A memorable summer with abalones
A Santa Rosa Junior College - Bodega Marine Laboratory Internship Program Story
Daily Alvarez is a 21 year old biology student at the SRJC, intending to transfer to UC Davis and eventually pursue a career in the veterinary field. She is a person passionate about animals, and enjoys spending time out in nature and swimming.
This summer has been one of the most incredible summers I have ever experienced. I decided to sign up for this internship with the hopes of getting a glimpse of what the research world has to offer. To my surprise, I got so much more than that. I got to meet great scientists and learn about what they do, I got to learn about white abalones, and most important, I got to do one of my favorite things, spend time with animals.
From working with my mentor, Leela Dixit, I learned about white abalones and what drove them to be endangered. White abalones are threatened by a disease called Withering Syndrome, caused by a bacterium that affects their esophagus and causes them to wither away.
This summer I worked with the White Abalone Team with the purpose of helping rebuild their population. I got to assist my mentor in cleaning and swapping the ogo and dulse cultures that we would then feed to the white abalones. I also performed checks twice a day to ensure that the tanks, water flow, air flow, uv treatments, and sumps were working properly. I was able to take part in the heritability experiment where we dissected and took data from abalone populations with the goal of identifying a resistance to the bacterium that causes withering syndrome.
Another project I helped with was shipping out white abalone populations that would go to facilities to be monitored and then put back in the ocean. This was truly magnificent to witness. The feeling I got when I heard that I would take part in such an important moment for the white abalone, filled me with joy.
There is so much more I could say about the things I got to experience at this internship, this opportunity has allowed me to learn more about life, about the world, about animals, and even more important about people. I feel so grateful to mentor Leela, Lauren, Nora, Audrey and so many more amazing scientists for teaching me about white abalones. In addition, Im thankful for the Bodega Marine Lab to allow me to experience a summer like this one. This is truly a summer I wont forget!
About the Program:
The SRJC-BML Internship Program provides summer research opportunities for Santa Rosa Junior College students at the Bodega Marine Laboratory.