So we've finished up our stay on Barro Colorado Island (BCI), which is a rain forested-coated a few miles from Gamboa and (I learned recently) the best-studied rain forest in the world. Kinda cool!
If you remember from the last post, I was driving howler monkeys crazy with a big stuffed jaguar:
J-Diddy chilling in the beautiful old-growth forest (with a carpet of purple flowers) on BCI
Our freak-monkeys-out experiment turned out to be a success and was lots of fun. (We basically found that (a) howler monkeys reacted the same way to a 3D and 2D stuffed jag model; and (b) the only difference between the two models was that it took monkeys longer to decide that our flat, 2D model was a "threat" to them.)
While on BCI, I also got to see/film two poison dart frogs mating.. They are so intense! Check it out
I really grew to like a lot of things about BCI. The crazy-about-science attitude, the fridge full of Balboa and Panama beers that was treasured by the whole island, the samba dance parties on the patio, the AMAZING food (no joke), the friendly people, and - of course - the ridiculously cool natural life were all positives.
This is Big Tree. You can't really get a scale for the size here, and you can't even see the top of it in the pic.. But take my word for it: the tree is huge.
The only bad thing about BCI is that it's a small island with no more than 50 people around at a time. Which means the island is a great place to focus on research, but it can also become dangerously boring.. Think about it: it's just you, animals, and a few other researchers.. who you see ALL THE TIME. Even after just 3 weeks, I was ready to get back to the mainland - I can't imagine how people live there for a year!
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Soo right now, we're back in Gamboa, working on our fourth and final course. It's different from the others - focused on geology & archaeology, rather than tropical biology.
Today was pretty exciting. We went out to a few different field sites (ranging from 6-18 million years old) looking for fossilized marine organisms.. We saw a lot of bivalve (oysters, barnacles, clams) fossils, tons of snail shells, and some cool things like shark teeth.
I actually got lucky and made a pretty exciting find - some kind of vertebrate tooth which our prof thought might be from a killer whale. It's a neat fossil because marine mammal teeth are generally much more rare in the fossil record than shark teeth are, since sharks shed their teeth & mammals don't. The prof was excited and wants to send it off to a lab to get tested and stuff. Here's a pic:
Cool!
But even cooler than the tooth was doing paleontology in our boxers. At our second site, we had to get across this little bay to look at some rock formations, and we were totally unprepared for going for a swim. Our professor, an adventurous Englishman, had no problem wading confidently into the water (fully clothed), and it was so funny to see his reaction to our group's entry into the water. It was like those wildebeest herds on their great migration when they stop at the river to think about the crocodiles and then finally decide to make the plunge. Except for our group that meant that Princeton EEBers - guys and girls alike - started stripping left and right, pulling off shoes, shirts, and pants before making the plunge in underwear.
I happened to be in the water next to our professor and just watched his face morph into a blend of wry humor and mild contempt.
Some memorable quotes from the afternoon:
"What the hell are they doing?" [our prof, watching awestruck as everyone figured out how to get in]
"Is there anything unpleasant in the water?" [me, referring to things like jellyfish, crocodiles, sharks..]
"Just you guys" [prof, still incredulous]
"I bet no one listened to a word he said, since we were all standing around in our underwear the whole time" [girl in our class, referring to our 45-min lecture once we got out of the water, huddled around a 6 million-year-old wall of rock, in minimal clothing]
"Dang it, these white boxers are see-through!" [guy in our class after getting in the water. he held a hand over his sweet spot the rest of our time at the site]
"So people get in their underwear here a lot?" [Our group to our prof]
"Not really, no. Just you all." [Prof]
"Fossils have never been so sexy" [fb status after getting back to Gamboa]
Aaand here's a picture of our motley crew after our wet excursion:
Classic
A few final thoughts:
1) We've adopted an adorable kitten who hangs out near our schoolhouse in Gamboa. Its name is Lolly, in honor of our charming EEB departmental rep in Princeton. Some fotos:
Lolly the kitten
2) Today, a 24 oz bottle of insect spray (sent to me by my loving dad) really completed my already-impressive arsenal of poisonous chemicals for combating mosquitos et al.:
Totally absurd quantity of insect repellent
(Note: I just discovered two more bottles not included in the picture. Ostia.)
3) And FINALLY, the Barca pride from last semester definitely hasn't worn off. Why do I bring this up? Because, for the first time in history, FC Barcelona -- the good guys -- and Real Madrid -- the bad guys -- will be facing off FOUR TIMES in the next 18 days, starting this Sat, 4/16. At stake is a lot of glory and bragging rights. First, they'll play each other in the second installment of La Liga action, with Barca trying to maintain its substantial but not unsurmountable 8 point lead in the standings. Second, the two Spanish powerhouses will face off in the final of the Copa del Rey. And third, they'll do battle in the home and away legs of the Champions League semifinals. So the four Clásicos should make for some really exciting action - enjoy!
