Just in from the Ship

We also took divers to different spots around the islands so that they could observe, photograph, videotape and identify the coral and fish. We took biologists ashore on the islands to count and photograph birds, plants, lizards, and crabs... what ever they saw. In a short period of time, the islands and surrounding reef were thoroughly scrutinized.

The divers are all very exited about what they have seen. They come back from their dives and review their videotapes and look through their reference books to identify the many fish that they saw. They are using very small digital video cameras in water-tight cases. The tapes are thrilling to watch. There are lots of different kinds of fish, most of them colorful. They range in size from a few centimeters to over a meter long (sharks!). Yes, sharks! During just about every dive the divers were watched by black tip sharks, white tip sharks and gray reef sharks; but they only watch. They are curious animals and have probably never seen humans before. The bird observers worked under clouds of birds on the islands. Many species of seabirds come to these islands to nest, breed, and lay eggs. They saw lots of nests and boroughs and eggs and hatchlings. The islands have a very interesting smell caused by the mess that hundreds of thousands of birds make. You can probably imagine.

The islands have some interesting history. There were guano mines here in the late eighteen hundreds. Before fertilizer was manufactured from petrochemicals, it was so valuable that it was worth sailing half way around the world to dig up thousands of years worth of bird excrement, which is rich in phosphorus, to use as fertilizer. During World War II, there were U.S military installations here for fueling aircraft. Baker island was actually bombed by the Japanese during the war. Howland island has the ruins of a light house and radio beacon that was erected to help Emilia Earhart navigate across the pacific. Unfortunately, she didn't make it this far. The tower has a plaque on it naming it "Earhart Light".

We feel fortunate to be able to work here. These islands have not seen people for a long time. They are wildlife refuges and are off limits to people. We have a special permit from the US Fish and Wildlife Service to be here to study the ecosystems.

Next week we will have underwater pictures of divers, coral, fish, and SHARKS!