Two Weeks in a Nutshell

As of tomorrow I will have been at the shark lab for two weeks.  Already i've learned and done so many things that, to describe them all, would likely bore the shit out of most of you.  That being said, I'm about to try something that I have never been very good at (understatement?), which is to condense a large story into a brief and concise summary...bear with me.

After a quick puddle jumper flight from Ft. Lauderdale to Bimini, the rest of the volunteers and I were given a tour of the lab and got settled in.  The following day began with a shark dive (see large pic at top of page) where we snorkeled around with about 12 caribbean reef sharks as bait was thrown from the boat.  That might sound sketchy, but they are not very aggressive and i just kicked them if they got too close and they would back off.  We will do a shark dive every month when new volunteers arrive so I'm hoping one month we'll get lucky and attract a hammerhead.

After the shark dive we set up four longlines, each with 15 hooks, for the monthly long-lining survey.  Once set, the lines were checked every four hours by teams of five for a twenty-four hour period.  We got skunked on my first check but on my second check we found a 2.58 meter tiger shark on the line!  When we get a shark we first secure it to the side of the boat and then take length measurements, collect a DNA sample, and tag the shark so it can be identified if caught again.  Leaning over the side of the boat and holding that shark by the dorsal fin to keep it steady was an awesome experience, sharks really are a tribute to the power of evolution.

I know I'm not off to the best start on my "summary", but those first thirty-six hours were really exciting and needed their space.  Things slowed down for the next several days as we underwent a lot of classes and training for the work ahead.  Most of the daily work we do here at the lab involves catching, tagging, and tracking juvenile lemon sharks such as the one in the picture to the right.  Every year around april, pregnant lemon sharks come to Bimini and give birth in the lagoon.  The juvenile sharks will then spend three or so years  living in the well protected shallow waters surrounding Bimini.  Every year the lab spends a month rounding up and tagging all the new lemon sharks in order to maintain an ongoing census of their population and behavior.  As a result, the lab is home to the world's largest and longest running database of an individual shark population.  The current research, led by the badass cello playing, guitar hero slaying, shark wrangling Kristine Stump, focuses on the impacts of lemon shark nursery habitat loss that is resulting from the development of the new Bimini Bay luxury resort (more to come later on that pastel-colored, ecological time-bomb cluster fuck)

So there you have it, a literary Tyler story about my first two weeks here at the sharklab.  Successful?  Anyway, from here on out I'm going to write about individual days/events and likely won't drone on forever like i did with this post...

...even i'm not sure i believe that last sentence. 

Jeanette Clavelle 10/26/1922 - 1/30/2010

My grandmother once asked me if i wanted a sandwich.  When i told her i wasn't hungry, she replied "ham or turkey?"

It was with this unfaltering desire to provide for those she loved that Jeanette Clavelle lived her entire life.  I cannot thank her enough for the values and memories she gave me.  Mim touched the lives of so many people and, most likely, warned every one of them that they would catch cold if they didn't bundle up.

Sitting here in the wake of her passing i am finding it difficult to come up with the words to describe such an honest and caring women.  Instead, i've decided to include my favorite picture that I took of Mim a few years ago.  This photo says everything i can't right now, except for one thing...I love you Mim and I will always miss you.

A belated intro to the Bimini Sharklab (BBFS)

**Disclaimer** -- After waiting nearly two 
weeks for my computer charger to arrive

(don't pack after drinking, you will forget 
things), I now have internet access. Most of you probably expected it to take a while forme to get this together and, quite frankly, idon't blame you. Having said that, I have 
successfully begun my attempt at blogging 
and hope those of you who read this will 
continue to check it out, even if it is just so you can make fun of me (Bret, Walsh, Andy)

or call me emo (Kasey).

I guess i'll start with a little background info about Bimini and the shark lab. Bimini is a

small island chain in the Bahamas located just 53 miles east of Miami. The two main 
Islands of Bimini are called North Bimini and (shocker) South Bimini. Bimini is the 
westernmost tip of the Bahamas and is the closest point to the United States. Bimini lies 
in the Gulf Stream and, as a result, is (was) considered one of the best big game fishing 
destinations in the world. Ernest Hemmingway loved Bimini and spent two years living at the iconic Complete Angler hotel and spending his days fishing, with Bimini providing the inspiration behind The Old Man and the Sea and Island in the Stream. Interestingly, 
Bimini is also where Ponce de Leon believed the Fountain of Youth to be hidden and has
several spots where upwelling minerals in the water are said to have healing qualities.

The Bimini Shark lab, officially known as the Bimini Biological Field Station (BBFS) is a
field lab dedicated to shark research. It was created in 1990 on South Bimini by shark 
biologist Samuel H. Gruber as a place for elasmobranch research to be conducted 
full-time. The lab is very well respected and has appeared on many TV programs including Myth Busters, Dirty Jobs, and of course Sharkweek.

Long story short, I'm living in a converted double wide with 13 other people on an 
Island with an airstrip, liquor store, tiny convenience store, and two bars...maybe i didn't survive college and somehow wound up in scientific post-grad paradise. As far as the
"work" i'm doing here, i'll explain that later tonight because it's our day off and right now were going to the bar for pizza and pints.