The following cacique update was written by Courtney and Clayton describing their day as caciques, Friday, July 1.

SPLASH!!!! A crowd of students and faculty eagerly dives into the water and begins a long ocean swim towards the Marina.  Moments before our day began at 6:30 with the daily circle.  Unlike some days when the Island School students express groggy faces, today started as a morning full of excitement.  Perhaps the crowd of students was happy that the morning workout was changed from the standard run to an ocean swim.

Today commenced the first day of classes for our research projects.  Everyone was excited to say the least.  The projects ranged from researching Flats, Lionfish, Lemon Sharks, Conch, and Aquaculture. In Lemon sharks students learned about the electrical “sixth sense” that is located on the tip of all sharks noses. In Lionfish, Flats, and conch everyone was lucky enough to go fishing and possibly get a bit of a tan while learning about the respective catches. In Aquaculture students learned all about the fish they will be working with, and specifically Cobia. Cobia can get up to six feet, the have alternating horizontal white stripes, and have a white underbelly. They live in deeper shallow coastal waters in warmer temperatures. The Cobia are large fish that are perfect for aquaculture because they reproduce and mature quickly and can feed many people because of their enormous size.

Overall, today was a great day and a bit more relaxing than the long days of kayaking and scuba diving. We really can’t wait to learn more about our projects!