Week 1: UWF

Our first week started out at University of West Florida which I am currently attending. It was an awesome week. Both cohorts got to come together as one and spend the entire week together. It was fun getting to know the students from the other campuses.

Monday was spent learning all about stream ecology and how they have an effect on the Gulf of Mexico. Donald Ray was the speaker for the day and he was wonderful. He was so knowledgable and really made me want to help save and protect these areas. I had never realized how much of an impact they had on our beautiful Gulf of Mexico.

On Tuesday we got to go out to Alabama in Perdido Bay and spent the day on pontoons taking a lot of water quality data. It was interesting to see all of the different ways to collect different types of data. We also got to spend the second half of the day snorkeling in seagrass beds. I just recently took an aquatic botany class with Dr. Caffrey and that really prepared me for the day. We got to collect fish  using seine nets, take water quality data, and then do observations on the different organisms living within the beds. Later that night, we took a couple people from each cohort out to Pensacola Beach for bands on the beach. It was a blast. We spent the night sitting in the sand just hanging out and getting to know each other.

Wednesday was probably my favorite day. We went to Pensacola Beach to take readings in the Gulf and then the Santa Rosa Sound. That night we went out to Fort Pickens and got to learn about sea turtles. They taught us about Turtle T.H.i.S and what they are doing to protect the sea turtles in our area. We got to use light meters to detect how much light in the area is affecting the turtles. Even though it was an incredibly long day, it was still a lot of fun. I loved learning about sea turtles and the different turtles in the area. The first leatherback came up to shore to lay eggs for the first time in 15 years. I am really excited to follow the progress of the nest especially because I live in Pensacola.

Thursday mainly consisted of interpreting data and getting started on our presentations. Thursday night we went to the Blue Wahoos game. Even though it rained the entire time, the game was a ton of fun!

I really enjoyed my week at UWF. I have already had Dr. J and Dr. Caffrey as professors but it was great getting to know them on a more personal level. I also really liked getting to work with Dr. Jeffrey and Dr. Eble. I hope to get to know them more as I continue my education.

This week we are headed to St. Pete. I am so excited for the week. I have never been to this area before and I am excited to see what it has in store for us!!