2 answers
Aiden
Student
1
Question
Asked
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I need to ask marine biologists 15 questions for an assigment. Could somone answer them?
1. Why did you get into marine biology?
2. What part in marine biology do you specialize in, and why so?
3. How was studying to become a marine biologist like?
4. What do you think is the biggest threat to marine life, or the ocean as a whole?
5. How do you think we could solve this issue?
6. Are there any species you find more interesting than others?
7. Could you tell me about some memorable experiences you’ve had as a marine biologist?
8. What are some new discoveries in marine biology?
9. How do you stay up to date with new discoveries in marine biology?
10. What are some common misconceptions in marine biology?
11. Could you explain the importance of marine life?
12. What is the worst experience you’ve had as a marine biologist.
13. What are your goals as a marine biologist?
14. What are your hopes for marine life in the future?
15. What kind of tools do you use?
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2 answers
Michelle Matuszewski
Leader in a zoological institution/conservation biologist
11
Answers
Orlando, Florida
Updated
Michelle’s Answer
Hi Aiden. I am a Marine Biologist, so happy to answer your questions.
1. I grew up on the coastline of Southern California, so I have always been close to the ocean. I was just fascinated with what I could not see under the waves and wanted to help save the animals that lived in the ocean. It has been something I have been connected to all my life.
2. I started my career off, doing research with Great White Sharks off Santa Barabara Channel Islands, then I got interested in the cognitive abilities of bottlenose dolphins, which moved my career all the way across the country to Florida. In Florida I discovered the remarkable Sea Turtle and have spent that last 20 years of my career focused on Sea Turtle nesting and conservation.
3. I actually got my undergraduate degree in animal science and chemistry. The school I went to did not have a marine biology program. I knew I wanted to get a master's degree, so I thought a solid science background would be good. Plus, I had an interest in domestic land animals. I then got my master's degree in marine Conservation Biology focused on saltwater ecosystems. A lot of math and a lot of science, which means a lot of studying, lab work and little sleep. I loved it!
4. The biggest threat to the ocean and marine life is us! Although the human race is learning to be better, years of neglect and lack of insight with expansions on coastlines have taken a toll on our oceans worldwide.
5. Working together, creating better laws that protect our environment. Bring science to the table when making decisions about community growth that impacts the coastline. A lot more education starting in elementary schools, so young people can grow up to be knowledgeable and more conservation minded.
6. I love all species that live in the ocean, some have become very adaptable to their environment. Did you know that some groupers can change from being a male to female in adult life? It is a strategy that helps them continue to keep the population growing if there is a lack of one sex in a group or origin. Fascinating! I am rather fond of sharks, dolphins and sea turtles!
7. One of best memories, is when I hired an intern that just graduated college, and she reminded me that I met her on the beach when she was 10 years old, and I talked to her about Sea Turtles, and took her to show her one of the sea turtle nests that I was monitoring. She told me that was the hook that made her interested in studying animals that lived in the office. Here it was years later, and she was interning for me. I think making those connections with people that change their lives or make them care about our environment are most impactful. However, saving a baby turtle out of a turtle nest comes a close second!
8. I don't know if we have new discoveries, since most of the research actually takes years of data to make a summary or discovery. I think an interesting one that we are currently studying is the effect of global warning on sea turtles. Sea turtles' gender is determined by the temperature of the sand. If the sand is hot, then you get females. If the sand is cooler, then you get males. Since turtles lay a large deep nest in the sand, theoretically the warner sand is close to the top, and those eggs would become female. The cooler sand is down lower so eggs at the bottom of the nest would be male. It should produce an even number of males and females. However global warming has really changed the temperature of the sand, so the sand is really warm all the way to bottom, thus all the eggs become female. We know this since we measure the temperature of the sand. The problem is sea turtles do not lay their first egg till they are about 30. So we have 30 years to monitor and try to figure out how we can help impact and solve some of the problem. Turtles will struggle to survive if we only have female turtles. It is a big, complicated question to solve. So hopefully over the years we will have more discoveries that will help us! Science takes a lot of time and patience!
9. We stay up to date by reading peer publications written by other research partners. Also, attending professional conferences. The science community is very good at sharing.
10. A misconception is that we play at the beach all the time. Although I do spend time at the beach and the ocean, it is never recreational. I am usually in mucky sand, trying to avoid getting bit by ghost crabs and being chewed up by sand fleas. The large majority of my time is reading data, imputing information and analyzing the information that has been found. I also spend a lot of time with US fish and wildlife meeting advocating for laws that will better protect our oceans. I work a lot with local and international governments on solutions for coastal communities. It is a bit of politics, and a lot of public speaking too.
11, Marine Life is an eco-system, just like the ones you see on land. There is balance in the ocean that keeps everything in check and running smooth, until typically humans do something to interrupt the system. It is also a huge means for economies in most countries. Fish is a huge part of diets for must humans, so the oceans provide us food. Although we need to make sure we regulate our fishing and influence other countries to do so as well. The ocean also is a huge part of eco-tourism and recreation. This can be from boating to scuba diving and also is a big part of the economy and income for a lot of people. Bottom line, marine life is very important to keeping our oceans healthy and balanced. Healthy marine life provides economic stability for many people. This is a very short answer to a very important question.
12. No bad experiences! I know that sounds impossible. Even covid had advantages for me. We saw less travel, thus less people on the beach and in the oceans. Wildlife thrived! I can honestly say, even when you discover an animal death due to something a human might have thrown out in the ocean, still provides a story and motivation to keep doing what I do.
13. My goals are to connect people and communities to nature. Sharing my passion and hopefully making a small impact on helping species to survive.
14. My hope for marine life is that humans will learn how to keep a balance between urban growth, technology and beauty of nature.
15. Field work is pretty primitive. We use shovels, our hands ropes. Nothing too fancy. I would say we do use iPad for field work, although hard to keep them cool when you are in the sun for 8-10 hours. We are reliant on GPS to mark locations. Good boats, and of course scuba gear for when we are in the water.
Good luck with your paper! Hope you are inspired to be a marine biologist one day.
1. I grew up on the coastline of Southern California, so I have always been close to the ocean. I was just fascinated with what I could not see under the waves and wanted to help save the animals that lived in the ocean. It has been something I have been connected to all my life.
2. I started my career off, doing research with Great White Sharks off Santa Barabara Channel Islands, then I got interested in the cognitive abilities of bottlenose dolphins, which moved my career all the way across the country to Florida. In Florida I discovered the remarkable Sea Turtle and have spent that last 20 years of my career focused on Sea Turtle nesting and conservation.
3. I actually got my undergraduate degree in animal science and chemistry. The school I went to did not have a marine biology program. I knew I wanted to get a master's degree, so I thought a solid science background would be good. Plus, I had an interest in domestic land animals. I then got my master's degree in marine Conservation Biology focused on saltwater ecosystems. A lot of math and a lot of science, which means a lot of studying, lab work and little sleep. I loved it!
4. The biggest threat to the ocean and marine life is us! Although the human race is learning to be better, years of neglect and lack of insight with expansions on coastlines have taken a toll on our oceans worldwide.
5. Working together, creating better laws that protect our environment. Bring science to the table when making decisions about community growth that impacts the coastline. A lot more education starting in elementary schools, so young people can grow up to be knowledgeable and more conservation minded.
6. I love all species that live in the ocean, some have become very adaptable to their environment. Did you know that some groupers can change from being a male to female in adult life? It is a strategy that helps them continue to keep the population growing if there is a lack of one sex in a group or origin. Fascinating! I am rather fond of sharks, dolphins and sea turtles!
7. One of best memories, is when I hired an intern that just graduated college, and she reminded me that I met her on the beach when she was 10 years old, and I talked to her about Sea Turtles, and took her to show her one of the sea turtle nests that I was monitoring. She told me that was the hook that made her interested in studying animals that lived in the office. Here it was years later, and she was interning for me. I think making those connections with people that change their lives or make them care about our environment are most impactful. However, saving a baby turtle out of a turtle nest comes a close second!
8. I don't know if we have new discoveries, since most of the research actually takes years of data to make a summary or discovery. I think an interesting one that we are currently studying is the effect of global warning on sea turtles. Sea turtles' gender is determined by the temperature of the sand. If the sand is hot, then you get females. If the sand is cooler, then you get males. Since turtles lay a large deep nest in the sand, theoretically the warner sand is close to the top, and those eggs would become female. The cooler sand is down lower so eggs at the bottom of the nest would be male. It should produce an even number of males and females. However global warming has really changed the temperature of the sand, so the sand is really warm all the way to bottom, thus all the eggs become female. We know this since we measure the temperature of the sand. The problem is sea turtles do not lay their first egg till they are about 30. So we have 30 years to monitor and try to figure out how we can help impact and solve some of the problem. Turtles will struggle to survive if we only have female turtles. It is a big, complicated question to solve. So hopefully over the years we will have more discoveries that will help us! Science takes a lot of time and patience!
9. We stay up to date by reading peer publications written by other research partners. Also, attending professional conferences. The science community is very good at sharing.
10. A misconception is that we play at the beach all the time. Although I do spend time at the beach and the ocean, it is never recreational. I am usually in mucky sand, trying to avoid getting bit by ghost crabs and being chewed up by sand fleas. The large majority of my time is reading data, imputing information and analyzing the information that has been found. I also spend a lot of time with US fish and wildlife meeting advocating for laws that will better protect our oceans. I work a lot with local and international governments on solutions for coastal communities. It is a bit of politics, and a lot of public speaking too.
11, Marine Life is an eco-system, just like the ones you see on land. There is balance in the ocean that keeps everything in check and running smooth, until typically humans do something to interrupt the system. It is also a huge means for economies in most countries. Fish is a huge part of diets for must humans, so the oceans provide us food. Although we need to make sure we regulate our fishing and influence other countries to do so as well. The ocean also is a huge part of eco-tourism and recreation. This can be from boating to scuba diving and also is a big part of the economy and income for a lot of people. Bottom line, marine life is very important to keeping our oceans healthy and balanced. Healthy marine life provides economic stability for many people. This is a very short answer to a very important question.
12. No bad experiences! I know that sounds impossible. Even covid had advantages for me. We saw less travel, thus less people on the beach and in the oceans. Wildlife thrived! I can honestly say, even when you discover an animal death due to something a human might have thrown out in the ocean, still provides a story and motivation to keep doing what I do.
13. My goals are to connect people and communities to nature. Sharing my passion and hopefully making a small impact on helping species to survive.
14. My hope for marine life is that humans will learn how to keep a balance between urban growth, technology and beauty of nature.
15. Field work is pretty primitive. We use shovels, our hands ropes. Nothing too fancy. I would say we do use iPad for field work, although hard to keep them cool when you are in the sun for 8-10 hours. We are reliant on GPS to mark locations. Good boats, and of course scuba gear for when we are in the water.
Good luck with your paper! Hope you are inspired to be a marine biologist one day.
Thank you so much!
Aiden
Maria Lewis
Graduate Student/Teacher
7
Answers
Hartford, Connecticut
Updated
Maria’s Answer
You might not find a marine biologist in time here. I recommend using Google and finding one that works at a university. Look up "marine biologist university." I recommend sending an email, introducing yourself, explaining the assignment, and asking them if you may send them the questions.
Write an email like this and copy and paste it and send it to several marine biologists, maybe 3-4.
"Good Afternoon:
My name is Aiden, and I am in the [blank] grade. For an assignment, I have to ask a marine biologist 15 questions. Would you be willing to answer them for me?"
Make the subject of the email attention grabbing like: "Seeking your expert input" or something like that.
If they say yes, make sure to write out the questions, using bullet points or numbers. Write them in a list. Make sure to thank them!
Good luck!
Write an email like this and copy and paste it and send it to several marine biologists, maybe 3-4.
"Good Afternoon:
My name is Aiden, and I am in the [blank] grade. For an assignment, I have to ask a marine biologist 15 questions. Would you be willing to answer them for me?"
Make the subject of the email attention grabbing like: "Seeking your expert input" or something like that.
If they say yes, make sure to write out the questions, using bullet points or numbers. Write them in a list. Make sure to thank them!
Good luck!