You walk your dog...but I walk sharks!!!

Aloha,

Can ask for a better way to spend my friday night!
I love being in the field!

        I have taken lots of labs being a science major but in the past five weeks lab has been completely redefined. I have always thought that lab was meant to be outside and hands on, not in the classroom looking at preserved specimens and microscope slides. Finally after two years of being stuck indoors for lab I finally have gotten to do what I have been aching for...field work. Starting at 5pm ever Friday night my sharks class and I venture out to Hilo Bay in excited anticipation for the five hours of shark fishing that are soon to come. As two people board the small zodiac boat and prepare to drop the longline the rest of the class climbs aboard the Makani Aha and grabs a fishing pole. Once the long line is set we allow it to soak between 45 min and an hour, then take crew out to check the line. Last night was an absolutely incredible night for fishing, with clear skies and good company I set out in the small zodiac from the harbor with my professor and a fellow classmate. Just as we were setting the line in the water my classmate, Emily felt a tug and I saw the rope vibrating in the water. We made the decision to finish setting the line and go back to check it  when we were finished. As I walked my way back down the line, hand after hand, hook after hook I began to feel the weight, and then a sharp yank, while at first I was a little skeptical on weather or not we had something on the line,  all doubt about  having a shark on the line had left my mind, we had one for sure. As I continued working my way up the line I could not help but feel a huge amount of excitement.  There is something elating about seeing the white shadow of the shark coming up though the water and not exactly knowing what species you have, if it is a male or female, how big it really is. 

Measuring the length of the shark. We take measurements at
both the fork of the tail and then end of the tail.
If I remember correctly this one was somewhere around 4.5 feet.

  The female sandbar shark measuring about 4.5 feet in length set the pace for our night. As we walked her back to the Makani Aha to be worked analyzed I could not help but think how cool it is that I get to tell people I have walked a shark before...Once back to the big boat we tied up and began our data collection process. First we measure the length of the shark from nose to tail. Then we check the gender, look for any problems such as cuts or gill leaches and then take a tissue sample from the dorsal fin, which will be used in later lab research such a determining food sources through stable isotope detection, and finally we tag the shark and release it back into its home. It is such an incredible experience and I can't wait to get to do such research in the near future!

Reading off the number of our spaghetti tag. If the shark
is recaptured in our study or by local fisherman we
will be able to receive more information on it
such as growth rate which can help us to discern
food availability in the bay.

First sandbar shark of the day. The sand bar is the only
adult shark that live in the brackish water of Hilo Bay.

We got lucky and caught a brown ray. Let me tell you from
personal experience those things have quite the spine on
their tail!

Me preparing a bag for tissue samples and
gill leaches removed from the shark.

Emily removing gill leaches from the sandbar
shark for later lab analysis. 

Shark lab in action. There is no better way to learn than to be
put right into the middle of the action!       

I hope you all enjoy hearing about my labs as I enjoy getting to do them!!!!

Aloha from the Big Island

And remember sharks are awesome!!!!