More Studying

The most important educational factor in medical school this term will likely be what organism? Algae! That little green plant stuff too small to make a decent salad.

The headlines tell the story...

Algae Plume Reaches Caribbean

This one "plume" is big and covers a wide expanse of Caribbean water. So big in fact, that it can be seen on satellite images from space.  It started in early April and appears to have begun as nutrient rich runoff fresh water flow from South America...likely from the Orinoco River, which exits Venezuela's northeast coast or directly from the Amazon river further south. 

While difficult to notice from the surface to the untrained eye, the water is eerie green around the island. Upon entering the water it feels like you are descending into pea soup...cloudy green water noticeable to those of us used to swimming normally in crystal clear blue water. "They" say it is starting to break up, but you'd never know it.  A short swim yesterday proved "them" to be wrong. The water is still too cold to cause up/down currents in the water to break up the mass. "Them "must not be swimmers or divers.

It is dramatic how the color of the water has changed. I dove a wreck in 90 feet of water about 2 weeks ago and it was really thick green. Pretty interesting to dive in different conditions on a wreck, but I wouldn't want to make a habit of it. You can see the now (Left, green) photo of the prop and one before the plume about 3 months ago (Right, blue). The photos are at the same depth, with same camera, with same settings and almost exactly the same lighting conditions. Dramatic effect on visibility and feeling of the dive.

And the fish LOVE it...it's a buffet! So while the diving and swimming visibility is less, the amount of fish on the wreck is especially high. The little ones love the algae and the big ones love the little ones. Hunting and eating for fish is further enhanced at the wrecks and ledges of reefs. So while the clear inviting waters are gone for the moment, we are seeing fish we've not seen in some time. NICE! One dive master said, "so thick we had to physically push them out of the way".

So as the plume (or bloom as many call it) continues, and makes swimming a bit more dangerous (sharks, and barracuda love to feed in the murky waters), studying may be the natural alternative to getting eaten by a confused carnivore. I am glad though that I could experience the conditions at least once, but I am looking forward to clear conditions again.