Last log from the Oscar Elton Sette

By John Dax Moreno
Special to the Saipan Tribune

The Mariana Archipelago Reef Assessment and Monitoring Program 2005 cruise recently finished their shallow reef habitat assessment on Rota. The National Oceanographic and Atmospheric Administration research vessel, Oscar Elton Sette, finalized the monthlong voyage on Sept. 30 that took scientists and crewmembers through the entire stretch of the Mariana Archipelago.

On the first leg of their voyage, the scientists and crew finished their evaluation and mapping of the shallow reef habitats of the Northern Islands of the Mariana Archipelago. The second leg brought the Sette back to Saipan, Anatahan, Tinian, Aguiguan, and finally toward Rota, their final destination in the CNMI. They also conducted assessments on Pathfinder and Arakane Reef west of the CNMI.

You can go online and learn more about the research cruise and the scientist and crew via the Coastal Resources Management website: www.crm.gov.mp/maramp. On the website, you can read Qamar Schuyler’s daily logs of the voyage and learn about the research that has been completed during the monthlong cruise in the CNMI. Schuyler is the Sette’s onboard educator, and Coral Outreach Specialist for the CNMI Coral Reef Initiative. She gives you a first hand account of their experiences in the water and on land.

Here is Schuyler’s final daily log dated Sept. 30, 2005:

“It seems like a lifetime ago that we left Saipan. Looking back on that first day on the ship, it feels like it must have been someone else seeing everything and everyone for the first time, trying on the immersion suit, and figuring out how the water dispenser worked. I truly believe that time at sea moves differently from time on land. Experiences here are so vivid and so immediate that it is hard to comprehend life outside of this sphere. Returning to an office, to a home on solid ground, and to the daily patterns of existence that I gave up 27 days ago, seems inconceivable to me right now; I am accustomed to the rhythms of the sea. But it is inevitable. So on this last day of my monthlong adventure on the NOAA vessel Oscar Elton Sette, I thought it would be appropriate to look back on some of the highlights of the trip. But I am only one person of many, so I asked all of the scientists to highlight their experiences as well. In no particular order, here is a recap of some of our scientific discoveries, amazing sights we have seen, and memories we would like to share.

“Even though the data we collected will have to go through further analysis in order to give a full scientifically valid comparison between the state of CNMI’s reefs in 2003 and today, certain things are already apparent from a big picture perspective. Bob recapped some of the discoveries they had made. Compared to 2003, there seem to be more large fish in Asuncion. Yet the number of large fish seen at Uracas was noticeably smaller this year. Overall there are more large fish in the Northern Islands than in the southern islands. The diversity, however, appears to be higher in the south than the north. The reefs up north are very young, and grow on steep slopes. Therefore the habitat may not be complex enough to support very diverse populations of fish, corals, algae, and invertebrates.

“The corals seem to be facing more stresses now. The towboarders found more crown-of-thorns starfish at Guguan, Alamagan, and Pagan this year than in 2003. In addition, Peter Houk noticed coral diseases on the southwest coast of Sarigan. Although it’s hard to pinpoint a cause, sulfur dioxide emissions from Anatahan may have contributed to the prevalence of the diseased corals. Fewer climate-induced bleached corals were seen this year, but it appears that many of the corals that had been bleached in 2003 are now dead. The bleaching particularly affected large, branching coral colonies, which are relatively rare on these reefs.

“Sharks, sharks, sharks, and more sharks. We have all experienced them; some of us more closely than we would have liked. Several people recalled the whale shark on Pathfinder Reef, a first for most of us. On that same day, Jake Asher and Ben Richards dropped in for their tow and saw below them a large, curious shark, which turned out to be a silvertip. These sharks are unpredictable, potentially dangerous, and often quite frisky. They watched it with some anxiety, but when it showed no aggressive behavior they continued their dive. Not all shark encounters were so innocuous. At Zealandia Bank, Elizabeth Keenan and Alex Kerr were stuck in a feeding frenzy of gray reef sharks. A scary experience that thankfully turned out in the end to be a fantastic story. And still, there’s more. While towing on Maug, Molly Timmers and Joe Laughlin watched the mating behavior of two white tip reef sharks. The male was biting the fin of the female repeatedly while swimming in front of the towers for over five minutes. Now that’s exciting!

“Maug was an inspirational site for many. I think that everyone who was lucky enough to go there was touched in some way by it. Jamie Gove pointed out that we were able to see the effects of thousands of years of history at a single (well, technically triple) island. Standing at the top of East Maug, we looked down into the submerged crater, evidence of a once-tall volcano that was slipping beneath the surface of the sea. The vertical dykes inside the crater were evidence of years past, when the crater had been full of rock and magma shot up through cracks. Over time, eruptions, erosion, and subsidence created what lay before our eyes. Below the water’s surface existed a volcanic seep where heated water and bubbles of volcanic gasses provided evidence of the fire that still burns deep within the earth. The volcano still lives, even as it takes its last breaths of air above the surface before its ultimate geological fate: extinction.

Maug also provided Joe with the best day he’s ever had on a ship. He jumped from steep cliffs, plunging into the vivid blue waters of the crater. He climbed to the top of East Maug, looking down at an incredible view below. And then, before dinner, he found a new species of Pseudojuloides wrasse!

“While diving at Maug, Peter saw a reef that was so completely crowded with corals that they had to fight one another for space; a rare sight indeed. Diving was also exciting for Stephani Holzwarth, particularly during one of her tows on Tinian. She was towing over a reef flat which seemed to disappear at one point. She veered over and saw a completely vertical wall, dropping 100 feet down. The water was crystal clear as she descended to about 95 feet. There she saw a large school of small fish with crescent tails. The male was a little ways out from his harem of females and she noticed from the bright pink square on his sides that he was the rare and striking square-spot anthias. Ben Richards got to see his first sighting of giant clams, of clown fish and anemones, and of a diversity of corals that cannot be found in Hawaii.

“Meanwhile, Danny Merritt was able to see years of his labor finally produce results. The BOTCAM worked! It recorded great images of the deeper-dwelling fish he was hoping to see. The crew got so proficient at deploying and recovering the instrument that they were able to do five drops in one day at Pathfinder Reef.

“Pathfinder and the other banks were also exciting for divers. Edson Limes thinks he might be the first Carolinian ever to dive there. Tony Flores noted how different it is to be surrounded by nothing but the deep blue sea. It was also strange for him, a fisherman, to see so many big fish…and not spear them!

“Getting close to Anatahan, a very active live volcano, was another awe-inspiring sight. Matt Dunlap summed it up well with the image of a tiny smear of green against the drab gray background. Although 99.9 percent of the volcano is dead, life still carries on. It is a testament to the creation that inevitably follows destruction.

“Ron Hoeke continues to puzzle over the fact that these islands have some of the strongest open ocean currents that he’s ever seen, yet there is no “temperature expression of turbulent mixing.” Molly put that into common terms when she described how weird it was to watch her bubbles sink instead of ascending to the surface.

“On a lighter note, Ron recalled watching me step into an animal carcass in a tunnel carved by Japanese seeking shelter from U.S. bombs. Molly remembered her scabs being cleaned by cleaner wrasses as she hovered waiting for Joe to collect his Pseudojuloides. One of Kim Page’s highlights was going out with Team Wahine, the all-girl team of Fran Castro, Kim, and Elizabeth Keenan.

“Many people spoke of the knowledge they gained on this trip. Kyle Hogrefe was injured and forced to be a fish out of water back in Honolulu for the first leg, but gratefully joined us for the second leg of the trip as the night ops scientist. He had the pleasure of not only developing a new scientific understanding of the shipboard oceanography, but also of being able to coordinate the logistics of the operation and see the big oceanographic picture. For those of us living in the CNMI, this was a remarkable opportunity to learn first hand about the Northern Islands. Although they are a part of our home, most of us have no experience of them. Mike Tenorio put it best: ‘It’s one thing to know about something, but to be able to see it for yourself, that’s a different story.’

“The relationships developed during this cruise, both personal and professional, will last far beyond the end of our time together. The CNMI scientists appreciated being in the field day after day, working with and learning from other scientists. That’s a rare treat in a place that doesn’t have a big research community or extensive funding for trips such as this. Fran was thrilled to finally able to see how people live their lives on the relatively unpopulated Northern Islands. And the folks from Honolulu who have been on coral reef cruises many times over were excited to work with locals and to see the islands through their eyes. Doug Roberts especially enjoyed watching the ‘betel nut fiends’ on his boat visiting islands and trading fish and cigarettes for betel nut.

“There are so many wonderful things about the islands of the CNMI that I cannot even begin to touch on them all. Each island is unique and special in its own right. They deserve our profound appreciation and our utmost protection. Fortunately these cruises are able to provide an insight into the treasures we hold, but this wealth also comes with a responsibility. We must do what we can to safeguard the islands from present or future impacts caused by humans, such as overfishing, poaching, unplanned development, or other unforeseen activities.

“On that note, thank you once again for sharing these experiences with me, and for your insightful comments and questions. The purpose of this website has been to engage and educate you both about our scientific research as well as about the environment and ecology of the islands and their marine ecosystems. I hope that I have been successful in that. I am submitting a proposal to the Pacific Islands Fisheries Science Center’s Coral Reef Ecosystem Division (CRED) to continue to be an onboard educator for future cruises. For more information about them, or to find contact information, visit www.pifsc.noaa.gov/cred. Your support of my work would be very helpful in justifying my future presence on cruises. If you have enjoyed this site, or if you have suggestions for changes, please let me or CRED know. You can contact me through the ‘Ask a Scientist’ form or by emailing me directly at Qamar.Schuyler@crm.gov.mp. Once again, thank you all, and goodbye for now.”

The research cruise finished reef assessments in the CNMI, and will spend about a week on Guam. From Guam the Sette will make its way to Wake Atoll and then back to Honolulu, Hawaii. Visit the MARAMP website to experience first hand accounts of the cruise. If you have a question about the cruise or any questions about the research that was conducted, write Schuyler via the website. Log on today!