The Adventures at Odiorne Beach

The Touch Tank

Throughout this field trip there were many things that we learned about. We were able to get a better understanding about the water hemispheres and the different aquatic animals that live in the Gulf of Maine. Even though there was all that, the thing that i enjoyed most was the touch tank inside of the Odiorne Beach building. The touch tank was a realistic version of what the Gulf of Maine is really like. It showed me how the different sea creatures live and their different habitats that they conform to. Another thing it taught me was how the animals adapt to the different water temperature throughout the hemispheres and seasons. In the touch tank the water was very cold and it showed me how cold the Gulf of Maine gets around this time of the year. The animal that interested me most was the starfish, i was able to feel the texture of it and see how it lives. Overall i enjoyed this field trip alot because i got a better understanding of many different things.

              

Links:

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Gulf_of_Maine

http://octopus.gma.org/space1/gulfofme.html

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Pagurus Bernhardus

Recently my Oceanography class went to Odiorne State Park. The Hermit Crab or Pagurus Bernhardus was the most prominent animal that I discovered amongst the sand and rocks. I learned that the Hermit Crab can be found here on our beaches in the north east, to as far as coastlines in Russia. I mostly found this animal in the tide pools that had formed due to the low tide on the beach that we were located at. I also learned that Hermit Crabs tend to change their shells quite often. This is interesting to me because it shows how the Hermit Crab is always changing and adapting to their environment. Many other species would be doomed if there habitat was changed on a constant basis. Ordiorne State Park was a great place to go for a class field trip. It had a great amount of wildlife and information for me to learn more about Oceanography and Marine Sciences. The Hermit Crab shell change is a large part of their life. Here is an actual shell change taking place in real life.

Odiorne state park is a great place to visit no matter what time of the year, proof of that is here; http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=dtfPWmGxIoI. Oceanography is an interesting field if you like to boat or would like to know more about the ocean. New England’s climate plays a big part in where Hermit Crabs choose to live in the north east.

-Kyle C.

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Outstanding Odiorne

Temperature Changes in the Ocean

I liked that the field trip was interactive, which helped me learn better. When tide-pooling, I learned a lot about how the temperature of the water changed from Mr. Harty. I also learned this information from the lady inside of Ordione. I learned that the reason the ocean temperature changes is because of the variation of the sun. For example, in the winter time when the sun is in the Northern Hemisphere, the energy input is greatly reduce, therefore lowering the temperatures. The average temperature of the ocean surface waters is about 62.6 degrees. In addition to the temperature of the air, the local currents and wind also affect the ocean temperature. The surface water temperatures obviously change from season to season and year to year change, but the ocean as a whole has increased .1 degrees Fahrenheit in the past 50 years. This change is actually extremely significant, although it is one .1 degrees. It shows that the ocean is warming and this could be alarming and concerning.

    

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Temperatures Move Forward:Lobsters Move Backward

Traveling to Odiorne was such an eye-opening experience to the oceanic world. Pushing our nautical knowns we explored the reservatiion and examined different sea-species whether they were a plant, fish, or another creature. One of my favorite things I learned about were the changes of water tempatures of the ocean water we swim in. We learned that we are not swimming in the Atlantic Ocean when we go to the beach, but more specifically The Gulf of Maine. I now know when the best times to make a plunge into the oceanic water and when to not, as the best times are obviously in the summer, but the fall isn’t that bad either! I thought the spring would carry in warmer water than the fall but I was proved wrong. Also I enjoyed accepting knowledge about lobsters as we found a small one. Lobsters travel backwards and don’t use their legs as much as I thought they would, and now I know I’ll be thinking about it when I’m eating my next lobby.

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