows the an outgoing tide and path of tested water. Notice that there are several square miles of mangroves right where this area flows to. I'll be compiling data next week, and sharing info with E.Reyes as to Tuscawilla Park. It seems I will definitely be counting and identifying E. coli. Here are a couple examples of graphs that I may use, these numbers are just hypothetical, actual data should be sorted                                                      through next week.
~CMB

Dave, UR - No news is good news, but good news is better!

Update time!

I would like to say that for all of the screaming that we hear about "evil corporations," we should consider that the actions of some do not represent a whole. Sparton Navigation and Exploration, who manufactured the two hydrophones that I borrowed from Embry-Riddle, is based in DeLeon Springs, Florida. We called them, hoping to see if they might have some nature of program for educational institutions.  They not only offered an exceptional deal on future procurement, but they donated the first hydrophone!

Daytona State College's Institute of Marine and Environmental Studies now has its own PHOD-1, for this project and many to come! Also in good news, the Television Production folks at the college will be facilitating the analog-digital signal conversion, so more budget got saved!

There is still a bit of technical housekeeping to be done before we dive, but we are finally "over the hill" on the major technical hurdles that had to be crossed in order to bring this project to fruition.

 That is all for project updates, so let's answer some recent questions.

Aleecia, from DSC's OCE1001 class, writes:
 "...what are the different shapes you are going to look at and why these shapes?"

I'm glad you asked. First, let's think about what we know about sound. It's a wavelength, transmitted from one source, and received by one or more sources in one or more locations. The basic components of a sound wave are frequency, wavelength, and amplitude. The wavelength is the period of one cycle, the amplitude is the strength or pressure of the wave, and the frequency is how many times the wave cycles in one second. We measure those cycles in units called Hertz (Hz), which obviously give way to kilohertz (kHz) and megahertz (MHz). 

Everything we know about capturing specific wavelengths, usually revolves around shallow conical shapes like dishes. For the sake of this experiment, we will have 0° flat plates to act as a control, followed by 15° and 25° dishes, and finally a 90° "can" shape. If the dishes work as we believe they should, then we will be able to see the difference between them in the readout data, and that will give us a direction to go. The 90° "can" shape is inspired by collector shapes of certain unidirectional radio antennas already in use, so since we will already be diving, we will try this shape as well to get data from our "extreme" limit. No one has yet mastered unidirectional sound collection underwater, but hopefully the variance we've built into this experiment will give us some direction.

 Aleecia also asks:
"Do you plan on using it to study dolphins in the wild or in captivity?... Do you think your prototype will be able to move as needed to study the dolphins? And while it's moving, will you have sound interference from the water's movement?"

I am lumping all three questions together, for one finite answer. I am developing this system so that everyone who studies underwater organisms will be able to collect a wealth of specific sounds, without much movement themselves. There have not yet been discussions of ROV-mounted variants, though I would love to see that be a future possibility. I am starting simple, with considerations towards a diver-carried unit. Dolphins, like us, breathe atmosphere in order to conduct cellular respiration. This means the majority of their communication occurs in congregated social groups in limited spaces. Why not communicate while swimming across the ocean at high speeds? Well, they have the same problem that the runners of our species do: they're too busy breathing.

Our intention with this device is to allow a diver from the outside of a biological family group to listen in on specific sounds from within the group, without getting close. This way, the diver doesn't risk disturbing an otherwise natural interaction.  So, a bit of water movement can be filtered out with software, but there is little risk of high-speed movement becoming an issue.

As the technology continues to develop, it will be important to study both captive and wild family groups, so as to better compare data.  Through this, we can group what sounds can constitute common "language" for the species, versus sounds that are attributed to one group or the other.

Thanks for the questions Aleecia, and I look forward to more from everyone else!

Samantha, CUR- Determining the health of an overall body of water

Aleecia sec 65.  Have you ever thought about taking some water samples somewhere within the watershed to see what's in it before it gets to the canal? 
Thank you Aleecia, A great question, I have never thought about taking water samples somewhere within Canal street Canals contributing watershed to see what exactly may be polluting this Canal (flowing through the culvert system to discharge).  I am concerned that something like this would not be an option.  The culvert system is underground (although I am not certain on how far down) and therefore it may not be feasible.   The watershed is also compromised of streets, houses, yards making it an urban area, I am not sure monitoring water quality anywhere else would help determine the total and overall amount of pollution associated with the watershed. The discharge point is associated with the storm drain, collecting untreated street runoff from the entire watershed (170.6 acres), and is possibly the most efficient way of determining what anthropogenic (not natural or originating in human activity) pollution is being released into this basin or body of water, discharging into the Indian River Lagoon (IRL).  The discharge point of Canal Street Canal is known as a point source discharge, collecting non-point source untreated pollution which can originate from many different places within communities along with the help of some rain, "runoff" is collected and and sent down the storm drains, into the storm drain system, or in my case the 5x8 box culvert running on the south side of canal street and out at discharge point.  Also, I am specifically focusing on the nutrients within the canal such as nitrogen and phosphorus.  When measuring nutrients from collected water samples, I use methods and instruments (in the lab) which are focusing on Total Inorganic Phosphate and Total Inorganic Nitrogen, which allows a better understanding that the measurement readings are relating to nutrients that are more than likely being discharged into the following body of water (basin shaped canal).   I am excited that you were interested in water quality monitoring points associated with the canal storm drain system.  I have been interested in monitoring further points as well although focusing in the water basin.  I would like to initiate a transect within this canal basin.  When talking about water quality parameters I have been specifically focusing on the discharge point, which I have discussed is an imperative point in determining the effects of the storm drains on the contributing water environment/habitat.  The Canal Street Canal extends from the East end of Canal Street where the street ends and the discharge point of the storm drain lies.  The canal is  ~81.5 meters wide and ~129 meters long flowing East into the Indian River Lagoon (IRL) North.  

Canal Street Canal basin discharge point
on the left where road cuts off IRL on the right
at the end of the Canal basin.

So, I have a adequate amount of data and information on the water quality at discharge point.  The basin however is extensive and therefore due to tidal flow as well as biovolume within the canal I am not certain of the overall health of this body of water.  Biovolume is the term to define cells within a unit amount of water, specifically here being phytoplankton and other photosynthetic organisms, especially algae that thrive on nutrients such as nitrogen.  Which leads me back to the purpose and definition of a transect.  A transect is something like a line from discharge point of the canal to the East or the end of the basin partner of the IRL.  For example, the Canal basin is ~129 meters long and therefore if I wanted to monitor six points within the canal, I would want to stop and collect water samples as well as measure other factors such as oxygen,salinity and pH at every ~21.5 meters.  (Note: this is just an example of a possible transect within the canal and not my actual plan).  Transect research has just begun, Questions or suggestions are significantly appreciated!

Emily UR - Phase One complete

April is looking like the busiest month of this year so far! To refresh, my project is studying nutrient pollution due to runoff and atmospheric deposition before and after a rain. There are essentially three phases for this project, phase one being the collection of "before rain" data from each of my sites, phase two being the collection and analysis of rainwater and phase three being the collection of "after rain" data from each of my sites. I've finally collected samples from both my sites completing phase one!

HPSMP = Halifax Plantation Stormwater Management Pond
TPSMP = Tuscawilla Park Stormwater Management Pond
3 different samples taken per site

I used the nutrient criteria limits of the halifax river because I couldn't find a more specific nutrient limit outside of the powerpoints for this class. In this graph, which shows the amounts of total nitrates (grey) and total phosphates (blue) in mg/L before a rain, I only added the nutrient criterion line for total phosphates because the limit for total nitrates (0.72mg/L) is much higher than any of my recorded values.
Now, onto phase two. I will continue to eagerly track the weather to collect my next set of data.

Last week I was asked a question from former geology student Michael Blevins who asked:
"Are your ponds lined with anything, like clay?" & "You said these ponds are built in the flatlands to prevent flooding; does this mean these areas used to be wetlands and and humans are controlling the water flow to regain land for development purposes?"

Thank you Michael! These questions were actually pretty tough but nothing that can't be answered with some research and a phone call or two. First, the two stormwater management ponds (SMPs) I'm studying do not have an impermeable layer, such as one of clay, lining the ponds. The goal of the ponds are to guide rainwater into them for collection and filtration before replenishing the groundwater. This does make the water susceptible to contamination though and there may be a source of contamination at Tuscawilla Park where levels of Total Phosphates have been recorded above the nutrient criterion levels.
To answer your second question, yes and no, but yes. It is known that when you destroy one environment, you're creating another and that is the case with both of my sites but they differ slightly. Tuscawilla Park was once a bald cypress dome way back before aerial photography had captured it as one. It was drained into these ponds and the once swampy terrain became a sort of upland habitat. The Halifax Plantation differs in that it went from a natural environment to a humans environment over the 50 years between the two aerials below. I was told that as Daytona Beach got more popular, the city thought a nice park you could walk through and play at would be more appealing to tourists than a swamp in the middle of the city. So regardless, yes, land was developed and these ponds are used to manage the water.

Halifax Plantation Pre-Development 2/6/1995

Halifax Plantation Post-Development 1/15/2014

Deanna, UR--Changes to be made!

Red drum

Q & AJoseph sec. 1: Are there any special times of day or bait types that would help you catch red drum? I also wonder about locations like near shore vs open water. Speaking of bait and the fact that you are betting on the fish size to tell you how they relate to regulations. does the size/type of the bait influence the size fish you would catch? i mean if you use a smaller bait (small shrimp maybe) you are more likely to catch a smaller fish and with a larger bait or type of bait (cut mullet if that is even used) you would more likely catch a larger red drum? i'm just wondering how you are going to account for this. thanks for your answer. maybe it will help me to know how to catch the big ones! (haha)

Great questions Joseph! First, there is no specific time or one type of bait that is going to guarantee a big fish, let alone any fish. Fishing is unpredictable- you can be in the perfect place at the perfect time, using the most recommended bait and still catch nothing. With that being said, red drum are a very active fish species therefore, as long as the bait fish are up and moving, so are they. In winter, when the water temperature is cooler, mid-day would be the best time to fish for red drum. This is due to the fact that small bait fish are most active mid-day when the water temperature is slightly warmer during the winter months. During the summer I would say, based on my research, just about any time would be a good time as long as you use a bait they want. It's all about the bait.

As far as the size or type of bait influencing the size of the fish, yes it does matter- only to an extent. The type of bait doesn't really effect the size of fish you catch, but the size of the bait can. If the red drum can't fit the bait in their mouth (they might still try to bite it) but you may not be able to set the hook. For example, if you are using a large mullet or a large lure for bait and a relatively small red drum is trying to bite it, you might feel it on the line but the fish may not be able to fit the bait in their mouth enough to get hooked. And on the other hand, there isn't bait that is "too small" (so to speak), as long as it is detectable and interesting to the fish they'll usually bite it. Even a small bait can result in a big fish. So overall, I would just recommend not using something too large.



Red drum in very shallow water

As far as locations go, inshore waterways seem to be the best bet. Red drum are known to stay inshore for the first few years of their lives and then go offshore, but return to inshore for breeding purposes. I have been focusing my efforts in shallow saltwater marsh type of areas. A good sign is to see them tailing, it is a sure way of knowing they are in that area. However, that doesn't mean you can't catch red drum in open water.
Thanks for the questions!


 
 I had received an email earlier this week from the FWC, since I am signed up to receive emails from them. The email was saying that they are doing a red drum survey and wanting information by any red drum fishermen. This means they are gathering information from fishermen for their 2016 stock assessment. This doesn't cause any changes for me and my IRP. The only current changes I will be making (as stated last week), is that instead of just focusing on Flagler county, I will also be fishing Volusia. Also a recommendation was made to me during my in class midterm presentation to make a map of where I caught these fish, which is a great addition that I will be making.

Pedro UR: Set Backs and Solutions

Hey everyone, developments in my IRP have taken a minor standstill at a major part of the semester.For those of you who don't recall my research is testing for water quality on the Matanzas River and the man made canals of the Venice Park subdivision in Flagler Beach. However, the instrument for measuring dissolved oxygen (Hach YSI 85) was malfunctioning. Unfortunately knowledge of this malfunction wasn't apparent until our scheduled testing day. Dr. Woodall has ordered a new YSI and I believe is having the old one repaired. Backups are good. I was lucky enough to be asked a question this week and it feels good to be able to pass on something I've to others.
Joseph of sec.1 asks, What is a transect of water samples? 

Well Joseph lets say that this foot field represents a map of your testing area. The two end zones would be your starting position and where you plan to end your sample taking. You can plan a transect according to the yard lines for example; A stop for samples at the 20, the 40, the 40, the 20 and the end zone. By definition a transect is a straight line through an object where observations or measurements made, that's why I chose a football field. In the real world terrain or marine environments are not in straight lines so planning a transect is important. Thanks for your question Joseph of sec. 1 I hope I was able to give you a better understanding.

Renee; UR: A huge thank you to my lovely assistant!

Skye, my lovely lab assistant helping me prepare a slurry!
(A slurry is a mixture in which fine particles such as dirt
are suspended in a liquid. In my case the liquid is
de-ionized water)

A very exciting week to report! I actually got to take some readings myself in the lab. I even had an extra set of tiny hands to help me out!
My official science buddy and daughter Skye joined me in the lab and lucky for us both of the tests I was planning to perform are simple enough for her to help with.

We used a Hach HQ11D pH meter to measure pH and a OHAUS ST20R ORP Pen to measure redox potential. As I've discussed in this previous post a redox reaction or oxidation-reduction reaction is a type of chemical reaction that involves a transfer of electrons between two species. In this instance the transfer would be between various molecules that include oxygen such as sulfate and anaerobes (anaerobes are organisms that live and grow without free oxygen) in my soil samples.
Knowing the well aerated(introduced to or containing air), high organic content of the wetland soil I was testing and that the area is thick with pine trees I hypothesized before I began testing my samples that the pH would be acidic and that the there would be few or no redox reactions taking place.

When looking over my results keep in mind that RZ-1
is associated with C-1. Also mV sands for milli-volt.

Unfortunately because of time constraints I was only able to test four of my ten samples. The RZ samples are root zone samples taken six inches from the base of a reference specimen. I also tested one of the contrast or C sample which was taken 3 feet from the same specimen as the RZ sample with the same number. I squeezed this one in because Dr. Woodall and I were so excited to see if there was a significant difference between it and the associated root zone sample.

I would love it if everyone took a look at the results I've gathered so far and tell me what kinds of results you think I might find in samples C-2 and C-3. What might the differences between RZ-1 and C-1 imply?
Keep in mind that per mine and Dr. Woodall's research into soil conditions preferred by Sarracenia  minor (the hooded pitcher plant) this plant prefers loose soil with a pH of 4 or less, meaning very acidic.

Also here is a table to help you understand my redox results a little better. I've even helpfully circled the mV (milli-volt) range at which all of my samples thus far fall under. FYI aerobic conditions contain freely available oxygen like that which we breath.

Q&A
Q: Joseph Sec.1
I'm looking at your picture of a 'healthy' plant and wondering if the size and/or number of 'sprouts' in that one area says anything about the health of its soil conditions? Will you be looking at that?

A:  That is a great idea! I will add it to the list of other questions the tests on my soil samples may help answer. I normally have a problem with trying to look at everything ever all at once so I've been been trying to keep my focus on why the hooded pitcher plant is so sporadic in Longleaf Pine Preserve. Also that is a picture from last fall before the cold set in and my buddies were particularly happy after a fantastic growing season of favorable weather conditions.

Q: Maryanne Sec.65
I'm not exactly sure how to ask this properly but how do the seeds of the pitcher plant spread? Could their location have more to do with their seed's ability or inability to spread somewhere else rather than the condition of the soil? Really neat looking plants btw! I googled a picture.

A: Your question is great and the only thing that constitutes a "correctly asked" question is that the one asked understands what you are asking. ;)  
To answer your question which I understood just fine: the seed dispersal of the hooded pitcher plant is Dr. Emmett's current area of study.  He hypothesizes that the annual flooding experienced by the area is the likely spreading agent and he has advised that he does not see any readily apparent reason for the sparse spread of S. minor in Longleaf Pine Preserve based on his knowledge of the hooded pitcher plant and the locations flooding potential.

Lilli -- UR, My Midterm Proposal

Along with forgetting my post from last week (my brain is simply done with life this week), I also need to post my blog for this week.
Although Dr. Woodall has yet to hand back any of my classmates evaluation forms (Yikes!), I do however have the specific feedback given to me following my presentation. My classmates had several great ideas as to how to improve, perhaps the most helpful is to slow down. I admit this is an issue for me as I get so nervous that I simply begin to speed through my slides in order to control my nervousness and it has been suggested to me in the past that I slow down on my public presentations. My classmates also pointed out that my scientific question does not need to be a different color in order to stand out, I myself was surprised to see it was red when I was giving my presentation as I don't remember making it red, that does not mean I didn't though. Dr. Woodall also pointed out to myself as well as the class that when a mistake is made during a presentation do not apologize simply keep moving forward. I realized half through my proposal that I was talking very quickly and apologized to my class for moving so fast, I knew when I said it that I shouldn't have as Dr. Arcuri in my speech class told me the same thing. My only explanation is that I always apologize for everything, it has become second nature almost to me and it is a hard habit to break.
Aside from the changes I intend to make to follow my classmates as well as Dr. Woodalls advice, I also have revised my scientific question, as well as redesigned my graph to be more appropriate for the data given, though that was of my own volition and was not commented on by my classmates. I also plan to include a map of where my samples where taken as a reference and that is once again, taking Dr. Woodalls advice. Another change I plan to make is to practice by myself as opposed to practicing in front of my brother in law who did nothing but crack jokes during my practicing. And I thought I could trust him! I also thought that if I were to either video tape myself or take an audio recording of myself while practicing that I could pinpoint where my flow and speed issues come in and adjust those accordingly, though to be honest with myself I know even if I practiced for a hundred years I would still get nervous and sick when the time came to actually speak to my class and professor so in some aspects no amount of practice will help, however I am confident I can get a better grade with the implementation of the changes I have outlines here. 

Lilli -- Ur, And the Scientific Questions Is......

I just realized I forgot to re-post my entry from last week so Dr. Woodall with my sincere apologies here is my proposal and scientific question as well as my methods and materials. 
For those who are unaware UR in the title refers to "Undergraduate Researcher", which I and many of my fellow students are.

My IRP (Independent Research Project) deals with micro plastics, it was originally just looking at the amount and presence of plastics in the ocean environment however after analyzing some samples I have decided to narrow my search to the IRL (Indian River Lagoon) and more specifically at least one location has been locked down and that is the Canal Street Canal in New Smyrna. Micro Plastics are microscopic particles of plastic that can be found in the marine environment and occur from many sources. Some sources of micro plastics are garbage that gets washed into the ocean from weather events such as hurricanes, as well as those pieces that are simply discarded by people. They break down due to wave and current activity as well as UV radiation and become integrated into the water column where they are eaten by fish and other marine animals and are introduced into the food chain. It is important to note that there are many types of plastics found in the marine environment and my project will focus primarily on micro plastic fibers. For more information please visit Dr. Maya McGuires website here Florida Microplastic Awareness Project.
My original plan was to work with Mallory at the MDC (Marine Discovery Center) to analyze samples that their volunteers had collected, however after some issues with the integrity of the data collections and filtration methods Dr. Woodall and I have decided it would be best for me to filter and analyze my own samples.  Therefore, my current proposal is to collect and analyze samples collected by Dr. Woodall and my fellow classmate and friend Sam Edel for the presence and concentration of micro plastics in the Canal Street Canal. My scientific question which has been revised at the request of Dr. Woodall and is currently "Does micro plastics occur in the Canal Street Canal and if so in what concentration"? The samples are collected using nalgene bottles and stored for analysis at a later time. They are then filtered using a 500 mL beaker, 47mm glass filters 0.45mm pore size and a Fisher Scientific Maximadry Vacuum pump. After the sample is filtered it is analyzed by myself and I take note of the amount of plastic fibers found per mL of water filtered. 

Image of micro plastic after filtering found by Dr. McGuires team.

Chris Browne, UR - Finer Changes In Location

Q: Joseph sec. 1: I guess I'm confused. You are going to be testing for excessive depositional nutrients, e coli and every other kind of bacteria? I know Dr. Woodall said we should ask only one question at a time but I can't help asking more here. what's the connection between depositional nutrients and bacteria and can you test for e coli and every other kind of bacteria at one time? (sorry Dr. Woodall!--maybe you can give me extra points?)

Canal Street Basin

A1: Yes indeed it has been a little confusing. To make it more clear, I will be testing for bacteria in, after further changes, two different locations, and comparing the results. After discussion, Dr. Woodall has determined that my testing will be put to best use in both of the areas; Canal Street, regardless of the fence, and also Tuscawilla Park. They are from different environments, yet will hopefully shine some light on coliform bacteria in these areas.


A2: Frequentcy of bacteria and abnormal excessive nutrients can but don't automatically go hand in hand. By testing the Park's surface water for bacteria, and then teaming up with Emily Reyes's research we may similar results in that Eutrophic water bodies are adversely effected by bacteria and depositional nutrients.

Tuscawilla Park (E. Reyes)

     


     That being said, and If you had read the Q&A then, you have heard correctly in the fact that my location has changed slightly again. I will now be testing Canal Street and Tuscawilla Park for E. coli, and other coliform bacteria. Same materials and methods, which will be used in a week or so. I will be setting up the autoclave with Dr. Horikami next Friday, and doing the filtration the following Monday.

-CMB

Samantha, CUR- Canal Street Cruise

Canal Street (located in New Smyrna Beach) is an imperative historical thruway for locals and tourists for many reasons.  At the East End of the street, lies a man made subterranean (existing underneath) canal.

Photo from East end of the canal approx. 3/4 of basin which cuts
off into the IRL

Mid September of last year Dr. Woodall, former colleagues as well as myself found that this body of water was hypoxic, measuring at 1.23mg/L(milligrams per Liter).  Hypoxic waters mean that the specific body of water is depleted in dissolved oxygen and thus very little or no  life would be able to live in that specific body of water.  Canal Street Canal consists of a 5x8 box culvert running along the Southside of Canal Street westward approximately 1 mile to the Hickory street intersection which is considered the upstream location.  The contributing watershed (if unfamiliar with term refer to, What is a Watershed) is approximately 170.6 acres collecting mostly untreated street runoff.

Outline of Canal Street Canal (CSC) contributing watershed
flowing East, discharging into a body of water (starting on the left flowing to
the right where CSC discharge is located)

Thus, leading to my scientific question, are there any water quality parameters that exceed acceptable Florida Department of Environmental Protection (FDEP) regulations.  FDEP is Florida's lead agency for environmental management, protecting our air, water and land. In order to maintain waters, the FDEP has a criterion regarding acceptable measurements of nutrients such as Nitrogen and Phosphorus which I will be specifically focusing on.  The FDEP also has a hypoxic criterion, stating that any water quality measurement reading for Dissolved Oxygen(DO) less than 2mg/L is considered to be hypoxic.  I will also be focusing on measuring chlorophyll, a pigment found in photosynthetic organisms such as plants and algae or more commonly known as phytoplankton.  Canal Street Canal is defined as class III water and for more information regarding FDEP surface water criterion can be found here; Florida Surface Water Quality Standards.  With this being said, I have participated in water quality monitoring within this canal at discharge point.  The discharge point of the canal is the point where the affluent from a facility sewage disposal enters a ditch, surface of the ground, or in my case a body of water.  In order to do so, I have used common water quality monitoring procedures listed below;

Materials &Methods
In the field:

• Van Dorn was used to take water samples within the canal at surface as well as depth
• YSI85 measuring oxygen, salinity and conductivity
• 500 mL nalgene bottles in order to store water samples and transfer back to the IMES (Institute of Marine and Environmental Studies) lab

In the lab: 

• DR/890 HACH colorimeter to measure TIN(total inorganic nitrogen) & TP (Total Phosphate).
• For chlorophyll measurements the Fischer Scientific Filtration device was used                                                                                      -47mm filters (0.45 micron pore size)

Measuring depth of canal with Dr. Woodall's handy "concoction"
which is basically plastic tubes that fit together to make one big,
long tube. Consisting of lovely meter markings
allowing a determination of the water depth within the canal
(p.s please correct me if there is a certain name
for this "concoction.")

The water quality within this canal is significant element to maintaining water quality discharge standards into the Indian River Lagoon (IRL) and therefore will be continued to be monitored at discharge as well as possible further monitoring within the extensive canal.  Questions or suggestions are greatly appreciated

Dave, UR - There is no Rosetta Stone for this...

I am still working out how I will get my third hydrophone, and may perhaps have to abandon the tri-hydrophone concept for the initial run this semester, in favor of narrowing my experiment to just evaluating collector shape.  Regardless, I can still talk about the intent and design of the experiment, and keep plugging at getting the right tools in hand.

With a large brain and complex behavior; dolphins are seemingly very smart

Dolphins are thought to be very smart creatures, but there are a number of contributing factors that establish this belief.  First, they have an encephalization quotient (EQ), or brain-to-body ratio, second only to humans. People land at a 7.0, dolphins at a 3.3, and great apes swing in at a 2.2.  This means that dolphins could be extremely smart, because we can understand their brain size, but have no quantitative measurement of its efficiency.

These cetaceans live in a fission-fusion society, where they grow up in a family group, and are then free to travel the ocean where they might live with five to seven different family groups in a lifetime. Through this process, they already have an established auditory and behavioral communication structure that can be likened to language and customs.  To this end, it is possible that we might understand how they communicate well enough to establish some nature of interactive dialogue.

Much of this work has been pioneered by Dr. Denise Herzing, of Florida Atlantic University, over the past thirty-one years. She has established the Wild Dolphin Project to expand her work, and ensure that her efforts continue forward.  Her last research update lecture from last October can be viewed here:

She has grouped their audible noises in an attempt to start pairing them to behaviors, and this is what she has established so far:

•Frequency Modulated Whistles

•Long Range Communication

•General interaction, Mother/Calf behavior, Signature whistles

•Burst Pulses

•Close Range Communication

•Head-to-head behavior, Aggression

•Buzzes

•Close Range Communication

•Courtship, Amorous behavior

•Echolocation Clicks

•Close to Medium Range Communication

•Modal support to vision, “Sonar”

 

The top three are considered "social" sounds, whereas the echolocation clicks are used for hunting and navigation. I will be primarily focusing on the social spectrum; approximately 10-40 kHz.  If you want to know more about echolocation, then check out Jack Kassewitz and his team at Speakdolphin.com.

It is my hope that building a collection array that will allow the direct monitoring of a singular organism within a group, will allow researchers to begin to pick apart the social context of dolphin interactions, and will bring us all one step closer to creating meaningful interaction.

"That's why it's called fishing, not catching."

Red Drum (Sciaenops ocellatus)

Hello, everyone! My name is Deanna DeLong, and my independent research project is focusing on the current size and bag limit regulations for red drum. The current law states to harvest red drum in the state of Florida they have to be between 18 and 27 inches in length, anything above or below these measurements is illegal to harvest. Flagler county has a limit of two per person, per day. While Volusia county has a limit of one per person, per day or statewide the limit is eight per vessel. Red drum are a very active species and are one of the most popular sport fish species in the state. These fish remain in inshore water ways for approximately the first four years of their lives (reaching legal size within this time) and after they often move offshore but return for breeding. Red drum are also known to taste pretty good.

Map of red drum harvesting limits (green
and blue areas- 2 per person, per day.
orange/yellow area- one per person, per day.)

My scientific question is: how appropriate are the current regulations for harvesting red drum in Flagler county? For example, if majority of the fish I catch fall within the legal size limit I would assume that these fish are doing really well and perhaps the bag limit could be increased. Or maybe that if majority of the fish are above or below the limit I would believe red drum are being over harvested and that the laws would need to be more strict or even impose a closed season (where harvesting red drum would be illegal- regardless of size- for a set period of time to allow the population to increase). However, I am considering fishing both Flagler and Volusia county- just so I can fish more areas and better my chances of getting more fish.

My materials are not set in stone due to the fact that fishing is very unpredictable, and you have to be flexible with your materials. But my materials do include:


Red drum tailing- this is very common for
red drum.

-fishing license
-kayak
-rod and reel
-live bait hook
-live shrimp
-popping cork (bobber)
-standard ruler/tape measure

My method is very simple: catch, measure the length, and release.

Update: This morning (March 26) me and my step dad took the kayak out in Volusia county, where the Tomoka Basin and Halifax River meet, attempting to catch red drum. We seen a LOT of red drum tailing and chasing mullet, but had no luck actually getting them to bite. After fishing for about three hours the only thing I caught was a gray channel cat which was fifteen inches in total length, my step dad caught nothing. Better luck next time.

Emily UR - Welcoming fresh eyes

Halifax Plantation SMP

Tuscawilla Park SMP

Welcome to the blog OCE1001!
My name is Emily and I'm interested in nutrient pollution, specifically how much a sitting body of water receives after a rain event has passed through. I've been living in Florida for almost two years now and I've come to realize that this state is known for it's flat topography and thunderstorms just about as much as it's known for it's sunshine and orange juice. In order to prevent flooding in the flatlands, Stormwater Management Ponds (SMPs) are implemented in low-lying elevations to collect this rainwater which is essentially guided into the ponds via the higher elevations surrounding it. The water that drains from the surfaces into these SMPs is referred to as surface runoff and this water collects everything from decaying organic matter to fertilizer nutrients along the way to the pond where it accumulates and alongside surface water heating and low circulation of the water, has a high potential for creating an algae bloom.
I'm studying two stormwater management ponds to compare and contrast how much nutrients different environments will feed a pond after a rain event. The first SMP is located in the Halifax Plantation in Ormond Beach, a golfing community. The pond is surrounded by a fraction of golf course, 4 houses (one of which is currently being constructed) and is adjacent to Hwy I-95. The second SMP is located in Tuscawilla Park in Daytona Beach. The pond is just south of a small restroom in the park and a zipline course. Surrounding the pond are two paved roads and natural vegetation. This SMP is currently experiencing an algae bloom while the Halifax Plantation SMP is not.
So officially, my scientific question is this:
After a rain event, which SMP experiences the greatest amount of nutrient pollution?
To answer this question, I must look at my sources of nutrients which can be either from surface run off or from the composition of the atmosphere during the time of the rain, or a little of both. It's important to note that another student, Chris Browne, is studying the Tuscawilla SMP for bacteria, specifically E.coli which could help to determine if this pond is being polluted from the septic system at the park.
Materials:

• 4 2-Gallon Pails w/ handle
• VWR Clinical 20 Centrifuge
• Hach DR/890 Coloimeter
• Fisher Scientific MaximaDry Filter Pump
• 500mL bottles for water samples
• NOAA Hi-Def Radar app for iPhone
• NOAA HYSPLIT computer model

Method: 

1. Tracking a storm using the NOAA Radar app, I will collect two water samples from each SMP prior to the storm passing through. Before leaving, I will place two 2-gallon pails at each location to collect rainwater for later analysis.
2. Using Method 8048 to test for phosphate and Method 10021 to test for nitrogen with the Hach DR/890 Colorimeter, I will analyze the samples I collected prior to the storm.
3. Upon returning to my sites post-storm, the pails with the rainwater will be sealed and two more water samples from each pond will be collected for analysis. Each sample will be tested using the methods from step 2.
4. Using the NOAA HYSPLIT computer model, I will be able to create a backwards trajectory to see what kind of particulates I could expect to find in the collected water.

 I'm very open to any constructive criticism or thoughts and stoked to have a fresh set of eyes to review ongoing research.

Pedro UR; Canals on the Matanzas

Hey everyone, it's time for a brief recap. I am conducting an independent research project based on the the concerns of a homeowner in Flagler Beach. Mr. Charlie Faulkner is convinced that a nearby water treatment facility with a not so squeaky clean track record may be contaminating the river and leading to excess nutrients flowing into the canals upon which his community was built.

Venice Park platt Flagler Beach

 My goal is to determine if the water in his canals may be affected by a different source like a result of  the canals not flushing properly allowing oxygen rich waters to circulate.The plan is to create a transect of water samples in relation to the canals and the treatment facility. We will be using the following instruments:
MATERIALS:
Boat

YSI 85 oxygen, conductivity, salinity and temp. meter

Hach pH meter

Van Dorn water sampler

Secchi disk

Hach DR/890 colorimeter


Hach current velocity meter
These instruments will measure the levels of nutrients which we will compare to the Department of Environmental Protection Criteria for this area. The DEP sets standards according to the class of water body. This area is a class III water body. Although I have the criteria listed for this class of water body I am unsure how the DEP actually determines classes. This coming Monday will be the first of two trips Dr. Woodall and myself will be taking to begin sampling and I hope all goes well. Wish me luck!

Chris Browne, UR - Location Change, Bacteria

Petri Dish Example

     Canal Street is off limits. Looks like I’m teaming up with another local body of water with Emily Reyes. Suggested by Dr. Woodall, I will be doing the same IRP, just at Emily’s location. We will be testing for excessive depositional nutrients and coliform bacteria, including the big/little E. coli.

Tuscawilla Park, (Pic. ref. Emily R.)

     

     Question: Is E.coli and/or other bacteria found in the runoff area of Tuscawilla Park before and after rainfall, 

and if so just how much and what types are there?

Filtration Set-up

     

Method

Materials: -Sampling container

 (2 tests, 1 control)

-Autoclave

-Membrane Filter Unit:

  Funnel manifold, flask, glass

  Filter (0.45) microns, vacuum

-forceps, petri dish

-BGB broth

-Incubator

-Microscope

     

     

                                              Methods:  1. Sample size should be 20mL min, and the same size

          ~CMB                                                For each sample.

                                                               2. Autoclave entire filtration manifold.

                                                                   24 hours plus cool down, wrapped

                                                           3. Filter method, and set up filter on petri dish, incubate

                                                                 24 hours isolated

                                                        4. Count colonies of bacteria, using formula, report results.

      Equation for results: Coliform colonies per 100ml = Coliform colonies counted  X  100

                                                                                              mL of sample filtered

Renee; UR: Getting back into the swing...

I hope everyone had a fantastic Spring Break and is ready to jump back into the swing of things and do some science! To help everyone recall where I was before the holiday and to help our OCE1001 friends to get into the groove here is a highlight real of my IRP thus far:

A particularly large and healthy hooded pitcher plant at
Longleaf Pine Preserve.

Hello, I am Renee and I love carnivorous plants which lead me to wonder why my buddy Sarracenia minor better known as the hooded pitcher plant grows sporadically despite the wide availability of what appears to be good growing conditions in Longleaf Pine Preserve, Deland.
It occurred to me that while the conditions of the plant-less soil between hooded pitcher plant specimens may appear to be the same as that which the plants are actually found in there are lots of things I can't see with my human eyes that could prevent seedlings from taking root.

Remember: Maps can be helpful when gathering information
on a subject's habitat and when planning how/where
to take samples.

Minerals in the soil for instance I cannot see and are what I chose to base my research on as they have a significant effect on plant growth. As shown in the map to the left the hooded pitcher plant prefers the ecotone (an ecotone is the transitional area between two major ecosystems) between the dryer pine flatwoods and wetter scrub-shrub wetland.
*  I went more in depth about my field site in this previous post! :)

My Working Title:
Sarracenia minor: Effects of Soil Nutrient Content on Growth Habits

Official Scientific Question:
How does nutrient content vary between soil found in the root zone of Sarracenia minor to soil of similar type at a contrasting distance of 3ft.(0.91m) from Sarracenia minor?  

Kids in the car can
be a surprising
advantage.

My Materials include:

• Ten(10) quart sized plastic bags with a zipper seal
• A festive, if unorthodox, plastic cup which holds approximately two cups(480mL) of soil (originally I had planned to use a metal trowel; however, Dr. Woodall pointed out that since I'm testing for metals that may not be the best idea)
• Dr. Emmett's tape measure
• The IFAS Extension of the University of Florida will be conduction the soil tests looking for, K, Mg, Zn, Mn, Cu, NO₂-N, NO₃-N, pH and Loss-on-Ignition. (This test involves weighing a portion of the sample then strongly heating or igniting this portion until all organic components are burned away. What is left is weighed again giving us both the amount of material that is inorganic and the amount that was organic.)

My Procedure in a nutshell:

1. Use tape measure to measure 3 feet (0.91m) and place a flag. Also place  a flag at 6 inches (152.4mm).
2. Use hand to scoop dirt into plastic cup until contents reaches brim.
3. Empty cup into quart sized bag, remove as much air as possible, seal bag and place bag in backpack. Keep in shade as much as possible.
4. Store samples in refrigerator..
5. Prepare samples for shipping to IFAS Extension.

For more fun times and in depth information check out my previous blogs including:
More about nutrients! (plus a fun cat meme)
Cool pitcher plant facts! (plus a few cool pitcher plant cousins)
A bit about my love for pitcher plants. (Starting with a fun fact about myself)