Recapping a Week of Wonders

It's a beautiful day, the water is the calmest it's been all week, and I'm thinking about the incredible past week I've had! I was humbled by the power of the winds that the storms here bring in, and was amazed at how much it can rain in a ten-minute downpour!

The calm after the storm

Another graduate student here from UCSB and I went out on a boat to collect some corals for her project, and the faulty motor left us stranded in the middle of the channel! Of course this was the boat with no pull start, and no paddle. We were just about ready to jump in the water and swim the boat back, when another boat was in sight, and we took full advantage of the universal distress signal! Although they spoke no English whatsoever, Emily spoke enough French to explain the situation. Thankfully, they knew where we had come from, and towed us back. I guess it always works out somehow!

Tiare Tahiti flower

The P. damicornis adults produced lots of larvae, and kept us busy sampling, and setting up cultures for them to settle and metamorphose into juveniles! It's so cool to see them change completely from tiny free swimming larvae to little corals with polyps, and the beginnings of a solid coral skeleton! All in all, it's been a successful trip, and we are coming back with as much as we could sample! 

Acropora coral bed

A few days ago, Maggie and I went to Temae, which is a protected reef, that fringes the biggest beach I have yet to see here! The water was absolutely beautiful, and the reef itself was mind-blowing! I think it could be considered a climax reef ecosystem... huge coral heads with a large diversity throughout, tons of colorful and active fishes, and the most sea urchins (multiple species) I have ever seen in one place! Above the water, beyond the reef, we could see Tahiti in the distance. I was so happy that we had time to go, and without focusing on collecting corals or fish poop, we were able to fully explore and appreciate the complexity and the beauty of the network of reef life!

Temae reef

I couldn't think of a better way to end our trip than our final adventure.... I had heard a lot about a site where sharks and rays have been fed for many years, and so are abundant! Seeing as rays have always particularly amazed me out of all marine life, I was dying to go!! However, it's a pretty long boat ride, and we aren't exactly allowed to take the station boats so far on our own. Luckily, I am not very good at containing enthusiasm, and so one of the station employees offered to take us! I cannot even explain how insanely excited I was! The boat ride there was beautiful; cameras simply cannot do justice to the color of the water here! We arrived at the site, which is close to the the Motus of Moorea (which are small islands off the coast), and before we could even anchor, I could see a fleet of rays stealthily gliding toward the boat! They were HUGE!!!!! and beautiful and amazing and awesome and.... I was SO EXCITED!!!!

They came right up to the boat, eager to check out any treats that we might have brought. We could feel their uniquely rubbery skin, as they thoroughly searched our hands. It was so surreal, that for a moment, I was speechless! We looked beyond the rays, and could see the outlines of several black tips, lingering in hopes of getting free food too! I could not even wait to get in the water! I jumped in, and was immediately greeted by five or six massive gray sting rays, who scanned me for food. We didn't feel it was right to feed them and had not brought anything. It turned out to be better that way, because the rays weren't so aggressive, and we could observe them more as they act and interact with each other and the other marine life around them naturally. It was one of the most incredible experiences I've ever had in the water!

The sharks were large for black tips (3-4 ft), and it was amazing to watch them swim so close to you, and scan you with their white eyes. They really are beautiful, and it was so cool to be there, and to not be afraid. The rays continued to swim around us, hassle each other, and bury themselves in the sand!  can't even explain what a unique and unbelievable experience it was, I could have stayed there for hours, and I will never forget it!

So, we're are pretty much packed, and fly out tonight at 12:30 am. It's been such an incredible trip, and I feel so blessed to have had this opportunity. I have learned so so much, from this place, our research, and from the other people here at the research station! For now, I will enjoy the rest of my last day in this awesome place. Tomorrow, it's back to school, and I look forward to the adventures that lie ahead!