Week 2 at UNF

     After an amazing week one, it was time to move on to UNF.  I loved UNF’s campus, and it was nice that our cohort had a whole dorm to ourselves (even though we didn’t have a fridge). The first day was cool because we got to see the differences between natural inlets and inlets that have been altered by humans. It was really nice learn about the coquina rock and see the tide pool habitats it provides to marine organisms.

 

    

Now, about the 24 hour study at GTMNERR… It was long and exhausting but I think it was totally worth it in the end. As college students, there is rarely a chance that we get to take part in a study that lasts 24 hours, so that is one of the reasons why I thought it was definitely worth it.  It was awesome to observe the changes that happen between day and night as well as between high tide and low tide.  The first 18 hours went well and I had a lot of energy, but starting at about 5:00 am it was a struggle to keep going for those last six hours.  Everyone in our four-person group snuck in a nap at some point during the study (intentional or unintentional as you can see from the pictures). Overall, I definitely thought this study was a high point of this week because I doubt I will be able to experience anything like this again. Besides our group all being cranky and tired at the end, everything else went pretty smoothly. 

 

      

 

       

 I really enjoyed our boat trip on St. John’s River because it started with us traveling 30+ miles upriver where there was almost no salinity, and we ended up near the ocean about six hours later. It was cool to see how salinity and DO changed as we traveled down the river, as well as how we could see how human impacts like dredging and construction altered the river. Downtown Jacksonville looked really beautiful, but it was sad to learn how dredging in that area harmed local fish and other marine populations. 

As we move on to the Keys this week, I'll give a shoutout to Dr. Hackney. He was awesome and very knowledgeable, and I’d like to thank him for his fishing advice and also his grad school and general life advice.

Downtown Jacksonville

Catching the sunrise on the beach during the 24 hour study

Found him on UNF's campus