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Fall 2010 |  |
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Protecting Our Ocean Wilderness Through Public Stewardship www.farallones.org |  |
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IN THIS ISSUE Wildlife Spectacle at the Farallones Ocean Climate Center Unveiled LiMPETS Launches New Data System Support FMSA!
Dec 9 - Gulf of the Farallones Sanctuary Advisory Council Meeting will be held at Upper Fort Mason, Bldg. 201, in San Francisco
Now playing at Cal Academy- Sanctuary in the Sea: A Gulf of the Farallones Experience Discover the beauty, diversity and history of the Gulf of the Farallones National Marine Sanctuary through the eyes of Ron Elliott, an urchin diver turned videographer. Showtimes On the half hour: * Monday - Saturday: 10:00 am - 4:30 pm (Tuesday, 9:00 and 9:30 am shows members only) * Sunday 11:30 am - 4:30 pm (10:30 am and 11:00 am shows members only) sp;
Jan 29 -Teachers! Looking for new ways to make science come alive in your classroom? Teacher Workshop Series '10-'11 LiMPETS Introduction to Rocky Intertidal Monitoring
Visitor Center Programs Jan 8 & Feb 12 Jan 16 Jan 22 Jan 29 & Feb 19
Marine Science Private Event for Children Our Visitor Center Naturalist will lead your group of children in a catch and release fishing exploration of crabs from our pier classroom as well as a guided tour of the Gulf of the Farallones Visitor Center (including a special feeding of the animals!) This unique program includes the use of our pier classroom for your private group. We offer a limited number of these extraordinary events. Registration required by contacting: Peter Winch (415) 561-6625 x310
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Wildlife Spectacle at the FarallonesEditor’s note: The following is a first-hand account by Bill Buck, a board member of FMSA, after sailing to Southeast Farallon Island with PRBO's Farallon Patrol. The patrol is an organization of boat owners (mostly sailing vessels) that deliver supplies and transport researchers to the island, a restricted National Wildlife Refuge. Click here for more information about PRBO's Farallon Patrol. On an early morning in October, our Farallon Patrol boat set out to deliver supplies to the island's researchers. As our crew passed under the Golden Gate Bridge, I hoped for an opportunity to see whales and other wildlife on the 27-mile trip. None of us expected what was to come... Since it was October, Shark Watch was being conducted on Tower Hill and we were invited to go meet the researchers on duty -- as long as we didn't mind the steep hike. A small group of us elected to make the ascent and, working our way up the craggy switchbacks, the views were already worth the effort. Suddenly we heard someone hollering and figured someone had spotted a shark in the cove below. We quickly made our way to the top of the island and found a powerful telescope.
Amidst the chaos Pete explained that the shark had disappeared but would be back soon to take another bite... And as we waited, sure enough, more violent thrashing and this time the seal was visible at the surface -- a remnant of what it had been moments before.
Ocean Climate Center Unveiled The Gulf of the Farallones National Marine Sanctuary opened its new Ocean Climate Center on October 26th at its headquarters in San Francisco. The Center will serve as an ocean and climate change communication center for the Bay Area and facilitate the exchange of technical, scientific, policy and education information and ideas. The Center will bring together a diversity of knowledge and expertise amongst several federal, state, and local agencies and other academic and non-profit partners to identify, assess and address the effects of climate variability and change on the sanctuary and the surrounding marine region from Sonoma to Santa Cruz County. Staff at the new Ocean Climate Center will work collaboratively with NOAA’s world-renowned climate scientists and experts and eventually with NOAA's proposed Climate Service once established. The center will also help catalyze the development of information and outreach programs to help inform the public about how climate variability and change may affect ocean ecosystems. “This center strives to understand the linkages between climate change and ocean ecosystems,” said Margaret Spring, NOAA chief of staff. “This NOAA center — the first of its kind — draws expertise from across the agency's climate, weather, research, coastal, and fisheries programs, using a place-based approach with federal, state and local partners. We're pleased that by locating this center in a national marine sanctuary, it can foster a strong connection between the public and the wildlife and marine resources that are naturally linked to a changing climate. It will promote the Northern California region as a study area for the effects of climate change and serve as a model for climate change investigations and solutions nationally.” The Farallones Sanctuary will use the center to promote partnerships within the greater San Francisco Bay and Northern-Central Coast area to share resources and knowledge and to work together to address this and other effects of climate change in the region.
LiMPETS Launches New Data System
Sandy Beach Results: http://www.limpetsmonitoring.org/results_home Rocky Intertidal Results: http://www.limpetsrockyintertidal.org/Prod/ViewData.php
Graph (left) : Abundance of sand crabs at Ocean Beach in San Francisco from Spring 2003 to Summer 2010. Data collected by LiMPETS students shows a dramatic decrease in sand crabs after 2003, but recently their numbers have increased again. Graph produced by new online sandy beach data viewing system. Click image to enlarge
Support FMSA with a Year-end Donation!Our educational programs remain regional leaders through both the Gulf of the Farallones Visitor Center and the LiMPETS program. LiMPETS (Long-term Monitoring Program and Experiential Training for Students) is a hands-on, field-based science program for middle and high school students. We get students out of the classroom and into the real, wet and dirty world of marine data collection and analysis. The LiMPETS program has expanded its reach significantly over the past five years. In the Bay Area, the program directly served over 1800 students during the 2009-2010 school year and reached 250% more students than five years prior. Long-term program evaluation reveals that the number one reason that teachers value and participate in the program is because it gets their "students involved in real, meaningful science."
Our Visitor Center outreach really takes education to the next level. This past year, 95% of teachers who brought classes to our site for grade-specific training rated the scientific content and the enjoyment and engagement components of the Visitor Center programs as “exemplary and superb.” For a list of our unique and creative public programs, please see the Calendar to the left or the Visitor Center webpage. But our success is only possible with your support! It’s individuals like you who understand the important role that LiMPETS and the Visitor Center play in creating future marine stewards that make our work possible. Help keep us strong. Keep our good work moving forward. Please support your local Sanctuary by investing in FMSA’s ongoing success with an online donation today. Together, we make it happen. As this is our last issue of Upwelling for 2010, we would like to thank you for your ongoing support and wish you and your family a happy holiday season!
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© 2005-2006 Farallones Marine Sanctuary Association. All Rights Reserved. |
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Our ride was smooth in the pre-dawn as the Charleete II, a 45-foot catamaran operated by Captain Laurie Chaikin, made good speed. The sun rose behind us and soon the islands came into view. Before I knew it we had been hoisted onto the island and biologist Pete Warzybok led us down a narrow walkway to the living quarters. 
Looking through the lens was an unbelievable sight: a Great White thrashing violently with a harbor seal in its mouth. Even the researchers were yelling excitedly and, as we took turns watching, it was clear the shark had killed its prey. A large red pool spread throughout the water... 
The 
