Yesterday, my fellow classmates and I embarked on a shark tagging experience and all of us, aside from Neil only on Monday, have never gone shark tagging previously. This meant we were all ears as we set off the boat that not only included our group of college students, but two troop leaders and about twelve girl scouts around the age of 12, as well as the team of researchers. The goal of this shark tagging excursion involved the type of shark looking to be caught, retrieving a sample, and possibly performing a swab inside the mouth of said shark. Besides calculating data, which Alyssa and I were in charge of keeping track of, all of us visitors learned the basics of hooking the bait, clipping the orange buoy, and dropping the weight into the water. When it was time to retrieve our bait and see if a shark was caught, groups of about 4-5 people pulled the green rope first, and then the thick fishing line. The girl scouts were extremely eager to get their hands on the process to catch a shark which is amazing considering how the world is today. What amazed me the most was the amount of knowledge Jonah, a seventeen year old senior in high school, knew about his home and the creatures of the sea.
After meeting the crew, I was able to sit and talk to Jonah and how he became involved as part of the crew at such a young age. Learning his family life and background as the youngest in his family which is made up of local conservationists, I was able to understand where his love for the ocean began. Jonah and his older brother even created a non profit incorporating the community within the marine science topic. I found this to be interesting because not only is he so young, he has been brought up in a family who appreciates our planet and passes their knowledge onto their kids. Jonah works with Derek Burkholder, one of the founders and vice president of Sharks 4 Kids. This organization involves the youth in research opportunities and teaches them at a young age about sharks in general and in my eyes, to relieve the negative stigma towards the organism.
Derek Burkholder is mentoring Jonah in his marine biology studies in terms of investigating shark and turtle behavior and overall ecology. They look into the restoration projects already occurring and analyze the data Derek and his team collect when out on the boat. Jonah interacts with the turtles in their habitats when it comes to releases and stays active in his internship at Nova. I have been extremely impressed with his passion and determination to prepare himself for his future career as well as the involvement of the girl scouts. Education in the marine science field with the youth is essential to continue the legacies that have been created from previous generations.
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