Friday, September 21, 2007
Trip to Australia Zoo (September 10, 2007)
On Monday (9/10), we scheduled a no classes day, and headed to the zoo. Not just any zoo but Steve Irwin’s Australia Zoo (http://www.australiazoo.com.au/). It is about 2 hours north of Brisbane, and there, at the home of the Crocodile Hunter, we saw plenty of wildlife—mostly from Australia— but also from all over the world. Plenty of crocs to be sure, but also koalas, turtles, wombats, kangaroos, parrots, and many of Australia’s collection of lethal snakes. The zoo personnel did a great job of educating in addition to entertaining, and many of us commented on how well run and well presented the zoo is.
Saturday, September 1, 2007
Moreton Bay Trip (September 1-7)
On Saturday (9/1) we gathered at the University of Queensland at about 8:30 AM to board our chartered bus for the ~90 minute ride to the Brisbane suburb of Cleveland. There we, bus and all, boarded the ferry for Dunwich on North Stradbroke Island, the location of the Moreton Bay Research Station.
We arrived in late morning, and after lunch, a safety and security briefing, and meeting the research station staff, we walked out onto the tidal flats with the Research Center Director Dr. Kath Townsend, and her 3 TAs to begin research projects, that would last most of the next 2 days. Examples of research projects include the effect of sea grass on the depth of oxidation of mud on the tidal flats, differences in fish species during day and night on in the littoral zone of Moreton Bay, and the relationship between species abundance and sea grass distribution on the tide flat. Lectures were interspersed with the marine ecology research projects, and on Sunday evening students presented the results of their research in an evening session filled with questions and plenty of laughter!
Monday (9/3) was a day of sun, surf, and even a cricket match in which most of us participated. Kath led a spectacular walk along the sea cliffs that mark the headlands at Point Lookout. There we saw abundant box jellyfish, which just the evening before we were told to avoid at all cost, and many forms of molluscs and echinoderms! The coastline on North Stradbrook Island is absolutely spectacular with very little in the way of development. In the afternoon we gathered at Cylinder Beach and to swim, body surf, and lo and behold a cricket match broke out. One by one, each of us took turns as bowler and batter, and I think we all came away a little less confused by the game.
On Tuesday morning our Terrestrial Ecology professor John Hall and his 2 TAs arrived, and they brought 3 days of fairly steady rain! Yes, it seems that our arrival in Australia has done much to ease the 5-year drought that Queensland and much of Australia has been suffering under. Nonetheless research projects started right after a couple introductory lectures. These projects were aimed at documenting differences in species diversity in coastal and inland sites on the island, and to look at the effects of microclimate, geology, and ecosystem stress on the species present. An especially wet side trip was taken to 18-Mile Swamp and to Brown and Blue Lakes.
On Friday morning, most of us headed back to the mainland and our homestays to dry out and clean up. A hearty group stayed on the island for a weekend introduction to surfing.
We arrived in late morning, and after lunch, a safety and security briefing, and meeting the research station staff, we walked out onto the tidal flats with the Research Center Director Dr. Kath Townsend, and her 3 TAs to begin research projects, that would last most of the next 2 days. Examples of research projects include the effect of sea grass on the depth of oxidation of mud on the tidal flats, differences in fish species during day and night on in the littoral zone of Moreton Bay, and the relationship between species abundance and sea grass distribution on the tide flat. Lectures were interspersed with the marine ecology research projects, and on Sunday evening students presented the results of their research in an evening session filled with questions and plenty of laughter!
Monday (9/3) was a day of sun, surf, and even a cricket match in which most of us participated. Kath led a spectacular walk along the sea cliffs that mark the headlands at Point Lookout. There we saw abundant box jellyfish, which just the evening before we were told to avoid at all cost, and many forms of molluscs and echinoderms! The coastline on North Stradbrook Island is absolutely spectacular with very little in the way of development. In the afternoon we gathered at Cylinder Beach and to swim, body surf, and lo and behold a cricket match broke out. One by one, each of us took turns as bowler and batter, and I think we all came away a little less confused by the game.
On Tuesday morning our Terrestrial Ecology professor John Hall and his 2 TAs arrived, and they brought 3 days of fairly steady rain! Yes, it seems that our arrival in Australia has done much to ease the 5-year drought that Queensland and much of Australia has been suffering under. Nonetheless research projects started right after a couple introductory lectures. These projects were aimed at documenting differences in species diversity in coastal and inland sites on the island, and to look at the effects of microclimate, geology, and ecosystem stress on the species present. An especially wet side trip was taken to 18-Mile Swamp and to Brown and Blue Lakes.
On Friday morning, most of us headed back to the mainland and our homestays to dry out and clean up. A hearty group stayed on the island for a weekend introduction to surfing.
Decompressing at Camp Laurence
August 23-25: Camp Laurence-- For 6 days the gang of 39 overcame jet lag and got to know one another by keeping really busy with day hikes, ropes courses, and a bizarre bridge building challenge. George and Don even squuezed in a little geology from time to time, but overall it was a good time to get our bearings in this strange new land.
Clare and company sit atop a tall outcrop of cross bedded sandstone
the best geology classroom is in the field!
Andy Scaplen demonstrating how to compelte the ropes course!
Bridge Building--how to make a bridge to a floating raft in a pond of hungry crocs (just pretend ones, that is!), and get the whole gang across the bridge and on the raft w/o falling in the murky waters.
They made it!!
Trail head for the hike up Mt. Greville--an extinct and highly eroded old rhyolitic volcano. The hike was steep but vista at top and excellent views of columnar jointing made it all worth the effort.
One of the steepest parts of the climb. Bush walking in Australia!
A view from near Camp Laurence.
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