Podcast: Two Sea Fans

Dr. Jim Locascio is studying common snook along beaches that experienced major fish kills due to Florida red tide in 2018, to help understand the status of these popular sportfish following this major challenge. Lately, that research has included an uncommon tool: a flying drone that offers a bird's-eye view of these fish in the shallows. In this episode, Dr. Locascio tells hosts Joe and Hayley how he's applying this tool and others, and he shares what he's learning about snook in the wake of red tide.

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Dr. Hanna Koch has been given many nicknames, including "coral matchmaker" and "coral fertility doctor." She's conducting managed breeding efforts with threatened coral species, part of the coral reef science and restoration mission of Mote Marine Laboratory scientists in the Florida Keys. In this episode of "Two Sea Fans," Koch explains where coral babies come from, how scientists are helping native corals reproduce sexually in a controlled setting, and why sexual reproduction is so important for providing fresh genetics to coral populations that are struggling in the wild. Tune in and add some science to your Valentine's Day! Koch is a Postdoctoral Research Fellow with the German Research Foundation and Visiting Research Scientist at Mote’s Elizabeth Moore International Center for Coral Reef Research & Restoration (IC2R3).

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Going green is one of our favorite subjects at Mote Marine Laboratory. Lately, a team of dedicated staff known as Mote's ECOmittee has been working to adopt and share best practices for environmental sustainability, to help inspire others lead by example. In this episode, Mote's ECOmittee member Greer Babbe tells hosts Joe and Hayley how the group formed and launched its first projects at the Lab, particularly a growing effort to encourage composting. Join us for a fun and uplifting chat about one of our favorite parts of Mote life!  

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In May and September 2019, Mote scientists and partners undertook their deepest explorations to-date into the Gulf of Mexico's blue holes, underwater caves, springs and sinkholes that attract diverse marine life. The team deployed a “benthic lander”—a framework holding multiple scientific instruments collectively weighing more than 600 pounds—into the offshore Amberjack Hole, whose bottom extends deeper than 350 feet. In this episode of Two Sea Fans, Mote scientists Dr. Emily Hall and Jim Culter share what the team discovered inside this deep, dark and fascinating blue hole. Tune in to hear what they learned!

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Florida manatees are iconic for the Sunshine State. They're on license plates, they're the focus of major conservation and management initiatives, and they delight residents and ecotourists who are lucky enough to watch these 1,000-pound-plus mammals from a safe distance in the wild. Mote's Manatee Research Program has studied wild manatees for decades, and their efforts are just as interesting as the animals they study. In this episode, hosts Joe and Hayley talk to Mote Senior Biologist Sheri Barton about how she and her colleagues recognize individual manatees in the wild, monitor them from boats and shore, count manatees from the air, study the habitats used by these threatened mammals, and more.

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After red tide caused serious fish kills along the Gulf of Mexico in 2018, three fish-friendly organizations joined forces in a science-based effort to help the popular sportfish common snook rebound faster in certain hard-hit areas. Mote Marine Laboratory, the Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission (FWC), and Coastal Conservation Association (CCA) launched the Adopt-A-Snook program allowing the public to donate toward raising and releasing juvenile snook in a fisheries enhancement effort based on more than two decades of research. In this episode of “Two Sea Fans,” Mote Staff Scientist Dr. Ryan Schloesser tells hosts Hayley and Joe how many snook have been raised and released with special tags, and how often the snook been detected by scientific equipment since release. The answer might surprise you!

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Dr. Cindy Heil studies microscopic living things with huge impacts: phytoplankton. These ocean-dwelling, plant-like organisms are known for producing 50% of the oxygen we breathe along with food for other living things; a minority of species can produce toxins or have other negative impacts. Dr. Heil and her Mote colleagues focus on one of the most challenging phytoplankton: the Florida red tide algae species, Karenia brevis. In this episode, Dr. Heil tells hosts Joe and Hayley about her efforts to understand Florida red tide ecology and to test methods for mitigating and controlling the toxin-producing Florida red tide blooms that challenge coastal communities along the Gulf of Mexico. Tune in to learn how scientists are expanding the possible "toolbox" of technology for directly mitigating red tides, while continually working to better understand how red tides function. That knowledge is important for societal leaders working to protect the public and reduce possible water quality issues that may help "feed" a red tide after it forms offshore and moves to the coast. Dr. Heil is Director of the new Red Tide Institute at Mote, which formed to investigate red tide mitigation and control tools thanks to its Founding Donor, the Andrew and Judith Economos Charitable Foundation.

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Mote Aquarium Biologist II Veronica Garcia just returned from an adventure in Argentina, where she assisted the program Proyecto Yacaré in their conservation and research efforts with broad-snouted caimans — reptiles related to alligators and crocodiles. Garcia tells hosts Joe and Hayley what it was like to visit Argentina, help incubate caiman eggs and care for the hatched caimans, visit nest sites in the field with a local guide and participate in Proyecto Yacaré’s student research projects. Many thanks to the Florida Association of Zoos & Aquariums for the competitive grant that allowed Garcia spend two weeks with this exciting project!

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From sea snakes in Australia to nurse sharks in the Dutch Caribbean, Dr. Rob Nowicki studies fascinating animals around the world, to better understand the ecology of natural communities and sometimes to solve immediate problems, such as how to keep nurse sharks out of lobster traps to benefit both the sharks and lobsters. With a case of self-described "academic ADD," Nowicki has an excitingly diverse and adventurous research career. In this episode, he educates hosts Hayley and Joe on the complex interactions among multiple marine species, which must be understood for effective conservation - especially as big challenges like climate change reshape natural communities.

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