Day 1 at USFSP

Today was a pretty great day! We learned some new things in class. For example, I had no idea that there are orca whales actually living in the Gulf of Mexico! (I had to look it up after Dr. Judkins told us, just to read more about it!) Also, I learned a new word: vicariance. This is the geographical separation and isolation of a subpopulation, resulting in speciation over time. Also we made a little trip to Fort De Soto beach today, where we got to work out in the field, identify different organisms and practice different sampling techniques. I was definitely surprised by how much diversity there was in the relatively small amount of sampling we did! Now I can't wait for tomorrow's excursion!

Jessica displayed some awesome cast netting skills!

We found a live example of predation: an olive snail eating a worm!

This sea urchin we found just moves in the coolest way, doesn't it?