Aquarium people from all over at the IAC

Hi Sea Fans!

While I've been in America, the most amazing thing has been happening back home...the International Aquarium Congress took pllasts the week before last at the Two Oceans Aquarium.  Around 400 aquarium-related people from around the world (Japan, Korea, China, America, England, Turkey...and many more) came together at their 4 yearly conference to talk about the aquarium industry.  Heidi (the author of my books) popped in and caught up on what's been happening.

Looks like aquariums are really looking to the future with captive breeding, collaboration (aquariums working together and sharing) and education. There were talks on using more high tech technology in aquariums ,the amazing work that's been done on whale shark husbandry (training them to reduce stress when the vet comes to take a blood sample to check on their health), collection techniques, climate change and a whole lot more!  If you want to read more go to :  

Www.iac2012.co.za/blog

Have a great week Sea Fans!
Chat soon.
Cheers!
Abby
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Global adventures

Hi Sea Fans!

I bet you're wondering where I'm off to next, well, I'm going to visit Fred the Monkey in Washington to find out more about ocean litter and ocean education, I'm going to the Shaw Ocean Discovery Centre in Sidney, Canada, I'm going to pop in and say hi to the illustrator of my books, Keli, in San Diego, I'm going to the Marine Science Institute at the University of California to learn about REEF and lots lots more so stay tuned! : )

Have a great week Sea Fans!
Cheers
Abby
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Good News!

Hi Sea Fans

Things have been going great guns here in America.  I've got one more stop in California and that's to see the illustrator (the lady who draws the pictures) of my books. Yippee!  I get to see what she gets up to in the day and she said that she might take me to one or two aquariums in her neighbourhood.

Keli - the person behind the amazing pictures in my books!

I'm still trying to get the photos off my USB of my visit to the Marine Science Institute, as soon as I manage that, I'll post them for you to see.  I got to help out at Tech Trek (a week-long, residential, summer, science program where girls, going into 8th grade stay in a UCSB dorm and learn about science), visited REEF Aquarium with a special friend and got to read a super special book...but more about that next time : )

I heard some great news ...a blogger did a survey in May asking people what their favourite ocean-themed children's book is and my first book, "Abby's Aquarium Adventures", was listed!!!  Facebook and Twitter was used to find out what people think...how clever!

My first book is now also available as an app!!!  Check out iTunes or go to this web page:
http://www.topappstoday.com/apps-book/548224380/auracle-abby-rsquo-s-aquarium

Keep in touch Sea Fans (abby@telkomsa.net) and let me know what you like and don't like about the sea, maybe you'll see your comments/poem/story posted here!

Chat soon.
Cheers!
Abby
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Mobile Fish Exhibit

Hi Sea Fans!

I’m back! : )  I’ve been chatting to so many people here in the US and am loving the hospitality.  After the California Science Centre, I got to visit James Frank and his Mobile Fish Exhibit at the East Bay Regional Park District in Oakland, California.  He even let me drive it!!

Fish Guy Joshua and Ranger James gave me a behind the scenes tour of the aquarium lab, where all the fish that go into the exhibit spend most of their time.  

Every couple of weeks, these fish get to travel to a new school or festival to teach people about the importance of keeping our waterways clean and healthy.  I got involved by showing the kids how to do scientific drawings of the fish.  

Scientists use these kinds of drawings to document behavior patterns and other observations, so it’s a great skill to learn. 

  

We also had a bit of a laugh by making drawings of Ranger James and Fish Guy Joshua! 

James does some great work and part of what he does is to teach kids about why it is important not to set pets free in the wild.  When people let their pet goldfish go free in a pond or lake, they use resources (food etc) that the native fish (the local fish that are meant to be there) and other aquatic animals need to survive. 

Thanks for having me James, I hope you had as much fun as I did! : )

Next time you're in Oakland, Sea Fans, keep an eye out for the Mobile Aquarium and say hi to Ranger James!!

Cheers

Abby

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CSI or CSS?

Hi Sea Fans!

I've been rushing around California, trying to visit everyone and it's been crazy ...but so much fun!  I got to go back to the California Science Centre (CSS) seeing as I only got to meet the divers last time and this time, I felt like a CSI (Crime Scene Investigator) because I got to look for parasites on fish with the vet staff!

If a fish starts to act funny (like not eating or swimming weirdly) the aquarists alert the veterinary staff and everybody keeps a close eye on it.  If necessary, they take the fish out and do a skin scraping (this doesn't hurt the fish, it just takes a bit of slime off their body) to check if there is a parasite that might be making the fish sick.  Luckily, we found that the fish is healthy and when I left, it was swimming around just fine.

I also got to check out the quarantine facility where new fish are kept.  These fish are kept here for a while, away from display animals to make sure that they don't bring any diseases into the aquarium.  This is where I got to see my first California Sheephead:

Yup, a Sheephead is a fish!

Here's a full body shot so that you can see what he looks like.  Photo: M Kjaergaard

They also asked me to have a look at their Northern Kelp Crab so I did a visual inspection and didn't find anything wrong with it - a happy crab!

Such a good looking crab!

The staff then decided to have a laugh and make it look like I was going to have an operation (I was quite glad that the scalpel/knife didn't get any closer! : )):

The cone over my head is how they give anaesthetic (make them go to sleep for a while) to animals like otters.

I then quickly got to check out the Hornsharks 

and the Kelp Tank before I had to rush off to my next destination on my global travels.

Fascinating stuff once again and next I get to see the Cabrillo Marine Aquarium so keep your eyes peeled for the next blog Sea Fans!

Chat soon.

Cheers

Abby

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Wrigley Institute for Environmental Studies

Hi Sea Fans!

Wow, I’m having such fun here in California!  I got to go to the California Science Centre as well as the University of Southern California (USC) in Los Angeles to meet more people.  Everyone's been so nice and shown me so much, keeping me really busy! Now I know what it feels like to be a graduate student working in a science laboratory!  It is really challenging. 

While I was at the university, I got my picture taken with a statue of George TireBiter, a local stray dog that became USC's most adored mascot in the 1940’s, and is still a legend today. 

Next, I visited a USC science laboratory in the Department of Biological Sciences where Patrick Sun and his graduate students are studying algae.  I really liked seeing how the different species of algae grow. 

Another student, Nathan Walworth, was also in the middle of a very important experiment about ocean acidification (remember the acidification experiments I got to see in Alaska?  Have a look in the blog archives to find out more!).  The programs at USC focus on the study of marine organisms and how they interact with each other and the environment, as well as the details of complex marine ecosystems (lots of big words, but what this basically means is that they look at how the living things in the sea live where they do (ecosystem = The plants and animals that are found in a particular location).  If you are interested in marine biology or oceanography, you should visit their website:  http://dornsife.usc.edu/bisc/marine/graduate/  and watch a movie about USC students. 

Afterward, I took a boat to this amazing island called Catalina off the coast of California.  This peaceful island was once on the bottom of the ocean floor and is a protected marine reserve.  The USC laboratory there is called the Wrigley Marine Science Center (WMSC). You can visit the website at www.usc.edu/wrigley and see all the great activities they offer researchers and educators from all over the world. 

On the island, I joined the QuikSCience Challenge winning teams.  The QuikSCience Challenge is a programme where students from all over the world prepare and present a project about the ocean or any water-related topic.  Each team submits their project and then they get to go kayaking and hiking on the island for a day - really cool, I thought!  The grand prize is a week long expedition for their entire team.  

You can follow my adventures with the two winning teams, SMASH (Santa Monica Alternative School House) and St. Margaret’s Episcopal School, as we travel all over the island collecting sand samples, bugs, kayaking, viewing wild animals, and snorkeling new places. You can check out all the activities we did during the week by checking out the students' daily blog on this website:http://www.usc.edu/org/quikscience/blogs/2012_middleschool.html 

(Have a look at the photo of a flying fish being eaten - amazing!) 

And, guess what?!  I met a boy named ADDY (no kidding!) and I think he likes me. We dared each other to kiss a sea cumber for good luck!  

Addy didn’t like it very much, but I did. 

Well, this was very exciting…. And the sunrises on Catalina are the best, 

but now I’m back on the mainland and off to San Pedro, California to the Cabrillo Marine Aquarium!

Have a great weekend Sea Fans!

Cheers

Abby

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SEA Lab in Redondo Beach

Hi Sea Fans!

I've got more interesting stuff to show you!  I also got to go to the SEA Lab in California. SEA Lab is a hands-on science centre that runs marine education programmes.  The SEA Lab is part of the Los Angeles Conservation Corps.  The Conservation Corps provides job skills training, education and work experience with an emphasis on conservation and service projects that benefit the community.

I just loved this mural outside the SEA Lab.

Seeing as I was an invited guest, one of the corps members, Chris, offered to take me to King Harbour to show me how to collect a sample with a plankton net...

A close-up of what the net looks like.

See the cup at the bottom?  That's what collects the plankton from the water and any extra water can just flow straight through the cone net.

Dragging the net through the water to collect a sample.

and then we went and checked the sample out under the microscope.  I'm starting to like the microscope more and more...you never know what you're going to find in what seems like clear sea water!  (I also tried something different and put a strand of my hair under the microscope.  You HAVE to try this!!!  You won't believe how thick one strand can look.  I know this is disgusting, but a scab under the microscope is also really cool to look at!).

If you'd like to find out more about the corps or the SEA Lab, check out their website: http://www.lacorps.org/sealab.php

So Sea Fans, go and find the microscope at school and ask your teacher if you can look at a few things.  How about making your own plankton net and getting a sample from your local river or dam if you're not close to the sea?!  Have fun with it and we'll chat soon.  (Send me photos if you do go out with a net and do some sampling! abby@telkomsa.net)

Cheers
Abby
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