Halloween Day by Anna:

What did we dress up as? Peter, Mark and I dressed up as volunteer research assistants for the Pelagic Shark Research Foundation. (It's the hottest costume this year!) Sean went as our fearless leader and Eric of PSRF dressed up as our skipper and drove us in his boat, Flaterliner, up to Ano Nuevo Island to look for white sharks.

We were visited by five Trick-or-Treaters that day. They moslty handed out tricks by checking out the big visual yellow lure, just close enough for us to see them, but darting away before we could snap a photo id shot or attach a transmitter. Perhaps they weren't too into the treats we had- blubber from a dead elephant seal. Considering the date, we probably should have baited the water with Reeses Peanut Butter Cups or Skittles.

It was so cool to see the dorsal fin of a great white shark cut through the water's surface like a knife. We saw our fifth shark just before our departure back for Santa Cruz, around 2pm. This one was a biggie, and she did a lap around our boat, so we were able to look at her entire body and head, and could tell without a doubt that she was looking right back at us!

When we arrived back to Pacific Grove, we were almost too tired to attend to the human trick-or-treaters that knocked on the door at Willow street. Most of us retired early in anticipation of our long day of packing, and Sean trekked back to Santa Cruz to give his shark talk at a Halloween party- how cool is that!

Last days on the job by Anna:

I know that my Nov 1 post made our final days sound like they were filled with lifting heavy boxes and tearful goodbyes, but we did have some fun, and some extra help. Mark, a member of the Earthwatch UK staff who visited the project on Team 1, enjoyed California so much that he used some vacation time to return! He helped us pack up the project and consume sushi at the Crystal Fish.

Farewell to Team 7!

This awesome group of seven gals helped end the field season with a bang! (And not the type of bang that certain members of Team 3 made when they accidentally ran into doors ;) This team was so dedicated that they forfeited their extra hour of sleep as provided by our confusing daylight savings time clock change, and spent the last dey of work on a sunrise otter survey!

Thank you, Gracias, Obrigada, Arigato, Salamat, Terima kasih, Grazie, Tack!

oct. 29, 2006 report by Angeli:

Today, we woke up earlier than usual to study and survey the otters' behaviour on early mornings. We left at 6:15am and headed to Moss Landing. The weather was quite chilly but nevertheless, we were all pretty excited to discover new behaviours that these otters may display on early mornings. We were able to spot around 76 otters resting early in the morning in a tight raft but eventually dispersed and exited the slough as it reached noon time. After studying the otters for 5 hours, we all went to the beach to clean up bottles, plastics, rubbers, and other waste materials scattered along the beach. Much to our surprise, we found a helpless murre lying still on the beach but still alive. Anna called the SPCA and they came to pick up the dying bird for rescue. It was a fulfilling day after all.

Day 7 Dolphin Survey by Anna:

This morning we were concerned that we would find huge swells on the water. (Yesterday, the seas were so rolly, I almost got sick.) What a treat to pull out of the harbor this morning- it was like a lake!! We turned towards the north in pursuit of our favorite cetacean, the bottlenose dolphin.

There was not a cloud in the sky, and the seas were a flat and glassy Beaufort 1. It was perfect spotting conditions; Yee, Renata and Marie easily picked out every harbor seal, sea lion and otter. Even the harbor porpoises were easy to find. Every siting was dutifully recorded on the data sheet. However, at 11:00, we found ourselves all the way up to the cement ship (our usual turn-around point) and had not found any dolphins. We decided to take advantage of the good sea conditions and continued on to Lighthouse Point off of Santa Cruz. We caught glimpses of over one hundred sea lions beneath the Santa Cruz pier and saw several otters floating in the kelp beds including a mother and pup!

After completing our survey of the bay's entire northern coast, the quickest route home was off-shore, straight back to Moss Landing. Once the powerplant stacks were insight, Sean spotted a blow! We found two humpback whales! We watched for several minutes as they took a series of breaths and dove down, likely for a mid-day sanck. One of the humpacks had an unusually hooked dorsal fin.

Although we never spotted the dolphins, we went home quite satisfied with our day: lovely weather conditions, up-close view of Santa Cruz, otter mom and pup and whales!

Don't forget to scroll down and read some new posts by Alejandra and Renata about the otter census and their first day on the water with the dolphins!

Day Off report by Elfreida:

For those of us with Earthwatch on the bottlenose dolphin and sea otter project we have a day off so Renee and I decided to visit the Monterey Bay Aquarium. We walked along the Pacific Ocean enjoying the water, rocks and harbor seals on our left and admiring the beautiful Victorian homes on the right. We also saw some old buildings which once were canneries and now house shops of some kind or another.

At 10:00 we entered the aquarium for an exciting day of sea life explorations. Due to my great interest in penguins, my first stop was the penguins exhibit. These penguins are the African penguins which like all other penguins are black and white but they have black feet and a white ring of feathers around the head. On to the jellies, the kelp forest and the sharks, mola mola, dorado or mahi mahi tank. I spend a great deal of time at this exhibit and also watched the sea otters play and eat. We watched all the films being shown in the auditorium and I spent a considerable amount of time selecting books to take back to Minnesota. The California sea otters are very playful, so it was great watching them play ball in the aquarium as well as open and eat clams in the wild. About 4 o'clock we were tired and I was hungry so we made a short stop at the Save the Otter shop next door and I had coffee and a berry sundae at Ghiradelli before we walked home.

An update by Alejandra and Renata:

Happy Birthday Angeli!

Maligayang Bati Sa Iyong Kaarawan!

Today the team celebrated Angeli's birthday in a japanesse restaurant. Marie and Anna finally got a taste of their miso soup, the taste was really good.

Peter and Sean both gulped a big ball of wasabi (GUAAHHHH) and drank two glasses of sake in an attempt to stop the fire in their mouths.

The lights suddenly turned off and a waitress came out bringing a birthday cake to surprise Angeli. Everyone sang a birthday song for the celebrant, Angeli read the card with everybody's wishes and open Renata's present (a soap made from banana, especially brought from Brazil)


At least Elfrida introduce Marie with a new friend from Japan, who is the beautiful chef of the restaurant.


!Happy birthday Angeli!

Otter Survey Report by Anna:

After a morning filled with dolphin dorsal fin images (try to say that ten times fast), Renee, Elfrieda, Renata, Alejandra and I drove to Moss Landing to observe otter behaviors. Today we set up shop in Area 10, which is on the eastern side of the Route 1 bridge. We typically observe otters foraging on large gaper clams in this area and we also watch them traveling through from the middle parts of the slough out to the harbor area. Today, we did not observe very many otters at all. We obseverved two playing for a little while, but mostly took notes on otters for only a few minutes at a time as they travel/groomed quickly past our observation point. Renata tried to demonstrate to the otters that this was a good area for foraging, but they didn't take the bait.

Although we took home a lot of empty data sheets, and do not have much quantitative data to contribute to the project, we did take home a lot of qualitative data. It is fun to observe the same otter for hours in the harbor as it rests, grooms, and plays; but it is just as important to catch those brief glimpses of otters as they are traveling or being generally elusive in the less populous areas of the slough. One of our research questions is to know where the otters are in the slough, and to properly answer this query, we must also determine where the otters are not. It takes a lot of patience to observe the less populous areas. Way to go team!

As a consolation prize for her patience, Elfrieda found some fishing line that she can use to create some beaded jewelry. The removal of this discarded line from the banks of the slough will also be greatly appreciated by the birds and other wildlife that can easily become easily entangled in such an item.

Otter Census report by Renata:

Our day started on Moss Landing Harbor to observe the marine mammals in Monterey Bay. For this job, we had a lecture of sea otters by Tom, a marine scientist who launched his research in 1997. After three hours on a boat, we could register 88 sea otters and a few groups of harbor seals in Elkhorn Slough. It was a great experience for us to see otters closer than ever.

Morning report from Anna, Elfreida, Renata and Alejandra:

We are finishing up the dolphin photo id from yesterday before going out into the field to observe otters. Please stay tuned for the audiopost that we recorded in English, Portugese and Spanish.

Our first experience with the dolphins by Renata and Alejandra:

Before this expedition, dolphins seem to be part of another world, because we only watch them on tv, in this experience we can stay really close to these beautiful marine mammals.

We were surprised to discover the behavior between mother and baby dolphin, which is so similar to human beings -- very protective with their babies. Sean told us that the mother is the leader of the dolphins group.

The day went fast because we really enjoyed the experience, and in addition we learned to take data of them to know more about their lives.

Renata and Alejandra

An International Feast!

Fred the Pumpkin joined us for a fabulous feast of Fritatta eaten with chopsticks and a dessert of dried mangos from the Phillipines and chocolate wafer cookies from Brazil.

More ways to follow us the field!

Renee is an educator on Team 7 who will be communicating with her students Live from the Monterey! She has elementary and high school students who will be following along with our adventures. Please visit her blog at http://montereymarinemammals.blogspot.com.

Welcome Team 7!

Joining the sea otters and the dolphins in the field will be Renee from southern California, Angeli from the Phillipines, Alejandra from Mexico, Renata from Brazil, Marie from Japan, Elfrieda from Minnesota and Yee from central California. Everyone is doing our 1st day otter poses. Tomorrow we will drive to Elkhorn Slough and catch find our friendly mustelids in action.

Another great evening at the rodeo! We saw some fancy riding from Team 6 including a stocking gallop by Bill, a no-hands canter by Donna, and I don't know what type of riding Sean was doing.

After the ride today, stroked Henry's muzzle and fed him some icecream (the new flavor- Santa's Sundae). After the Earthwatch season is done, you might spot Henry in the Kentucky Derby, proadly sponsored by HSBC.

A last note from David:

So, for this volunteer, our marine-mammal work ends much as it began, on Otter Patrol, taking copious data and enjoying binocular views of otters playing, grooming, resting, and feeding on crabs, clams, “undetermined,” and creatures called – wait for it – fat innkeeper worms. The latter are long, red, rubbery bottom-dwellers that the otters dig out of their tunnels. Stretched full-length between an otter’s teeth and paws, a worm looks like a sausage on steroids, or an escapee from a cheapie horror movie. (See Larry’s wonderful photo.) It gets even more amusing (or, if you prefer, disgusting) to realize that the otter is apparently interested only in the worm’s insides, which it pulls out after biting off one end.

Our brief but intense education here – I’m leaving with a wealth of new knowledge and a range of mental images and photos ranging from a fat innkeeper worm meeting its fate to a humpback whale sliding with impossible grace beneath the surface –
has been a rare pleasure. My thanks to Peter, Anna and Sean for so generously and thoughtfully sharing their energies, expertise and dedication, for their good humor, and for making the work enjoyable. My thanks, too, to my fellow volunteers, Bill, Donna, Eugene, Hiroko and Larry – for their own contributions, their engaging companionship, the laughs, the conversation, and for sharing their passionate concern for salvaging what’s left of our natural world.

Read A MOMENT OF PRIVILEGE by Larry!

Read a belated Day 3 update by David!

Happy Birthday Sean!

Thank you to our resident Shark Guru, local Montery Bay expert and our best dolphin spotter for keeping us safe on the water, finding the dolphins almost every day (along with the occasional whale), teaching us about the area and sharks and for keeping us wildly entertained.

Hey all you Sean/Shark fans- Next year, Sean will be an Earthwatch PI and you can join him in studying the sharks and rays of Elkhorn Slough! Keep a close eye on the Earthwatch website for a description and dates. The team will stay in a fantastic house in Pajaro Dunes and get muddy in the slough every day!

Artichokes have been refered to as "the incredible, edible flower."

Every morning we pass the artichoke fields on the way to Moss Landing Harbor, and every once and a while, we stop off on the way home to get french-friend artichokes...mmmmmmmm. Today, for the first time, Donna, David, Hiroko and myself (Anna) got to see an artichoke that had bloomed! Warning: despite Hiroko's pose, the artichoke is no longer edible at this point.

Fred is our Team 6 mascot

Dolphin Survey report from Anna and audiopost by Larry:

As you can hear from Larry's audiopost, we had a fantastic day on the water! Starting up the Spy Hop is always a trick, and a
couple of folks at the dock told us that the day was going to be windy, so our expectations weren't very high as we motored out of Moss Landing Harbor. After a busy start (lots of marine mammal sitings) at the harbor mouth, we were cruising close to the surf and Sean spotted dolphins! There were five individuals including a calf/cow pair quickly traveling north. As we continued to look around, we spotted more dolphins to the north and south- at least 12 different animals. We followed them north of the harbor mouth and tried to keep track as they milled around, and then followed them south again. All of a sudden, they were much more interested in us. Most of the dolphins approached the Spy Hop to check us out, 3 and 4 animals bow riding at a time! At one point we had seven animals surfing in our wake! Sometimes, they were TOO close for photo id with my long lens! But it was neat that they were so close that I could see them swimming under the water and could easily time when their dorsal would break the surface. When the day was done, I had snapped 238 photos, all which had to be reviewed back at the house. Once we returned to Willow street, Larry and David got cracking on the data entry. They entered the entire survey log, and were so charged about the day, they stuck it out in the office for three hours, and reviewed all 238 photos. Way to go!

A belated report from Day 3 by David:

Sometimes a little engine trouble’s not a bad thing. When both the Astirix and the Spy Hop were giving Sean fits but no starts, Peter decided that he, Eugene, Larry and I would used our allotted dolphin time instead to continue our previous day’s work on Otter Patrol – but this time in kayaks, in Elkhorn Slough. According to some, the Slough (rhymes with through – not with rough or bough), which – speaking loosely – is a tidal estuary, takes its name from its meandering, antlerish shape. (That’s my favorite of the explanations. Others cite an elkhorn plant found there and the one-time presence of a lodge for elk hunters.) About 7 miles long, it’s technically an extended inlet or fjord, rather than an estuary; for most of the year, it’s entirely salt water, with fresh-water run-off entering only for brief periods, if at all.
Neither Eugene nor Larry had ever been in a kayak, but were game to go. (I particularly enjoyed watching Larry’s eyebrows crawl toward his hairline as he learned that self-rescue from an overturned kayak means detaching the spray skirt and extricating oneself from the cockpit while upside down underwater.) They took a tandem, the theory being that two novice paddlers are better than one. Peter and I were in solo boats.
Once lunches and gear were stowed, we got under way, drifting with the incoming tide from Moss Landing Harbor, past lounging otters and the pile-driving crew installing a new jetty, under Highway One, and finally into the quiet of the Slough. In people terms we had it almost to ourselves. In our four or so hours there, we saw only three other kayakers. But in wildlife terms, we were surrounded in three dimensions, by scattered otters foraging and playing, harbor seals surfacing long enough to give us the eye, the odd sea lion, egrets both snowy and great, curlews and godwits, assorted herons, a variety of gulls and terns, and pelicans both overhead and in congregations of hundreds lining the banks in some mid-day ritual of dozing, yawning and pecking at the noisy gulls that dared to light among them.
Peter had hoped that we could find a way to orchestrate data-taking from the boats, but the tidal push of incoming and the pull of outgoing made it too difficult to focus on any particular otter or otters without resorting to paddling, which would be both disturbing to the otters and a risk to dry data sheets. We never resolved the problem, but came up with several ideas ranging from ‘possible’ to ludicrously impractical. The jury is still out on long periods of observation from kayaks in tidal water.
We ended the trip by paddling out of the Slough and into the marina, to sample the mind-numbing sight of seals, sea lions, otters, and pelicans resting and feeding in the oil-shiny, gas-reeking water. How they survive – how they tolerate it – I can’t imagine.
In short, perhaps not a productive research foray in the Slough, but – for the volunteers – an excellent introduction to one of the Bay’s most significant ecological features.
The day’s cake also had two layers of icing. On our return, we learned that Sean had the Spy Hop running well enough to make a test run out into the Bay itself, and he invited us to go along. Only a few minutes out, cruising at about 20 knots, we picked up an escort of dolphins, who swam alongside and went bow-riding only a few feet beneath our eyes. It was the volunteers’ first exposure to these extraordinary animals – and to the feeling of privilege that accompanies the sense of being welcomed to their world.
Then, that night, Peter (who also took the pictures accompanying this entry – and a hundred more I wish I could include here) gave a presentation for the volunteers on marine mammals – an hour remarkably packed with information on the cetaceans, pinnipeds and carnivores that are the focus of our attention here. The wealth of information, coupled with a scientist’s passion, made for an inspiring talk.
A great day – both on the water and in the classroom.

Daily Report by Donna:

Today Anna, Larry, Dave and I went out to do otter surveys. I really enjoyed the otters on Tuesday. We watched the raft for a while and that gave which gave us an appreciation of otter group dynamics (and was very entertaining as they love to play!). We then watched an adult male forage for clams. The group on Monday said the otters mainly ate worms, but this guy was definitely a clam guy. It was a beautiful day and we were relaxing at the end of the surveys by walking along the beach. Unfortunately we came across a dead otter pup that had washed up on shore. We went back and got a garbage bag from the habor master and then went and got the pup. The little guy will have a necropsy performed by Dr. Melissa Miller. She is the pathologist with the California Department of Fish & Wildlife. Anna said an earlier team had found a dead otter as well and that Melissa said it was a poster child for domoic acid. Domoic acid is a type of poison produced by harmful algae blooms. Anchovies, sardines and other shellfish are exposed to the poison and then ingested by marine mammals. Melissa will let Anna know what killed the otter pup and she will post this info on the blog – stay tuned!

A MOMENT OF PRIVILEGE by Larry

We are riding the Spyhop, North in Monterey Bay. Is the boat now okay ? This is a surprise treat, as we had to switch plans this morning because the Astrix became unreliable, as was this Spyhop. My virgin kayacking experience was the alternative this morning – and it was awesome !

“Larry, you take the bow watch ’10 to 2’.” I really got to take the bow, as I was sitting at the point of the Spyhawk, holding onto the railing, as we bounced on the swells of Monterey Bay. The wind and spray could not wash off my grin, as I scanned the blue expanse before me. I’m wishing I had my 20D – but maybe not! The Powershot point-and-shoot now has salt residue from this morning’s kayacking adventure. I do have THAT camera under my Personal Floatation Device (what do I know – I thought it was a “Life Preserver”).

“Harbor Seal at 2 o’clock.” “Good spot!” answers Peter. There sure is lots of waves and surf to scan. Peter, covering 2 to 6, shouts: “Sea Otters at 3 o’clock.” Seems pretty far out in the Bay for them, without kelp. We had been watching 60 sea otters, back in the Elkhorn Slough estuary, for the past two days. There they are – just doing their adorable “sea otter thing” : floating on their backs; groom, groom, roll, groom, roll.

Now my hands are getting tired, and I’m losing the Leo Decaprio feeling, at the point of MY boat: “I’m the King of the World!” Sean breaks the silence: “I’m going to check those circling birds, off shore, at 2 o’clock.” Later we found out that Anna had given Sean some direction.

All five of us watch the rolling surf, under the flock of feeding birds. As the gap closes to about 200 yards, Sean shouts over the wind: “There They Are!! Dolphins at 1 o’clock!!!” Where? Where!?! Then my grin gets even wider, as I see that first dorsal fin in my binoculars. It is breaking out of the white surf, heading North towards Santa Cruz. We are going fast now, and the spray and bouncing means hold on tight, as my wet shoes point the boat. Peter shouts: “ Larry, watch under the bow. They are coming under us.” I’m thinking: “How the hell did they get here so quickly? I just saw the fin parallel to the beach.” I then look down between my feet. Oh My God!!! There are two grey and white slick bodies. They are just under the water surface, going the exact speed as our boat, as if they were attached to the point! I am looking down, over my First Wild Dolphins!

Like a light switching off, they are gone. I am smiling in shock, and Peter shouts: “There are four of them off the port bow!” As I look to the left – there they are – porpoising at our same speed. When they are out of the water, I see grey, smooth, glistening bodies – like well polished autos. They travel along side, like an escort into THEIR land. How do they do that – match our speed and direction – seemingly with NO effort ?

The whole scene seems surreal –even though I have seen it before, on TV and in movies. They seem to be glancing at us, with grins on their faces, as they perform these acrobatics. I feel like they are saying: “Look what I can do!” (And I do not see this feeling as anthropomorphic – they DO seem to be thinking at a level higher than I have ever seen in an animal.) Finally, they drop down, in unison. Then “bow-ride,” under my feet, for a few seconds – and they are gone.

They were in complete command of this species interaction. I am in total awe! I have seen many other animals in the wild. All of them run, or move away, when approached. But this is the first time I have experienced another wild animal COME TO ME ! They, openly, came to “check us out.” There is no doubt that THAT is what they were doing. They had come, from a distance, to where WE were , and were not hiding when they got there. We were the visitors – and they left no doubt as to where we were – in THEIR habitat.

I am so very privileged !