Center for Shark Research

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     Over the weekend I managed to put together a rough draft of my proposal. I gave it to John Monday morning and he read through it and gave me some general suggestions.  We also had a staff meeting that day, and I organized some the finclips we take of blacktip sharks in the field.  This just involved double checking the vials with finclips in them, against the data recorded in the field.  After that, I helped Jack unload the net from the Tiburon II, and launch the boat for hammerheading in the morning.

     On Tuesday, Jack, Liam, Ryan and I went hammerheading in Sarasota bay.  We used 9 drumlines and fished in two locations. Unfortunately we only caught one shark, a blacknose, and way too many catfish.  We also caught a cobia (which was used for bait) and a seahorse.  The seahorse wasn't actually caught, so much as it was wrapped around the buoy rope, but it still made it on board, and they're pretty interesting to look at and feel.  Weather wise, it was a pretty yucky day, intermittent rain and sun, with pretty strong winds and current.

     Wednesday was spent putting the finishing touches on my proposal, which was then e-mailed to Jim.  Claudia, Liam and I helped Jack bring the boat in from yesterday, and washed it down and put gear away.  After that I worked on my powerpoint for my presentation a bit, and then began another stint of gillnet repair.  I've found that working on the gillnet in the afternoon is preferable to the morning, because the sun isn't shining on your face, and then once you're done, you can just go home for the day.  So Claudia, Liam and I worked on the net for a few hours, then went to a general intern meeting where we heard a talk from the turtle interns about what their job is like.  Turtle and Shark interns are the busiest interns, and they definitely sounded like they had their own crazy hours.

     Thursday was spent in the lab again, working on my powerpoint and this website.  In the afternoon, we worked on gill net repair.  We came upon a huge, huge hole, which required removing an entire panel of mesh, and sewing in another panel.  It was time consuming, but it looked pretty good once we finished. 

     Friday was judgement day.  In the morning I worked in the library, going over my presentation and later helping John mail rewards to people who called in recaptured sharks.  That afternoon Claudia, Breanna and I gave our presentations to the rest of CSR.  We were told that we all did really well.  I can't really say how I did because I was too nervous.  I have made copies of my powerpoint and my proposal itself so future interns can get an idea of what you’re expected to do. After our presentations, we all took a well deserved break, and then I helped John get stuff ready for the trip to Mexico.  John, Bob, Michelle, and Colin were all going to Mexico to study whale sharks (Rhincodon typus).  In my opinion, whale sharks are the coolest sharks, and I would have loved to have gone, but unfortunately, CSR did not get enough money to support sending interns along as well.

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