Devon's chilly, but having a great time.

Devon's Antarctica Adventures
Journal Entry 7
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By Devon, 19

The science team I was assigned to this week was called the "Marshians"—Adam Marsh's lab. Each team member has his or her own project that has to do with the larvae of marine animals, so I was able to experience a bit of everything.

The Marshians

In the lab there are four scientists, Adam, the leader; Lindsay, Adam's second in command; Paul; and OG. Adam had already left the ice when I got there so I didn't get to meet him, but the other three were a blast and I learned a lot from them. The scientists work together like parts in a machine—each of them does his or her specific job, but they all work towards a common goal. It was great to be a part of their team.

Sea Urchins and Tunicates

With Lindsay I witnessed the fertilizing of sea urchin eggs and watched the cells spit and evolve. It was amazing! I was also shown how to get a tunicate to mate, but we were one animal short and were unable to actually do the experiment. I did get to touch the tunicate and the sea urchins, which are both beautiful animals.

The Mitochondria of Larvae

Paul is experimenting with the mitochondria of the larvae and fluorescence. While I was in the lab, he was working on how the fluorescence changes when the cells split in an embryo. I helped him set up this project, putting all of my math skills to the test. This was the first time he had tried anything of the sort and nothing really came of it, but that's science for you. You never know what you're going to get!

The Intern

OG is an intern and was learning the ropes at the lab, just as I was! I helped her set up some of her colonies of sea urchin eggs and checked them to make sure they were all still healthy. She helped me when I was doing my job and we made a great team.

My Role

My job in the lab was to sift through the "Plankton Tow" and find different species of larvae. A Plankton Tow is a bottle that contains water from about halfway down to the sea floor. There is a net that is used to lower the bottle down that also catches species in its webbing that then become part of the sample. It was very interesting to see all of the different micro invertebrates that are in the water and to find the different larvae. I found three kinds of larvae, a starfish and two types of gastropods.

Past and Future

I particularly enjoyed learning about the micro invertebrates because I had worked with macro invertebrates for a different project and it was incredible to see how different they are in size but how alike most of them are in other ways. I had an absolute blast with the Marshians!

My journey to Antarctica was an incredible experience. I hope you enjoyed reading about it as much as I enjoyed being there. Thank you for sharing this expedition with me.