the Earth-bound adventures of the Lost and Found

11 February 07. Just so the kids would get a chance to see some trees and birds and be free of their cages for awhile, we had a non-compulsory field trip for the zoology students to this lake I had never been to, either. In my class, only one student signed up (let’s hope that’s not a reflection of my teaching abilities =P). So ok, lakes are nice; I’ve had good experiences with them lately, especially in Lake Danao in Camotes and Lake Danao in Ormoc. This one wasn’t particularly spectacular. In fact, it looked more like a river than a lake, with its big boulders and narrow shape. But oh, right at the end of it there was this curious piece of dry land that looked like something out of an African savannah. And right behind that, a waterfall! Next to the sea, I think I can say that waterfalls are my second favorite body of water. So I didn’t mind having to hike all that way (and good thing my student and I had the sense to take the raft across part of the way, instead of climbing the 552...

04 Feb 07, Escano Beach. Seven a.m., the wind was chilly, and for the last hour we were there, it was drizzling. Just the day before I had been up at 6 am to do three dives (also in the cold sea) with the Aquanuts. But yes, folks, this is class for me---walking in ankle-deep water on a Monday morning to look at all the ugly little things clinging to rocks, coral and seagrass. They're actually called algae. And they each have names. And reproductive structures (even the red scum on the rocks have them!). And along the way, we got to know some other interesting creatures, too. (sorry no pictures of my classmates here. i go to marine plant physiology class with 4 boys)

04 Feb 07 – Dauin, Negros Oriental. It was a lesson in seeing. Visibility wasn’t very good because of the weather, the sites were mostly just brown sand and seagrass with virtually no corals, but never did I see so many fascinating creatures in a single dive day as diving with The Aquanuts – Joy & Kevin, Fred, Sol, Paulo, Eric, Barbie, and of course, Ana, who lately I see only when the moon is full ;-) Five minutes into the first dive and the group was already gathered round a pile of rocks and sponges, like paparazzi complete with strobes, clicking away at THREE ghost pipefish—and many divers dive again and again without seeing a single one. As if that wasn’t enough, there was also a pair of black-and-white fiddler-looking crabs and a pair of shrimps under the same rock. A few meters away, we find a teeny tiny frogfish on a block of cement. A few minutes later, another pipefish, different species this time. And on and on and on. Certainly it couldn’t have been accidental, the way ...