Diario de khear946

FYE class field trip, smaller than usual, went to Sullivans Island in search of Texas Horned Lizards on a breezy and sunny 75 degree weather day. The lizards were transplanted there for studying purposes by McElroy's research team. Though we didn't find a lizard, we found it's feces and analyzed the contents. The scat was bean shaped and glossy with a white bead of uric acid on the top. The beach had many people enjoying the sunny weather while students scoured the dunes in search of anything interesting, some getting sand spurs stuck in their feet. Whilst searching for lizards, a fellow student found a pudgy toad. We also ran across different plants as the weather is beginning to get warmer and newly sprouted plants arise. The seagulls were plentiful and lurking in search of their next meal, bees excitedly zipping through the air, and the crashing waves made for a relaxing beach day that doubled as one of our last educational field trips together.

The FYE class returned to Dixie Plantation, a thirty minute drive to Hollywood, SC, to wade in the waters and get a more immersed experience than before. The weather consisted of a sunny and warm 75 degrees, with slight breezes that deterred the gnats away- for a short 45 seconds at the most. Like the previous trip, the traps were placed in advance to make sure the class got to see more specimen. We stumbled upon a salamander- which was the main goal of the trip. As usual, we found more crawfish and the same plants in the first post for Dixie Plantation.

FYE class travelled to the Grice Marine Lab. This laboratory houses scholarly and academic researches for the College of Charleston at Fort Johnson on James Island. Though we did not enter, we walked to a nearby path which led us to an area where the low tide allowed the class to view whatever washed up. A handheld two person dredge was offered to scrape up specimens from the bottom of the water and sediment. Though the dredge was handy for catching small fish and small worm like creatures, a lot of jellyfish and seaweed were washed up on shore.

The students returned to Grice for their final FYE trip of the semester. We boarded a research vessel that belonged to the DNR on a beautiful and sunny day that had a high of 79 degrees. "This is such a gorgeous day to be out" was a statement that was thrown around the boat numerous times. As the boat proceeded, occasional stops to drop the large dredge was released and the boat slowly trolled around to scrape the bottom of the benthic zone. We pulled in three different batches, and they got better and better. Catches like pufferfish, robin fish, squid, and shrimp were an experience that many students wouldn't be able to have outside of this class. The shrimp and squid were reserved for meals for the specimens that are being held at the laboratory. This trip was a great finale for the course as all students were engaged, sharing laughs and enjoying the day together.

FYE 108 Natural History of the Lowcountry entailed identification of species around us and to know to natural history of our environment and how the past shaped today.

Continued post for the final, since journals can only include a max of 28 images per journal.