Mola mola – NOAA Teacher at Sea Blog

August 19, 2025August 20, 2025

Joshua Gonzalez: Sitting on the Dock of the Bay: August 18, 2025

NOAA Teacher at Sea

Joshua Gonzalez

Aboard NOAA Ship Bell M. Shimada

August 11 – August 23, 2025

Mission: Integrated West Coast Pelagics Survey (Leg 4)

Geographic Area of Cruise: Pacific Ocean, California Coast

Today’s Date: August 18, 2025

Weather Data from the Bridge:

Location: Newport, Oregon

Wind speed: 4.1 kts.

Wave height: 6-7 ft.

Air temp.: 15.5° C (60° F)

Sky: Clear

Science and Technology Log

Today we are heading back out to sea., emphasis on back. We had to make a brief stop back in Newport due to a malfunction with the fog horn. Since it had been very foggy, it was not safe. We had to wait in Newport for maintenance.

a view of NOAA Ship Bell M Shimada in port at night. it is low tide, so the hull is not very visible above the dock. — NOAA Ship *Bell M. Shimada* back in Newport.

Therefore, we have not been doing any fishing since my last post. However, now that it has been repaired we are on our way again. It will take about 15 hours until we are back at the transects that we need to survey. We are all very excited to begin fishing again. In the meantime, in order to learn more about what it takes to be a full time NOAA scientist, I thought it would be a good idea to interview one of the scientists working with me on NOAA Ship Bell M. Shimada about his role on this mission.

Meet Gary Longo – Research Scientist 2 NOAA Southwest:

a man stands for a photo on the deck of NOAA Ship Bell M. Shimada. we can see the port of Newport in the background. — Gary Longo in Newport.

Why is your work important?

My work is important because it helps inform management and stock assessors of population structure within federally managed fisheries, because understanding population structure is critical to effective management.

What do you enjoy most about your work?

My favorite part of my job is getting to the point that you see results from data analysis, because often to get to that point it involves time in the field, collecting samples, extracting DNA in the lab, and preparing libraries for sequencing, analyzing the data, and finally starting to see the picture with the results of all your hard work.

Where do you do most of your work?

Most of my work is done at the Southwest Fisheries Center in La Jolla, California. However the species: pacific sardine, northern anchovy, lingcod, and various rock fish species, that I focus on in my work are generally distributed in the northeast Pacific.

What tool do you use in your work that you could not live without?

My computer, for running analysis and writing up results.

If you could invent any tool to make your work more efficient and cost was no object, what would it be and why?

An autonomous vehicle that hunted fishes and was non lethal but took tissue samples and sequenced each sample’s genome.

When did you know you wanted to pursue a career in science or an ocean career?

When I was at the Monterey Bay Aquarium I realized that my heart wasn’t into medicine, which I was studying at the time. I was a member at the aquarium and went there all the time and I thought this is what I want to do.

What part of your job with NOAA did you least expect to be doing?

Extra paperwork.

How do you help wider audiences to understand and appreciate NOAA science?

I try to explain things that I would want my grandmother to understand. Generally speaking when I am on hikes or birding I speak with curious people and try to engage with them.

How did you become interested in communicating about science?

I became interested when I became a teacher’s assistant in grad school and an instructor in ichthyology at UC Santa Cruz.

What’s at the top of your recommended reading list for a young person exploring ocean or science career options?

One of my favorites is Song of the Dodo by David Quamman. That’s a great book about island biogeography and the importance of habitat connectivity

What do you think you would be doing if you were not working for NOAA?

Using my dive masters to share my passion of diving with interested folks.

Do you have any outside hobbies?

I enjoy surfing, birding, hiking, and scuba diving.

Gary and the other scientists working on board NOAA Ship Bell M. Shimada have been amazing. They are all very passionate about their work, and very knowledgeable about everything we are studying on this mission. It is inspiring to work with people who care so much about their work.

Personal Log

Maybe some of you have heard the expression, “Hurry up and wait.” I have heard that off and on at various times throughout my life. This part of our mission has seemed to embody the sentiment behind the expression like few other times I have experienced.

Getting ready for this mission seemed like a whirlwind with balancing my life at home with my family and trying to prepare mentally and physically for my time on NOAA Ship Bell M. Shimada. Once I was in Newport things slowed down a little while adjusting to life onboard and making our way out to our first transect. Then business really picked up and everything was full of excitement and energy. Processing our first catch was a time filled with enough adrenaline to make all of us forget that it was one in the morning.

Then when the fog horn went out of commission everything came to a proverbial screeching halt. Hurry up, now wait. The initial feelings of frustration, restlessness, and even anxiety were pervasive. There were even temptations to gripe and have a “woe is me” type of attitude. Unfortunately, in life sometimes we have to deal with setbacks due to circumstances that are beyond our control.

I work through tough or frustrating situations in life by taking a step back to gain some perspective, and remembering that there are things outside of my life that are bigger and more important. My hope is built on nothing less. All other ground is sinking sand. When I put my life in a better perspective, I know there will be brighter days, and the things that were bothering me no longer seem so pressing.

Heading out to sea again has reinvigorated everyone onboard. We are chomping at the bit, and I think we are just going to rip it. Pull back and let the big dog eat. There is an excitement that is palpable. Being with people who care deeply about their work is a blessing. I want to take back as much as I can from this experience to my classroom for my students, but I want to remember that desire to do my work and do it well most of all. Hopefully, very soon we will be so busy processing catches and recording data that I will be nearly too tired to write, but when I do I’m sure I’ll have lots to say. Let’s hurry up!

portrait photo of Josh wearing a Teacher at Sea hat and a sweatshirt that says I Survived the Polar Bear Plunge, Bradford Beach, Milwaukee. He stands at the railing, and in the distance we can see the port of Newport. — Heading back out to sea!

Did You Know?

An otolith is a small structure found inside fish which helps them detect sound and keep their balance. Otoliths grow inside fish throughout their life and can be used to determine their age, almost like a tree, by counting the growth rings. Pretty cool!

Can you identify this species?

a mola mola swimming on its side at the ocean's surface — Mola Mola, aka. Ocean Sunfish

In my opinion, one of the coolest fish names, mola mola. They are also referred to as an ocean sunfish. Mola mola have a jellyfish based diet and can grow to be very large, on average 2200 pounds and six to seven feet wide. I spotted this one from the flying bridge on our way back to Newport. I speculate it was a little more than half those sizes.

July 19, 2025July 22, 2025

Jacqueline Omania: First Mola Mola and First Days Afloat!

Jacqueline, wearing a Teacher at Sea beanie, sits in an observer's chair anchored to the deck of the flying bridge. She holds a pair of binoculars with both hands. She turns her head from the binoculars to pose for a photo. Beyond, over the railing, we see that the sky is fairly cloudy and the seas are mild.

NOAA Teacher at Sea

Jacqueline Omania

Aboard NOAA Ship Reuben Lasker

July 14 – July 24, 2025

Mission: Oceanographic and Biological Monitoring of Davidson Seamount

Geographic Area: Davidson Seamount/Monterey Bay National Marine Sanctuary

Date: July 16, 2025

Weather Data from the Bridge

Latitude: 35° 42.48’ N

Longitude: 122° 22.29’ W

Wind Speed: 3.1 knots

Wave Height: 3-4 ft.

Air Temperature: 16.2°C/ 61°F

Sky: Overcast

Science and Technology Log:

After a day of transit, we reached our location in Monterey Bay National Marine Sanctuary, the Davidson Seamount, an undersea mountain habitat 80 miles southwest of Monterey. At 7,480 feet tall and with its summit still 4,101 feet below the ocean surface, Davidson Seamount is one of the largest known seamounts in U.S. waters. It hosts a large number of deep-sea species-like coral forests, sponge fields, crabs, shrimps and deep-sea fish-as well as a great diversity of marine mammals and sea birds. While the deep-sea habitat of the seamount has been well studied, the area above the top of the seamount has not. Thus, this environment is the focus of our research. We are working to observe marine mammal and bird life and to measure water conductivity (salinity), temperature, and depth (also known as CTD), and to collect environmental DNA (or eDNA, the genetic material shed by organisms in the water) data to give a more complete picture of the rich and interdependent food web above the seamount.

At the moment, we have completed our first day of observations and collections. The scientists work in two groups. One group is on the flying bridge (highest deck) and is observing and recording birds and mammals over a set distance with the ship traveling at the same speed (10 knots) each time.. The other group, in the wet lab, is managing the CTD data and eDNA collection. The chart below shows our CTD data collection stops on the transects over the seamount. We started at 24W and progressed to 24E on day one. Now as I write on day two, we are on 20M.

bathymetric map of the ocean around Davidson seamount, overlaid with straight magenta-colored transect lines. symbols along the transect lines reflect different types of planned sampling: a red circle is CTD only, a yellow circle is CTD and shallow eDNA sampling, and blue square (appearing directly above the seamount) is for CTD, shallow, and deep eDNA sampling. the title of the map is "Davidson Seamount, 50 miles offshore of central California." There's a small inset map in the corner showing the location of the seamount off the coast of California, south and offshore of Monterey. — Map of planned transects around Davidson Seamount.
Image Credit: Chad King/MBNMS

What is a CTD?

A CTD rosette is an instrument used to measure conductivity, temperature and depth. Conductivity readings tell us how salty the water is because salinity affects how electricity moves through water. The device is a large cylindrical instrument, with a circle of 12 Niskin bottles, that is lifted by a very large winch and pulley system into the ocean. The caps to the bottles are open as the CTD rosette descends into the ocean. The device itself electronically collects CTD data along the round trip to 1000 meters and will do so at every location on the transect both in the day and in the night. For the water samples which capture the eDNA, the scientists close the caps on the bottles remotely to capture water at the depth of choice. For our eDNA samples at the yellow dots, we are collecting at 500 meters and the surface (0 meters) as the CTD rosette travels up. For the blue dots, we will collect eDNA at 0m, 500m and 1500-1700m. We are working hard to collect as much data as we can above the Davidson Seamount to better understand the relationship between oceanographic variables and the lives of marine organisms.

top down view from a high deck (probably the flying bridge) of the CTD just below the surface, connected to the pulley that is raising it back out of the water. it is a round apparatus housing the probe and a circle of water sampling bottles. — Raising the CTD back up to the Lasker

top down view from a high deck (probably the flying bridge) of the CTD suspended above the railing by a pulley as scientists raise it back out of the water. it is a round apparatus housing the probe and a circle of water sampling bottles. — Raising the CTD back up to the Lasker

two crewmembers wearing white hard hats, life vests, and gloves work to pull the suspended CTD back over the railing and lower it safely onto the deck. — Landing the CTD on deck

Science in the Wet Lab:

Once the CTD rosette returns, the scientists collect sterile samples in small vials. First (image 1), 500ml of water is slowly run through a tube that forces the water through a very fine filter (imagine something like a disk shaped coffee filter). The filter (image 2), captures the eDNA which is then put into a small 2 ml vial with a preservative. This vial (image 3) will be processed by MBARI (Monterey Bay Aquarium Research Institute) which is dedicated to the study of our ever-changing ocean. The eDNA samples will allow scientists to identify species which have been in the area, although we have not physically seen them, by analyzing the genetic materials the organisms have shed. Thus, when combined with the actual physical observations, we will have a more complete picture of the ecosystem at Davidson Seamount.

(1) Filtering the water samples
(2) Preserving the filter
(3) Labels and datasheets

Science on the Flying Bridge:

The flying bridge, the highest deck on the ship (about 50 ft. above sea level), is where the mammal and bird scientists work. They divide the areas of observation into two 90 degree quadrants facing the direction of travel. Observations are recorded at specific time intervals from 7:30 am to 5 pm and only happen when the ship is traveling. As the observers call out, a recorder enters the data. There is a special order in which behaviors and details are entered. For birds the order of details recorded is: species, number, distance from ship (100m, 200m etc.), behavior (sitting on water, eating etc.) and direction of flight. For marine mammals, the order is: how first seen, what method (eye, binoculars), direction from ship, reticule (distance taken from binocular lines), animal’s activity, age/sex, species, number and any other comments. Since there are 4 observers calling out, taking turns is necessary. Also spotting a mammal takes precedence over birds- so mammal observers are allowed to interrupt and share their observations. All of this data is compiled daily. On our first day, we noted 331 sightings of which 284 were birds and 47 mammals. Today, Wednesday, we had 303 observations with 274 birds and 29 mammals. Most of the birds today were Red-necked Phalaropes and the mammals were fur seals. Red-necked Phalaropes, of which we saw 107 individuals, breed in the Arctic and then migrate to winter in South America.

view of an upper deck with a shade covering. nine people are visible along the railing; two tit on higher chairs while the rest stand. they all face away from the camera. the sky and the sea are gray. — The Flying Bridge

All of this research is possible through excellent teamwork. Just as in our school, Oxford Elementary, we have a team of the principal, a secretary, teachers, instructional assistants, specialists, afterschool staff, maintenance and food service, our work on Rueben Lasker requires a team of the scientists, the ship crew and the NOAA Corps officers. I am part of the science team which is led by chief scientist Chad King from Monterey Bay National Marine Sanctuary and has four scientists from the sanctuary and four from Point Blue, a conservation organization that works both on land and sea. In future blogs, I will be spotlighting members of both the science team and the ship team to share their work.

Personal Log:

My first days on the ship have been wonderful. The entire community is so welcoming and are always checking in and willing to share their work. I have learned a great deal of new vocabulary that is important to get around the ship. My room is called “a stateroom,” the bathroom “a head,” and each floor is a “deck.” We eat in the dining room called the “ mess” and the food is made in the “galley” (kitchen). The front of the ship is “bow” and the back “stern,” while the right side is “starboard” and the left is “port.” I am learning my way around the ship- it is a bit of a maze of doors and levels. The first day, I spent an hour going up and down and around trying to find the acoustic lab to join the card games without luck. Now my orientation is better, and I know where the acoustic lab is; each day, though, I continue to notice more special doors or sections of the ship that I have never seen before.

I feel incredibly safe at sea due to the great teamwork. Chad, our chief scientist, meets with NOAA Corps and the crew twice a day- at sunrise and sunset- to discuss operations and gain feedback on the day. Our science team also meets at 8 pm daily to discuss both science and general well-being. On our second day at sea, the entire ship had both a fire drill and an abandon ship drill. For the fire drill, we had to go to our muster station- indicated on our bunk card – and wait for the ship crew to do their practice. This experience is much like fire drills at school where we make sure everyone is accounted for. For the abandoned ship drill, we had to put on the red survival suit. We were lucky we got to practice in the mess. It is a bit like struggling into the most awkward Elmo costume. Once you get your hands in, you lose dexterity and yet you still need to zip up your suit and pull up the head covering all on your own. With coaching by NOAA Corps officer, Lt. Mike Fuller, I made it! This suit will give you insulation and buoyancy to prevent hypothermia and drowning in case of the need to abandon ship.

close-up view of a card attached by a magnet to a metal door. It reads: TAS Omania, Jacqueline. and then lists three sets of muster locations for Fire & Emergency, Abandon Ship, and Mariner Overboard. The three scenarios also include depictions of the corresponding morse code, shown as boxes or rectangles — Emergency Bunk Card

Immersion Suit Practice with coach Lt. Fuller.

Jacqueline, wearing the orange survival suit, raises her hands in triumph. we recognize the mess hall in the background. — Immersion Suit Practice with coach Lt. Fuller.

Life aboard Rueben Lasker is quite comfortable. I share a stateroom with Amity Wood, who works with Monterey Bay National Marine Sanctuary in education and communication. She kindly let me have the bottom bunk. We have our own bathroom and shower and lockers to store our clothes in. Now, a few nights in, I am getting used to sleeping with the constant rocking. Overall, life aboard the ship is like being forever in a fun house. Everything moves- the hallways, the doors, the decks and the ladder like stairs. As you walk, you learn to keep your steadiness and constantly adjust despite it all. Metaphorically, this skill of always adjusting and adapting yourself to stay balanced no matter what happens is a great life skill.

view in the stateroom. we see two bunk beds with individual curtains; a window; a chair at a desk out of frame. — Stateroom

view down a narrow interior hallway, lined with a railing for safety. on the left wall is a whiteboard decorated with photos of the crewmember and fish stickers. announcements are posted on the wall beyond the whiteboard. — Stateroom

The highlight of my experience so far is being able to spend my day 50 ft above sea level on the flying bridge surrounded by the deep blues to silver greys of the ever-changing Pacific Ocean. We began with amazing views of the Bay Bridge and the Golden Gate Bridge after we left our port of Alameda. Though I know the San Francisco Bay well, the chance to see it with the birds’ eye view was a special gift. I could see details I’d never seen before- such as the inside of a container loader’s cabin and the underside of both bridges.

view of a large bridge from underneath. the sky is blue with some haze. the water is mostly still - only a fine ripple - and we can see the shadow of the bridge on the water's surface. at the far end of the bridge is a city skyline with high rises; beyond that, a distant mountain range. — Oakland Bay Bridge

view of Golden Gate Bridge as the ship approaches from the east; we see the hills of Marin beyond the span. the top of the bridge is obscured by fog. — Golden Gate Bridge

view of the Golden Gate Bridge as seen from directly underneath: a long black span stretching above our heads. at the far end of the bridge we can see the hills of Marin partially obscured by fog. the sky is gray and cloudy, another vessel motors toward this, leaving a wake. — Golden Gate Bridge

ten people pose for a group photo on an upper deck of NOAA Ship Bell M Shimada; they have timed it so that the Golden Gate Bridge (shrouded in fog) is centered behind them. Most people wear jackets, hats, and sunglasses. — Science Team

Once we left the Bay, heading toward Monterey Bay National Marine Sanctuary, we sailed past several humpback whales, brown pelicans and cormorants. Each day, I learn more about scientific animal observation. I now know how to first spot an animal with your eye and then bring your binocular up to your face at the line of vision. You must not look down ever in the process or you will lose the animal you are focusing on. I am fairly new to birding- even though I started birding with my class this year. We gave ourselves the challenge to learn 6 local Berkeley birds and experienced birding at the Berkeley Marina, where most children saw their first ‘lifer’ – the Great Blue Heron. I’d love my students to see me now– as I am seeing ‘lifers’ every hour of the day! (A ‘lifer’ is the first time a bird species is seen by an observer.)

Animal observation takes time and patience and precision. At first, every time I spotted an animal, by the time I lifted the binoculars, it was gone. With practice, I’ve gotten better and each day is filled with wonder. I have a goal to personally see at least one new species a day. On Monday it was a Black-footed Albatross. On Tuesday, after missing out time after time…. I actually saw -– a Mola mola!

Did you know?

The Mola mola, also known as Ocean Sunfish, is the heaviest bony fish in the world. They can be up to 14 feet long and weigh 4,400 pounds. They average at 550-2200 pounds. Mola mola are silvery grey with a tiny mouth, big eyes, a flattened body and no tail. Because they spend much of their time near the surface, they are very sensitive to entanglement and plastic pollution. In my sighting, I saw the dorsal fin first and then the giant body through the water. You can see Mola mola at the Monterey Bay Aquarium.

top down view of a mola mola swimming at the ocean surface — Mola mola in the ocean. Photo Credit: NOAA

A vivid view of a mola mola swimming underwater, possibly in a tank — Mola mola. Credit: The Nature Conservancy.

July 3, 2019July 7, 2019

Karah Nazor: Cool Catch Highlights, June 2-7, 2019

NOAA Teacher at Sea

Karah Nazor

Aboard NOAA Ship Reuben Lasker

May 29 – June 7, 2019

Mission: Rockfish Recruitment & Ecosystem Assessment

Geographic Area: Central California Coast

Date: June 2-7, 2019

June 2, 2019 Game Plan and Trawling Line: 5 hauls in the Piedras Blancas Line near San Simeon, CA. Piedras Blancas is known for its Northern elephant seal colony, M. angustirostris. Hauls were conducted outside of the marine reserve and we did not encounter seals.

Catch Highlights: The night started off with excitement when Keith Sakuma brought in an Pacific electric ray, Torpedo californica, and we all got to see it up close before releasing.

Keith S and electric ray — Chief Scientist Keith Sakuma holding a Pacific electric ray, *Torpedo californica*

In Haul 3 we collected a pelagic octopus, Ocythoe tuberculata, shown below. Chromatophores in cephalapods, including squid, cuttlefish and octopus, are complex organs made up of both muscle and nerve and provide the ability for the animal to rapidly change its skin color in order to blend into the surrounding environment to avoid predation, communicate, or send a warning signal. It was impressive to watch the chromatophores at work as the pelagic octopus attempted to blend into the white background of his tank by turning white (see photos below) We released it back to the sea.

Pelagic octopus chromatophores — Pelagic octopus (*Ocythoe tuberculata*) with chromatophores expressing orange, purples and pinks. The beak is exposed here.

The differences in skin coloration of the five primary squid species we are catching including Boreal Squid, Blacktip Squid, Unknown Squid, Gonadus Squid, and Market Squid (see image below) are noteworthy. While living market squid exhibit brown, pink and purple skin color (see image below) the Chiroteuthis squid tentacle displays orange and red chromatophores (see image below).

Common squids in our catches. From top to bottom, Boreal Squid, Blacktip Squid, unknown species, Gonadus Squid, and Market Squid.

Living market squid exhibiting brown, pink and purple chromatophores.

Pink and purple chromatophores on the mantle of a market squid.

In Haul 4 we collected a Cranchia scabra, which Chief Scientist Keith Sakuma calls the “baseball squid” or glass squid whose body is covered with tubercles (brown spots on mantle in photo below). This animal attempted to hide from us by turning white, retracting its tentacles and inflating himself into a ball, somewhat resembling a baseball. After a few pictures, we released it back to the sea.

Cranchia scabra or "baseball squid" — *Cranchia scabra* or “baseball squid”

Another exciting deep-sea creature, the Pacific hatchet fish, Argyropelecus affinis, was collected in a bongo net deployed prior to CTD, for Dr. Kelly Goodwin’s eDNA research. The fish we collected below still has intact blue scales due to being well preserved in the bongo. The hatchet fish lives in mesopelagic zone down to 2000 m depths where the CTD sensors recorded a temperature of four degrees Celsius! Hatchet fish have upward facing eyes and mouths and swim up to the the epi-pelagic zone at night to feed on salps and krill.

Kelly conducted a quick surface bucket dip prior to CTD deployment in which we found a small (~2 inch) siphonophore, which I was very excited about since this was my first one to ever see in person! Siphonophores are colonial Cnidarians composed of individual animals called zooids. Moss Landing Graduate Student Kristin Saksa and I were able to confirm the identification of this beautiful creature as a siphonophore using an invertebrate field guide that Keith Sakuma brought on board. Perhaps due to the temperature change from being in the sea to being observed in a cell culture dish under the microscope, the siphonophore broke apart into its individual zooids right in front of my eyes. See before and after photos below.

Intact Siphonophore colony from bucket dip, note tip or “hat” at the bottom on the animal.

individual siphonophore zooids — Siphonophore individual zooids appear as semi circles consisting of small brown semi-circles.

Tonight I was also able to observe living salps that were pulled up in the bongo net and take a video. It was neat to see the salps pulsing.

Haul 5 was a massive haul full of pyrosomes, Pyrosoma atlanticum. Kristin Saksa volunteered to stir the bucket of pyrosomes (using her arms) so that we could obtain an accurate distribution of organisms for the initial volume count and analysis. As I video of this event (see stills from the video below), we were all laughing and realized that Kristin may be the only human on Earth who has ever stirred pyrosomes.

Kristin stirring pyrosomes — Kristin Saksa stirring a bucket full of *Pyrosoma atlanticum*

In haul 5 we were surprised to find a Giant 7-armed Atlantic octopus, or blob octopus. Keith Sakuma explained that the males have 7 arms as the fifth is a sex appendage whereas the female has 8 arms. After photographing this beautiful deep-sea octopus, we released him back to the sea.

blobtopus — Giant Seven-Armed Atlantic Octopus or “blob octopus”

June 3, 2019 Game Plan and Trawling Line: 5 hauls Outside Monterey Bay

Catch Highlights: Two of the hauls produced a lot of krill. The hauls had a high species density with a lot of myctophids, salps and blue lanternfish. Such hauls are time consuming to sort so as not to overlook something new and small. In one of the hauls we found a new-to-me myctophid called Nanobrachium. I dissected some of the fish and found that CA lanternfish and Northern anchovies were full of eggs, and their age/reproductive status was previously unknown.

We caught 2 young ocean sunfish, Mola mola. Both were immediately returned to the sea.

Kaila with young Mola mola — Scripps Graduate Student Kaila Pearson with a young ocean sunfish, *Mola mola*.

Keith and mola mola — LTJG Keith Hanson with a young ocean sunfish, *Mola mola*.

We found several species of deep sea dragonfish which we arrayed below on a ruler. Most of these fish are less than 6 inches long, no bigger than a pencil, but they are equipped with sharp fangs and are apex predators in their realm! Dragonfish have large bioluminescent photophore organs underneath their eyes (and sometimes lining their bodies) which produce light and are used to attract or deter prey and attract mates.

more dragonfishes — Longfin dragonfish, Tactostoma macropus, on left and a Pacific black dragon, Idiacanthus antrostomus, on right. Also in the photo are a krill (on the left of the dragonfish) and a Gonatus Squid (top left corner of photo).

Longfin dragonfish, *Tactostoma macropu*s, with large photo organ underneath the eye

We collected a stoplight loosejaw, Malacosteus niger, which can unhinge its jaw in order to consume large prey.

Face of stoplight loosejaw, *Malacosteus niger*.

June 4th: Davenport Line

The highlight of today was at 5:45 P.M. when team red hats went to the flying bridge for our workout and to hang out with Ornithologist Brian Hoover. There was a lot of Humpback whale activity. I counted around 20 spouts. We observed one whale that flapped its tail against the sea surface around 45 times in a row, perhaps communicating to nearby whales by generating pulses in the water or creating a visual cue. We saw several full breaches. We finished up the Davenport Line at 6:00 AM as the sea became rough. Thanks goodness for handrails in the shower.

The sorting team, aka Team Red Hats. From left: Kristin Saksa, Flora Cordoleani, Karah Nazor, Ily Iglesias, and Kaila Pearson.

June 5th: Outside of Tomales Bay

I woke up at 4PM and headed to the galley for dinner at 5PM. The boat was rocking so much that I became dizzy and knew that I would become sick if I tried to eat dinner, so I headed straight back to bed. Around 9PM the sea seemed to have calmed a bit, but I soon learned that it only felt calmer because the ship was traveling in the same direction as the swell at the moment but that we were about to turn around. Due to the rough conditions, the first haul inshore at Tomales Bay was delayed until midnight so the fish sorting team decided to watch “Mary Poppins Returns” in the galley. The talented chefs of the Reuben Lasker made the most amazing almond cookies today and, thankfully, temped me to eat again.

Catch Highlights: Haul 1 at station 165 was one of the easiest and most exciting catches of the survey so far because we collected a lot of jellyfish – my favorite! We counted 66 West Coast sea nettles, Chrysora fuscescens, seven Northern anchovies (7) and 24 market squid. I actually have a tattoo of West Coast sea nettle on my ankle. We placed the jellyfish flat on the lab bench and quickly measured their bell diameter before returning them to the sea. They did not sting us as most of the nematocysts were likely triggered during haul in. I removed a rhopalia, a sensory structure that lines the margin of the bell of Syphozoans (the “true” jellyfish). West Coast sea nettles have eight rhopalium which house the the ocelli (light sensing organ) and statolith (gravity sensing organ). A photomicrograph I took of the rhopalia under the dissecting microscope is below.

Karah measures sea nettle — Teacher at Sea Karah Nazor measuring a West Coast sea nettle *Chrysora fuscescens*.

Karah examines sea nettle — Karah Nazor examining a West Coast sea nettle, *Chrysora fuscescens*.

Kaila holds up sea nettle — Scripps graduate student Kaila Pearson examining a West Coast sea nettle, *Chrysora fuscescens*.

Kristin holds up a sea nettle — Moss Landing graduate student Kristin Saksa examining a West Coast sea nettle, *Chrysora fuscescens*.

Photomicrograph of the ocelli or light sensing organ in the rhopalia of a West Coast sea nettle, *Chrysora fuscescens*.

Haul 2 mostly consisted of Northern anchovies, 1 krill, a few moon jellyfish, Aurelia aurita, a few squid, which made for another very short and easy sort (see photo below). I study moon jellyfish in my lab back at McCallie High School, so I was curious to look inside of the stomach and reproductive organs of these wild jellyfish. Under the dissecting microscope, eggs were present and were purple in color (see photomicrograph below).

jellyfish eggs — Photomicrograph of purple eggs and clear gastric filaments of the moon jellyfish, *Aurelia aurita*

Kaila Pearson (left) and Karah Nazor and Keith Hanson sorting Haul 2.

Haul 3 had a lot of krill, young of year (YOY) Pacific hake, Merluccius productus, one large hake, and a few market squid. This sort was also super easy except for separating the small YOY Pacific hake from the krill.

Sorting of haul 3 which had a lot of krill and young of year (YOY) Pacific hake, Merluccius productus.

June 6th: Outside Farallones. On our final night, we conducted three hauls with very small harvests consisting of few organisms and low species density. One new to me fish in the final catch was a top smelt fish (see image below). These were the three easiest sorts of the survey. It was suggested by Keith Sakuma that the catches were small due to the stormy conditions.

A small catch from the last night June 6, 2019, with one West Coast Sea Nettle, a Gonatus squid, and two topsmelt silversides, *Atherinops affinis*.

Kristin with a topsmelt — Moss Landing graduate student Kristin Saksa with a topsmelt silverside, *Atherinops affinis*, from the final haul of the survey.

June 7, 2019: Return to San Francisco

Group photo at Golden Gate Bridge — In front of the Golden Gate Bridge at the conclusion of the cruise. From left: Brian Hoover, Kelly Goodwin, Ily Iglesias, Karah Nazor, Flora Cordoleani, Kristin Saksa, Lauren Valentino, and Jarrod Santora.

group photo at Marin Headlands — In front of the Marin Headlands at the conclusion of the cruise. From left: Ily Iglesias, Kristin Saksa, Flora Cordoleani, Kaila Pearson, Lauren Valentino, and Karah Nazor.

June 6, 2018

Susan Dee: From the Bottom of the Food Chain to the Top, June 3, 2018

NOAA Teacher at Sea

Susan Dee

Aboard NOAA Ship Henry B. Bigelow

May 23 – June 7, 2018

Mission: Spring Ecosystem Monitoring Survey

Geographic Area of Cruise: Northeastern Coast of U.S.

Date: June 3, 2018

Weather From Bridge

Latitude: 43°47.1′
Longitude: 068°40.41′
Sea Wave Height: 4-6 ft
Wind Speed: 20 knots
Wind Direction: NE
Visibility: 10
Air Temperature: 10°C
Sky: few clouds

Science and Technology Log

As the Henry B. Bigelow traverses the Gulf of Maine sampling the microorganisms at stations, another pair of scientists are observing bird and marine mammal populations. Much of my time between sampling stations, I head up to the flying bridge and join Nicholas Metheny and John Loch, Seabird Observers, on the lookout for the seabird and marine mammals. The seabirds most commonly observed in the Gulf of Maine are the Wilson Storm Petrel and the Sooty Shearwater. These two species account for 60% of the birds seen. These pelagic seabirds live offshore and only return to land to breed, often on remote islands.

birders on deck — Seabird Observers on Observation Deck

South Polar Skua (photo by Nicolas Methany)

All the samplings taken with bongo nets are samplings of the producers and primary consumers, the small organisms in the food chain. On the observation deck, the fish and marine mammals that rely on a healthy bottom food chain are observed. Spotting marine mammals adds much to the excitement of the day. The bridge will announce a sighting and if possible, one gets to the flying bridge to see the wildlife. One of the first sightings was of humpback whales in the distance, followed by sperm whale and pilot whale sightings.

Short Beaked Common Dolphin — Short beaked Common Dolphins (Photo by Nicholas Methany)

The most fascinating sightings were of Mola Mola- Ocean Sunfish. They were spotted often and very close to the ship.

Personal Log

The science crew is kept busy sampling at each station. There is some down time steaming from station to station at 12 knots but it is enjoyable. I spend the down time talking to crew and scientists. Chief Scientist Jerry Prezioso has been an awesome mentor and photographer! I am learning so much and am so excited to bring it back into my classroom next year. The seas have been relatively calm but the forecast for the end of the cruise is not favorable for sampling due to high winds. If winds are over 30 knots, the crew has difficulty deploying the nets so sampling is suspended. The science crew has taken samples from 114 stations. These samples will be sent off to be analyzed at different labs.

Filled jar samples — Samples collected, boxed and ready to be shipped to analyze

The deck crew and scientist party have been a pleasure to work with. I have learned so much from each of them

Science Party Day Crew: Jerry P, Mark, and Chris T

Final Day of Cruise Route map shows path of cruise

The cruise was cut short by two days due to high winds. The last sampling station was in Cape Cod Bay. Tomorrow the ship will head back to port through the Cape Cod Canal, ending a fantastic cruise. I am so excited to see the data from all these samples. Thanks Teacher at Sea program for a great adventure!

March 29, 2017March 29, 2017

Christopher Tait: Suburban Wilderness, March 27, 2017

NOAA Teacher at Sea

Christopher Tait

Aboard NOAA Ship Reuben Lasker

March 21, 2017 to April 7, 2017

Mission: Spring Coastal Pelagic Species Survey

Geographic Area of Cruise: Pacific Ocean from San Diego, CA to San Francisco, CA

Date: March 27, 2017

Weather Data from the Bridge

Time 3:35 PDT,

Current Location: near San Nicolas Island, Latitude 33.3 N Longitude -119.2 W

Air Temperature 16.0 ^oC (59.5 ^oF)

Water Temperature 14.9 ^oC (58.6 ^oF)

Wind Speed 19 kts

Barometric pressure 1014.64 hPa

San Nicolas Island from the *Reuben Lasker*

Science and Technology Log

Acoustic Trawl

There is a lot of advanced equipment that is used to do a survey of fish that spans the coast of California. The Reuben Lasker has been fitted with state of the art echo-sounders (Figure 1), which send out pulses of sound that bounce off objects and return to the ship in the form of backscatter. Looking at the backscatter data you can create a profile of the water column and see a variety of organisms swimming beneath the ship. The target species for the research is the Northern anchovy (Engraulis mordax) and Pacific sardine (Sardinops sagax). The schools of fish are detected using a range of frequencies. Looking at graphical representations of these data, or echograms, you can see the bottom as an area with strong echoes and, at times, you can see an area of high-intensity back scatter higher in the water column such as a school of fish or an aggregation of krill or plankton (figure 2). This would be a school of fish, krill or other organisms. The geographic location of the school is marked for a return by the ship at night for collection using a trawl. To conduct a thorough survey, the ship travels back and forth between the coast and a predetermined distance out to sea across the predicted habitat of the target species (Figure 3.) Scientists referred to this as “mowing the lawn.”

Figure 1: Reuben Lasker Acoustic-Sampling Beams

Reuben Lasker Acoustic Sampling.png — ©2014 Oceanography, Volume 27, number 4, Zwolinski et al.

Figure 2: An example echogram, showing the seabed and various sound scatterers in the water column.

Echogram

Figure 3 : Survey Map of the Spring Coastal Pelagic Species Survey 2017

California Sampling Map.png

Scientist Profile:

The Cruise Leader, Kevin Stierhoff, is a fisheries scientist who works for the Advanced Survey Technologies group at NOAA Southwest Fisheries Science Center (SWFSC) in San Diego, CA. Not only has he been effectively managing this complex science expedition, he has gone out of his way to make me feel welcome and a part of this scientific endeavor.

How did you become a NOAA scientist?

I earned a B.S. in Biology, a Ph.D. in Marine Studies, and completed several postdoctoral research appointments prior to getting hired by NOAA. The work that my colleagues and I do at the SWFSC is very interdisciplinary, and the variety of educational and research experiences that I’ve had prepared me become a researcher at NOAA.

What do you like best about your career?

I consider myself lucky to have a job with a variety of duties. Not only do I spend time in the office analyzing data, but I also get to spend time at sea conducting survey and collecting data. When I’m not using acoustics to study pelagic fishes that migrate between Canada and Mexico, I use remotely operated vehicles (ROVs, or undersea robots) to survey endangered abalone that live on rocky reefs in the deep sea. When I’m not at sea, I’m analyzing the data that we collected at sea to communicate the results of our work.

What advice would you give to a student who would like to follow a similar career path?

Increasingly, a research career in marine biology requires a graduate degree to allow for maximal career advancement. If possible, take some time after undergrad to work in a job related to your career goals. This will allow you to focus your interests before choosing a graduate program, or perhaps discover that you don’t actually like that career path (better to find out sooner than later!) or that you don’t require a graduate degree to do the job that really interests you (which will save you lots of time and money). Most importantly, choose a job that you look forward to going to every day.

Personal Log

It is dark out, but as I look down from high atop the ship through an open window from the bridge, the lights of Long Beach reflect on the placid expanse of ocean and I come to a great moment of reflection. One of the busiest ports in the world is just off in the distance and I am looking for marine mammals in this suburban wilderness. Beside the glow of humanity, nature continues on.

I have been mostly helping with analyzing organisms that came up in the trawl at night, so my work schedule has moved to a 6 pm to 6 am. I am struck by how hardworking, dedicated, and driven all members of this expedition are. The crew, scientists, and NOAA Corps collaborate to continuously run surveys 24 hours a day, 7 days a week. I am enjoying working at night now even though it took me a few days to get use to all of the adjustments in my schedule. I particularly enjoy doing the marine mammal watch from the bridge. It gives you this aerial point of view of all the action the NOAA Corps expertly navigating the ship and coordinating operations, the deck crew masterfully deploying nets and equipment, and the scientists excitedly exploring the organisms we collect.

Catch of the Day!

Haliphron atlanticus – This strange creature is a gelatinous octopus, whose body resembles a jellyfish, but when you look close, you see eyes looking at you!

Octipus Gelatinous.png — Haliphron atlanticus

Boreal Clubhook Squid (Onychoteuthis borealijaponicus)

Ocean Sunfish (Mola mola) is the strangest fish I have ever seen! It is one of the heaviest bony fish, surprisingly from a diet high in jellyfish and salps. We caught a small and large sunfish.

TAS Chris Tait holds an Ocean Sunfish (*Mola mola*)

Pacific Saury (Cololabis saira): This fast looking fish hunts plankton at night near the surface.

Curlfin Turbot (Pleuronichthys decurrens): This juvenile flatfish rises to the water surface at night to hunt zooplankton. Flatfish have an eye that migrates from one side of their body to the other as they develop.