	Bamfield Marine Sciences Centre
	Canada's premier coastal and marine facility for teaching and research

Biodiversity of Seaweeds 2009

Dr. Colin Bates writes:

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"Barkley Sound is one of the best places in the world to learn about seaweeds, owing to a diverse flora and wide array of habitats in close proximity to BMSC. Biodiversity of Seaweeds 2009 was three weeks (well) spent exploring the full potential of all of this seaweed-y greatness. The 2009 phycos were a pack of keen students who spent many an early morning low tide exploring rocky shores, from wave sheltered habitats characterized by Fucus distichus, all the way out to shores exposed to the brute force of the open Pacific ocean, where Postelsia dwells. We also explored subtidal habitats with snorkels and dredges, and all of these field trips allowed the students to collect samples for keying in the lab and for pressing for their herbarium project. It was great to see the students start to recognize in the field all the features and species we introduced in lecture and lab. Students were able to get up close and personal with the ‘weeds at our 'Economics of Algae' lab; extensive research demonstrated that the specimens were both delicious and therapeutic. We even made seaweed print t-shirts. For the last half of the course, student independent research project topics included alginic acid extraction techniques, wrack deposition, Fucus reproductive output, host-epiphyte dynamics for Microcladia, functional groups and dessication, kelp biomechanics, effects of bryozoan cover on kelp stretching, and invertebrate distributions on Egregia. The course was capped off with a brisk 5:30am flora test in the field. What a way to end another phyctastic phycology class at BMSC!"

Bamfield Marine Sciences Centre
100 Pachena Rd, Bamfield, BC
Canada, V0R 1B0
Phone: (250) 728-3301
Fax: (250) 728-3452

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