Wednesday, September 21, 2011

Blog 6a - Pearl and Hermes - Day 2, Part 1 - Coral Collection


Rick Klobuchar - Waikīkī Aquarium

I find myself aboard the NOAA vessel Hi‘ialakai traveling through the Papahānaumokuākea Marine National Monument again, nearly a year after my first excursion to the Monument. Much seems the same. The friendly faces; much of the crew and many of the scientists are back again, each working on their own exciting projects. The daily routine; waking up to the pre-dawn hum of the crane motor as it slings cases of SCUBA cylinders from deck to deck in preparation for the day's dives, followed by the "rush" of pre-caffeinated, sleepy-eyed scientists to organize their separate piles of gear into less numerous, but much larger mounds of gear which eventually will leave standing room only on each of the support boats. Then a quick bite of breakfast and a splash of rich, black coffee which soon snaps everyone back to their senses. We have our pre-dive and boating safety meeting on the fantail of the ship as the coffee begins to settle in and life and energy slowly returns to those dreary eyes. Our support boats, Kaku, Rubber Duck, HI-1, and HI-2, one by one get lowered into place, SCUBA cylinders are loaded first, then dive bags, then cameras, coolers, water, collection gear, and finally scientists. The Hi‘ialakai makes its turn to smooth out the water beneath us for a calmer launch, we quickly lower into position, splash down, and release the hooks. Our journey on the water for the day has begun.

Dr. Rich Pyle with two Chevron butterflyfish
Photo Credit - Rob Whitton, Bishop Museum
While much is the same, much is different as well. Last year I found myself partnered up with renowned coral biologist Dr. Jim Maragos, formerly of the US Fish and Wildlife Service, aboard the smallest support boat HI-3. Our goal, to identify and collect coral fragments that are rare or absent from the Main Hawaiian Islands for the purpose of being displayed in the new Northwestern Hawaiian Islands exhibit at the University of Hawai‘i’s Waikīkī Aquarium. This year, I find myself aboard the second largest support boat, HI-2; tasked with a similar goal, but this time my mission involves the collection of both fish and coral for display within the Northwestern Hawaiian Islands exhibit. To achieve this goal, I have enlisted the help of the Bishop Museum's finest ichthyologists (and if you didn’t know better, comedians) Dr. Rich Pyle, John Earle, and Rob Whitton, undoubtedly some of the best fish collectors in Hawai‘i, if not the world, to wrangle targeted fish while I focus more on identifying and collecting the targeted species of coral on our collection permit. Last year I was only able to hear the stories that came from the fish collections by Rich, some of which I find myself actually hearing for the first time on this trip now! Last year, Rich and I swapped places at Midway. I boarded the Hi‘ialakai after making the 6 hour flight from Honolulu to Midway, and Rich flew back to Honolulu from Midway with the prized fish catch in hand to be delivered to the Waikīkī Aquarium. This year, we are all on the cruise at the same time, and actually getting to see Rich, John, and Rob at work is something of a work of art. These are guys that love what they do, and while completely professional, I have found myself having to clear my mask several times from laughing so hard underwater. Only once have I seen Rich not get the fish he had his sights set on, and it sure wasn't for lack of trying. I believe our dive lasted approximately an hour and a half, and approximately an hour and twenty-seven minutes of it was spent watching this certain species toy with us in an epic game of underwater cat and mouse, where the mouse won. Good thing we have a couple more opportunities further down the chain!

Rick Klobuchar collecting a fragment of Leptastrea pruinosa coral
Photo Credit - Rob Whitton, Bishop Museum
Fortunately for me, the corals aren't quite as fast, though some have proved to be almost as elusive for various reasons. From changes in dive plans, to minor equipment malfunctions, something that sounds as simple as diving down and clipping a small branch of coral off of a large coral head, can certainly seem difficult at times. While we have been blessed with relatively calm conditions so far, currents, waves, surge, and turbidity can all make collecting coral fragments more challenging. Last year, the corals which we focused on collecting were the "common" uncommon corals. These were the ones which were easy to differentiate from one another, were easy to locate via previous GPS locations or by word of mouth from other scientists, and most importantly were not found or extremely "uncommon" to the Main Hawaiian Islands. These were corals such as the fuzzy polyped, large plating Table Corals, the brilliant blue and purple encrusting Lumpy Rice Coral, and other forms of green, brown, and cream colored branching Staghorn Coral. This year's collections are not so obvious. The slightest difference in branch formation and even just the texture of the coral skeleton can often be the only difference between collecting a coral that makes up ninety percent of the reefs around Oahu, or one that is only seen in the smallest patches on one or maybe two of the Main Hawaiian or Northwestern Hawaiian Islands. Whereas many of the corals we collected last year were extremely plentiful, this year’s collection has me searching all the nooks and crannies, overhangs, shadows, and depths searching for sometimes even a single colony to take a small sample from. The collection process has slowed drastically this year for this very reason, but the end result will be the same...a successful collection trip.

Rick Klobuchar collecting Acropora valida coral

Klobuchar Transport Systems (KTS)

At the end of the day, the process starts back up again, same as last year. The boats are "picked" and scientists are unloaded. Gear is sterilized; samples and collected specimens are put away. Corals and fish are placed into their specialized holding system which I designed for transport aboard the ship. A former coworker deemed these systems "KTS 1 and 2", much easier than saying "Klobuchar Transport Systems." These systems have all the bells and whistles you would hope to have on your home or office aquarium…insulated coolers and chillers to maintain the cooler water temperatures, protein skimmers to remove fish and coral waste (yes, corals are animals and produce waste too), water pumps and aerators, and canister filters loaded with material to remove any other unknowns that may be in the water during the journey home.

A quick shower, then dinner is served. Then water quality tests, animal health inspections, and water changes are performed to maintain the highest water quality possible for our soon-to-be residents of the Waikīkī Aquarium. Dive logs and permit reports are updated; one last check of email, and finally it's time for bed and ready to start all over tomorrow.

Corals in KTS 1 suspended by
monofilament line to keep them from
rubbing on the bottom, allow for
better lighting and water circulation.
While some things have certainly changed, the goal of these collections remains the same. Last year, 100% of the fish Rich collected, and 100% of the corals I collected, survived from the time they were caught to the time they reached our quarantine systems back at the Waikīkī Aquarium several weeks later. Obviously, this is a goal I hope ends the same. The Papahānaumokuākea Marine National Monument is a very unique and special place. It is special for its cultural significance, its history, its diversity of life within its vast expanse, and for these and many other reasons, it is protected and largely off limits except to those few who obtain the permits and permission to enter its boundaries. This also has not changed over the last year. I have been blessed with the opportunity to enter the Monument twice now, but the real blessing is being able to bring a small piece of the Monument back to the people and visitors of Hawai‘i for all to see and enjoy. The end goal of the Waikīkī Aquarium’s involvement in this cruise is not to just make another pretty fish tank, but to show everyone what it is that we are all protecting. It is hard to appreciate something without actually seeing it, and our end goal, after all the collections are done with, is to separate the public from the Monument by a mere two inches of clear acrylic, rather than hundreds of miles of ocean so they can see and appreciate the Monument for themselves!

Fish in KTS2.  Thompson's anthias, Chevron butterflyfish, and Crosshatch triggerfish



No comments:

Post a Comment