Stories from the Seaside - The E-Newsletter from the Gulf Specimen Marine Lab in Panacea

June 2022

The Living Dock, Then VS Now Featuring Jack Rudloe and Melanie Medina

THEN: Jack Rudloe, Founder of Gulf Specimen

A "bridge between the land and sea" is the way the living dock was described by Jack Rudloe. Rudloe's book, The Living Dock, was inspired by spending large amounts of time watching the tides going in and out looking for jellyfish and ctenophores, and seeing how the dock changed in the daytime vs the nighttime. The dock itself was a place where people would congregate, whether it was to fish or to just relax and decompress. Seeing fishermen catch sea turtles off the dock inspired research projects, documenting the species that would bite a hook and line: the kemps ridleys. "The dock began to take on a personality of its own through experimentation," said Rudloe. Working with the International Oceanographic Corporation, Jack discovered a project in Cedar Key using string culture to grow oysters and barnacles and living communities using pilings and bricks and other materials tied to docks and other structures using string. He then implemented this technique on our own dock to grow hydroids, barnacles, oysters, and more organisms that we sell! Collecting organisms directly off of the dock was a lot easier than trying to dive or hand collect the animals offshore. A large number of organisms collected, such as the bryozoan bugula, have been sent to cancer research groups to be used in studies and experiments with cancer treatments and drugs. "Over the many years in the business, I just became more and more reliant on the dock," said Rudloe. "The dock has been destroyed by several different hurricanes and every time we work hard to rebuild it." Throughout these storms, debris such as tires and tree limbs would accumulate around the dock and create an ideal habitat for pistol shrimp and other creatures. "The dock is ever-changing and seasonal," said Rudloe. "Certain animals would start to show up during certain seasons and then never be seen again." Eventually, the dock was incorporated into the aquarium's guided tours to use as a part of our educational program for field trips, summer camps, and any other educational outreach event. Sea turtles have even been released off of the dock! A lift net was installed which could be used to bring up critters off the bottom, or used at night, with lights, to attract nocturnal species. "The dock is such an integral part of Gulf Specimen, for both social and educational reasons, for research and experiments," said Rudloe. "I don't think Gulf Specimen could have made it this far without the living dock." His favorite part about the dock is watching all of the changes that occur throughout the seasons over the years.

NOW: Melanie Medina, Ph.D. Candidate at FSU

In September of 2019, Melanie Medina sought advice from Gulf Specimen's Director, Cypress Rudloe on the best areas locally to find sea slugs. Since then, she has been using our living dock for her research using a tiny marine nudibranch, Doto chica. "My thesis is completely based on endemic sea slugs I collect exclusively from the Gulf Specimen dock, and which I have not been able to find these numbers anywhere else," said Medina. She is currently using the dock for her two-year weekly surveys where she is studying the abundance of the adult sea slugs found in this area using 44 previously deployed settling racks located all around the dock for her collections. The living dock's proximity to Medina's research lab at FSU is one of the biggest appeals. "The aquarium has even provided me with research assistance from interns, which has allowed me to build more relationships and get the opportunity to work with junior researchers," said Medina. "I could not have been able to complete my research if it weren't for Gulf Specimen Marine Lab." Similar to our founder, Jack Rudloe, Medina's favorite parts about the dock are the beautiful views of the bay, finding new critters, and seeing fish and ctenophores float and swim past with the tides!

A busy month for our traveling display!

During the month of June alone, we have visited 8 different schools, libraries, and festivals with our traveling aquarium display! Some of these destinations were local, but we did travel all the way to Albany, GA for the World Ocean's Day festival at the Flint River Aquarium! We try and schedule our outreaches for one event a week, but with June being a very popular month...that wasn't the case. We always have a blast at events like these! We can see hundreds of students, families, and anyone else in a number of hours from all over North Florida and South Georgia. We always make sure to bring our coolest critters and several touch trays to let everyone experience the wonders of the Gulf of Mexico up close!

Gulf Specimen's Summer Camp by the Sea

Our Summer Camp by the Sea was nothing short of exciting for these wonderful campers! We had a blast and cannot wait to start planning for next year! Our campers were visited by the FWC to learn about gopher tortoises and sea turtles, visited a local beach for a day of fun, participated in arts and craft activities, became marine life experts in our aquarium, and then finished the week with a waterslide of fun! On the last day of each week, they were able to invite their families to come and tour the aquarium with them and show off all of their new marine biology knowledge!

One man's old jellyfish tank is another man's coral project!

On Friday, June 17th, Gulf Specimen loaded up an old jellyfish tank to be used by Ben Higgins and the team for a coral restoration project. This project was created to help with damage caused by the 2010 BP oil spill and is funded by the National Resource Damage Assessment (NRDA). His team is one of three government labs working on this restoration project, each doing its own experimentation and testing to see which will have a positive outcome. Higgins and his team work for the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration, but his team operates out of Galveston, TX which is where this tank is headed! The overall goal of the project is to figure out the best way for deep water corals to spawn and grow in captivity so that eventually, propagation and reef restoration can begin. If the research and experiments are a success, a manual will be created on how to grow these corals in captivity so that more aquariums and labs will be able to participate and help grow the coral populations. The goal for the tank itself is to use the circular design to maximize water flow and nutrient distribution throughout the tank without heavily affecting the corals directly. This project is an excellent step for coral propagation and restoration and we are so grateful we were able to donate a tank to help with the research!

A visit from Tallahassee seniors and their grandchildren

On June 15th, Gulf Specimen had the pleasure of giving a tour to the Tallahassee Senior Center who were joined by their grandchildren! We always love doing tours like this...especially when the grandparents are just as interested in the critters as the kids are! This group reserved our Aquarium and Living Dock tour, so for two hours, they got to explore our aquarium filled with animals and then head to the dock and try and collect their own cool critters!

Upcoming Lecture with Rebecca Means: Coastal Plains Institute's Wetland Diversity & The Striped Newt!

Coastal Plains Institute is a local non-profit dedicated to scientific research, environmental education, and land stewardship. For the past 10 years, they have been working to bring an imperiled species, the striped newt, back to Apalachicola National Forest wetlands. This research project provides a unique opportunity for citizens to witness, and participate in, species and habitat restoration and recovery. Using the infrastructure put in place by this project, Rebecca Means has created Building Communities that Conserve Wetlands, a program for school groups, community organizations, and the general public to participate in scientific data collection and to learn experientially within the longleaf pine sandhill ecosystem. She has also developed a long-term ephemeral wetland monitoring program through which citizens are trained in amphibian identification and sampling protocol, and charged with monitoring their adopted wetland at least twice a year. Her presentation will cover the importance of ephemeral wetlands in terms of plant and animal biodiversity as well as ways that we can get involved with ephemeral wetland research and conservation. The lecture is free to all participants and great for all ages! A guided tour through our aquarium will follow the lecture! The lecture is scheduled for July 16th from 1-3 pm in our Anne Rudloe Marine Science Center.

New interns: John & Natasha

John grew up in Sarasota, Florida where he spent a lot of time on the Gulf of Mexico and at the local aquarium. He is currently studying environmental science and policy at Florida State University with the hopes of eventually becoming a teacher whether it’s in a classroom or more informal science education setting. He applied for this internship thinking it would be fun and has not been disappointed; we work hard but that’s what he expects from this type of work and as he learns more, he can share that information with visitors. At the aquarium, his favorite animal is a bottom-dwelling fish called the sea robin because of their unique pectoral fins that stretch out to look like bird’s wings and have finger-like extensions that they use to sift through and move through the sand in search of food. His career goal is to be a teacher and with the experience here at GSML, he’s learning a ton about Florida’s marine ecosystems and more importantly how to share that knowledge. Natasha just recently graduated from Coastal Carolina University with a Bachelor’s in Marine Science and a minor in Biology. She has been interested in marine life since she was little, particularly marine mammals and sea turtles. Growing up, Natasha visited Panacea almost every summer, and visiting Gulf Specimen Marine Lab became a family tradition that allowed her interest in marine science to grow. Gulf Specimen Marine Lab has allowed her to gain experience in the aquarium setting along with educational programs like tours and outreach activities. For future career aspirations, she would like to pursue research or conservation-based careers within the Marine Science field. Natasha’s favorite duty as an intern is the daily feedings and learning how to take care of the different species in the aquarium. Her favorite species at Gulf Specimen are the Calico Crabs, Nurse Sharks, Southern Stingrays, and Lil Herc.

Wonders of the Gulf: Creature Feature

North Florida is gifted with an amazing array of diverse animals where we find fascinating creatures. Our exhibits change every season.

Mantis Shrimp: A primitive crustacean with long, green stalked eyes, a spiny flexible body, spiked uropods, and raptorial or hammer-like appendages that make it difficult to handle. The striking raptorial appendages are used to study the functioning of high-speed muscles. Nocturnal in nature, in the aquarium mantis shrimps burrow down into the substrate and often swim upside down in circles. Feeding them is a real show. Requires slow and careful acclimation to the aquarium.

Short Spined Sea Urchin: Handsomely pink and white, with an explosion of short spines emanating from a fat round body. Eggs are remarkably clear and easy to study, particularly for demonstrating mitotic spindles. Huge volumes of eggs can be produced from a single large specimen, hence it is also prized by seafood-loving gourmets.

Red Drum: A common sports fish. Adults are generally bronzy with vague horizontal stripes and a large dot towards the upper part of the caudal peduncle. Young usually with numerous large dark blotches. No barbels on the chin. The young are sometimes common in bays.

Pen Shell: A large, brown fan-shaped bivalve that anchors itself down into the sand with an enormous tuft of silk byssus threads. Historians suggest that the “Golden Fleece” was made from Pen Shell silk. This triangular clam, which is normally three-quarters buried, uses the long fingerlike foot to shove bits of broken shell and gravel away from its orange mantle. Many specimens contain commensal crabs, Pinnotheres maculatus.

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