Today, a cadre of folks from College of Marin visited another local field station (just slightly larger than ours in Bolinas) : the Bodega Marine Lab. Students from three COM courses: Marine Biology, Organismal Biology, and General Ecology made the trek north to Bodega Bay, where we had a phenomenal tour by aquarium resources manager Karl Menard. A few other folks from COM (and beyond) joined us, and we had a wonderful day learning about the work they do at the BML.
Several of us started off at the Fisherman’s Cove for some lunch (amazing fish and chips, although I liked the clam chowder better from the Spud Point Crab Company next door). Then, on to the marine lab. Karl shared with us a bit of the history of the marine lab, and the took us outside to to see the view of the ocean while he explained why this is such an important location for upwelling (winds from the northwest). It was a beautiful, clear and sunny day without too much wind. While we were outdoors, we saw California Sea Lions “porpoising” – leaping repeatedly out of the water while swimming, and diving back in headfirst. According to Karl, they’re doing this to try and evade the Great White Sharks that are abundant in this area at this time of the year. (I’d have LOVED to see a White, but sadly none of them made an above-water appearance). Brown Pelicans glided past, and there were rafts of seabirds floating near shore (but not quite near enough for me to be able to ID them. Oh! And I should probably mention that there were Humpback Whales spouting in the distance.
Back inside, Karl showed us around the building: the auditorium, the library, and (best of all) the area where the research tanks are kept. Here, we met a wide array of cool organisms, but my favorite by far is Opal, a gorgeous Red Octopus. She spent most of her time mostly tucked back in her cave, but when there weren’t that many of us around, she seemed to become interested in us, and she came all the way out, and I was able to get some nice videos of her. She arrived at the marine lab about a year ago, the size of a thumbnail and in not-great condition (missing some tentacles). But now she is thriving, and HUGE, and it felt really special to be able to see her close up like this.
Afterwards, we visited the outdoor “tide pool” aquaria, and everyone had the chance to hang out and chat. I was able to introduce some of my students to Karl, and he told them that they’d be welcome to come help with specimen collection (something I’d like to do, as well). All in all, I think everyone had a fantastic time! It occurred to me, listening to the comfortable banter, that this is what education should look like. I also remembered how much I love this place. 🙂
Oh, and I learned something new today – the road that leads from the main road to the lab? Runs directly above the San Andreas Fault. The Bodega Harbor side of the property is on the North American Plate, and the ocean side is on the Pacific Plate. So cool.
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