Pearson College Marine Science

On Wednesday and Thursday mornings last week, second year Marine Science students travelled across Pedder Bay to explore a nearby mudflat.

While it is a challenging ecosystem to navigate around, marine scientists did very well –  not a single student was left behind, nor a single gumboot!

Racing across the mudflat

Getting some water for animals

Extracting a gumboot

Extracting Camila & her gumboots

Students learned that mudflats smell like rotten eggs due to hydrogen sulfide produced by anaerobic bacteria in the mud.

Sadly, there is not a lot of oxygen in the mud…

…but happily, there are several organisms that are well adapted to low oxygen and high hydrogen sulfide.

Axel digging in the mud

Kate and Maya digging deep to find a clam

Predatory ribbon worm ( Paranemertes peregrina)

Mara and Somchit

On Thursday we were fortunate enough to use the yellow voyageur canoe to travel across the bay.

Loaded up and ready to go

Heading home

The mudflat field trip is always one of the messiest in Marine Science, but also one that is great fun! (Right, Stefan?!)

Stefan making his way across the mudflat

Navoneel after his excursion to the mudflats

See Flickr album for more photos of the mudflats.

Tags: mudflats, Paranemertes peregrina, Pedder Bay, year 42

This entry was posted on September 19, 2016 at 10:59 am and is filed under Field trips, Fun Activities. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. You can leave a response, or trackback from your own site.