01 November 2010

FGCU students experience KML's Living Lab

Marine Ecology students from Florida Gulf Coast University, Fort Meyers, visited KML to get hands-on experience in a marine environment. Led by their professor, Dr. Micheal Parsons, they participated in KML's Living Laboratory Project (see KML website for more details). Students learned first-hand the challenges of laying out a site grid and doing belt transects and point counts while snorkeling, at 2 of the selected sites.


Actual data collected by the students will be added to the growing data base for the project and can be compared to previous assessments at each site.

Also down from FGCU was Dr. Robert Erdman's Invertebrates class. Students snorkeled various habitats, including seagrassbeds, mangroves, intertidal zones, and patch reefs, collecting and identifying animals for their studies. One of the days' highlights included the thrill of observing an 8' Hammerhead chasing fish near-by!

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