Final Countdown, CMA Style

Hey guys, Alberto here, and I'm entering the last week of my internship (can you believe it?).

It seems just yesterday that I was getting started with my internship at CMA. Hard to believe that 4 months have already come and gone. But one thing for certain, they have left me with everlasting memories.

I'll never forget those amazing Sea Life Safari net pulls. I still remember that one time when we caught a small Atlantic stingray (at first, I thought it was a Southern ray) that was then quickly thrown back. There was also that time when we caught a school of spade fish, and those times where we caught large amounts of either mojarra or pinfish; both really common in the bay (did you know that the pinfish are a favorite of the wild dolphins in the bay?). And every now and then we'd come across a huge live lightning whelk (one of the only snails to have a counterclockwise shell).
I also remember when we'd pull up random pieces of debris, from a crab trap to a lawn chair. Both were cut up and either tossed or thrown back in water (since they became artificial reefs).

And on Dolphin Adventure Tour, those times when we'd see 4-6 dolphins; sometimes as many as 8.

And I could never forget my playtime with my dolphin pals Winter and Hope. I'd play with Hope a lot at the window, and I'd talk to Winter at the Winter Zone. She does come to the window, but not as often as Hope.

Nicholas is also a nice dolphin to hang with.

Just last Wednesday, I did a Winter's Trainer Assist. I got to help with Winter's prosthetic tail. I was a lot of fun. On Saturday, I got to sit on the submerged platform for some cute moments with her.

So, plans for the summer:

I don't think I can raise enough money for DolphinLab at the Dolphin Research Center within the time I have left before the program starts or fills up, but I'll try anyway. I would really like to go to Advanced Training and Enrichment. If not there's next summer. Plus I have the College of Marine Mammal Professions, for which I am planning to look into the scholarships.

I'm gonna try to get my job back at Home Depot (I resigned in order go to the internship. If not, there's PetSmart just across the street.

In the meantime, I'll find other ways to raise funds. I'm also gonna keep exercising to do well in the animal trainer swim tests.

As an Intern, CMA has given me a lot of experience these past 4 months, and I look forward to what the future will bring.

Internship Update - 4/8/2015

Hello readers, friends, and followers. Thought I'd give an update on my internship. I had actually been hoping to blog all semester long, but I just kept forgetting :P.

So I just had my parents visit for Easter weekend. It was so much fun. We explored Clearwater beach, visited the aquarium together (I got to introduce some of my supervisors), and saw Winter's DolphinTale Adventure, a movie museum full of images, clips, recreated scenes, and rebuilt props, all from the first DolphinTale movie.

During the last few weeks, I had the honor of getting to meet 3 DolphinTale stars: Austin Highsmith (Phoebe), Cozi Zuehlsdorff (Hazel), and Nathan Gamble (Sawyer). They were all so nice. I even had Cozi sign my copy of her new music album, and I had Nathan sign my copy of DolphinTale 1. I also attended a concert by Cozi. She is so talented.

Austin Highsmith; I was so excited to meet

an actual DolphinTale star

2 stars are better than 1;

Cozi on the right, Austin on the left

The big star: Nathan Gamble

 

 

Being a huge DolphinTale fan, it was really great to meet these celebrities.

 

So as always, I'm loving life at the aquarium, hanging with 2 movie stars that will always be around.

 

Also, the education team launched a series called "On the Water." This is a series of ~5 minute videos that talk about the open ocean and its conservation: http://www.seewinter.com/educate/moorings. I have recently suggested an episode, and I hope to be filming soon.

 

I'm also enjoying the Clearwater community as a whole. I get to stop by the beach every once in awhile. I'll also sometimes try to support the CMA mission even outside the aquarium. Below are photos from a solo beach clean-up I did not too long ago:

 

Clearwater Beach

Trash doesn't belong here

 

It belongs in there

Before: What a mess!

 

 After: Much better

 

I couldn't clean the whole beach, but I got a good chunk.

 

I also learned about Dolphin SMART during my internship. This voluntary program was launched by NOAA to provide safe guidelines for viewing wild dolphins. SMART is actually an acronym

 

S means Stay at least 50 yards away from wild dolphins

M means Move away cautiously if the dolphins show disturbance

A means Always put your boat engine in Neutral (so that the propellers don't spin) when dolphins are near

R means Refrain from touching, feeding, or swimming with wild dolphins

T means Teach others about Dolphin SMART



 

Follow these guidelines to view dolphins in a way that they can live naturally and not risk getting hurt.

 

CMA has been giving me great experience so far. It is definitely something I can use for my ultimate career at SeaWorld. I might also apply for a training position at CMA in case I don't get into SeaWorld right away. However, I'm still gonna keep pushing for it.

 

Internship Update

Hey it's Alberto. I'm currently interning at the Clearwater Marine Aquarium in Clearwater, Florida. This is different from other aquariums because it is a working marine life hospital, dedicated to preserving the ocean through education, rescue, rehabilitation, and release. I have already gone halfway into my internship and it has been lots of fun so far. I will be interning until May.

The activities I've helped with are Sea Life Safari, an occasional stingray feeding, touch tank feeding, and I am starting with the Dolphin Adventure Tour.  

Sea Life Safari is a 90-minute boat tour where guests can get an up-close look at the marine life that lives in Clearwater Bay. Dolphin Adventure Tour allows guests to see wild dolphins as they swim in the bay. What is interesting about both boats is that there is actual research being done. Sea Life Safari collects data about all the fishes and invertebrates that live in the bay, specifically how much of each species is there. Dolphin Adventure Tour not only studies the bay's wild dolphin populations, but also its water quality.
Feeding stingrays is fun and interesting because they're different from the marine animals I've been exposed to (dolphins, whales, etc.). The barbs have been clipped off so you can't get hurt, and the rays are used to human contact. Stingrays are often misunderstood because when a person
thinks of a stingray, the first thought is being stung. Well, the truth is that stingrays are actually very docile, and they only sting to defend themselves, not to attack. Anyway, feeding the rays is a neat experience. You can literally feel them sucking the food out of your hand like a vacuum cleaner.

During breaks, there's nothing I like better than playing with the dolphins at the underwater viewing. Most of the time, I have Hope come over. She has officially become my playmate at the window. She loves the stuff that I have; I often wave around a towel or a jacket, and I have recently bought a suction cup ball that I'll stick to the glass and roll around in front of her.

 

I've also been able to play "hide and seek" with her. Basically, I will run over to the next
window, and Hope, being the smart girl she is, will know where I am. I also like to just look in her
cute eyes and talk to her. I'll sometimes send her a kiss through the glass (may sound silly, but that's how I am when there's a dolphin in front of me).

Winter comes to the window sometimes, but not as often as Hope. When she does come to the window though, it's just as fun. Sometimes I'll go up to the Winter Zone and I talk to her there. I'll even whistle to the dolphins sometimes.

 

From my point of view, Winter seems more like the "chill and relax" kind of dolphin, while Hope is more curious and playful. She'll sometimes try to get Winter to play while Winter just wants to
relax. Nicholas is also a fun dolphin to play with. He'll sometimes take the time to see what I have.

I have also had interesting events happen. In January, I got to see Summer, a rescued dolphin, get transported from the aquarium to live out her life at Dolphin Research Center.

So I'm having a great time interning at CMA. I'm taking part in cool stuff, while helping to educate others. I'm also having fun with my dolphin playmates, Winter, Hope, and Nicholas. I'll try to post more updates while I'm still in Clearwater so that you guys can know what's happening. Stay
tuned.