Reflections on our trip to New Orleans
This trip was everything I expected it to be and much more then I could put into words. At first I was a little skeptical about how it would go and the mix of activities we had to get imursed into it all. But Dr. Anderson was unbelievable in the activities and content he provided. From the culture, art, history, social and ecological aspects of the trip. We got to experience it all. Everyday was non stop and it was best this way. There was so many things to experience, it seemed like for 10 days we’d finish one lecture or tour and immediately begin one just as interesting and relativent to the city and hurricane Katrina.
The city, suburbs and swamp were all amazing. Running swamp transects for the woodlands conservancy was challenging and what seemed like a never ending process, but at the end of the day it truly felt as though we had collected some good feasible data. The material we learned was moving. The Cajun cuisine was some of the best in my life and I’ll miss having it every night But it was the human element and the interactions with the people who were affected by such a tragedy in our own nation that made the biggest impact on myself. Between wetland lose and the human element that led to defects in the leeve system that protects the town from floodwaters, it is amazing to understand just how multi casual the disaster was 10 years ago. Also just how much climate change will affect the gulf coast of Louisiana. Much of the land will be underwater in my lifetime unless something drastic and incredible is done fast. It felt great as a student helping with service learning to be shown the appreciation we were given for just our small contributions to this area. I would recommend this trip to anyone who has the chance to go on it. I would take the position that going on this experience has made me a more aware person and more willing to be active in helping others. It was a once in a life time experience.
-Robert Whitfield
Following the March expeditions, the invertebrate sampling at Santa Rosa Island is complete. Now, the heavy lab work is my main focus; identifying and analyzing being the main goals. One by one, the data from each site is examined to compare temporal, spatial, chemical and environmental factors to see if the health of this southern California habitat has improved since 2008.
This past spring break I spent another week on Santa Rosa Island. This time I re-measured the 329 tagged Torrey pines from July to determine their growth and survivorship. Seedling recruitment increased substantially, with 53 newly emerged seedlings in my demography plots. Despite having another year of drought, precipitation in the form of fog drip and the shading of larger Torrey pines has allowed over 70% of the seedlings I encountered in July to persist until now.
