{"id":502,"date":"2014-08-29T00:28:04","date_gmt":"2014-08-29T00:28:04","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/blogs.oregonstate.edu\/bioacoustics\/?p=502"},"modified":"2014-08-28T00:52:06","modified_gmt":"2014-08-28T00:52:06","slug":"502","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/dev.blogs.oregonstate.edu\/bioacoustics\/2014\/08\/29\/502\/","title":{"rendered":"Getting My Feet Wet"},"content":{"rendered":"

Hello Acoustics Aficionados!<\/p>\n

\n \"Getting<\/a>\n
Getting to know Glacier Bay National Park and Preserve! I was grateful for my Helly Hanson rain gear. This temperate rain forest stops for no one. A welcome relief given Oregon’s hot dry summer<\/figcaption>\n <\/figure>\n

A few weeks ago I wrote to you about my upcoming trip to Glacier Bay National Park and Preserve<\/a> and my big “Solo” adventure into the great Alaskan Wilderness.\u00a0 Well I’m happy to report the trip was an enormous success and — like so many endeavors in science — all of my “solo” work was accomplished through collaboration.<\/p>\n

The purpose of the trip was threefold (1) familiarize myself with Glacier Bay and the surrounding community, (2) identify a viable field site that would enable Leanna and I to meet our dissertation goals, and (3) to build and maintain relationships (with the area and with the people).\u00a0 In short, my goal was all about getting my feet wet in the world of Glacier Bay research, which as it turned out was an extremely easy to accomplish literally and figuratively — Southeast Alaska is very very wet.<\/p>\n

\n \"Xtra-Tuffs.<\/a>\n
Xtra-Tuffs. Don’t leave home without them. Further, it’s how airport employees know you’ll be spending the night in the SeaTac Airport, and that may gain you a little peace and quiet overnight.<\/figcaption>\n <\/figure>\n

The nearest airport to Glacier Bay is in the diminuative village of Gustavus (small town, big character).\u00a0 Living in Juneau off and on for years I’d heard a lot about this tiny place — slow bicycle races and town-wide pancake breakfasts on the Fourth of July, a community garden that would make most Alaskans blush.\u00a0 With a population that ranges from 350-600 (with an influx of seasonal workers in the summer) Gustavus isn’t exactly what you’d call a city, even by Alaskan standards… and it’s not so easy to get there.<\/p>\n

I traveled via shuttle from Corvallis to PDX (nothing new here) and hopped a flight to SeaTac Airport where I settled in for a cozy overnight on an airport bench.\u00a0 It felt very familiar.\u00a0 Traveling to and from Southeast Alaska (for less than a small fortune) requires patience, a little bit of traveler’s tenacity, and typically an overnight in Seattle.\u00a0 Sipping an evening tea and looking around the airport I was not the only one with Xtra-Tuffs on bunking down for the night… there were quite a few of us headed home.<\/p>\n

\n \"It's<\/a>\n
It’s a bit remote, but the trip to Gustavus is beautiful!<\/figcaption>\n <\/figure>\n

A 6-hour layover in Juneau was just enough time for coffee with University of Alaska- Fairbanks PhD student and humpback whale biologist Suzie Teerlink,<\/a> who filled me in on some of the details of her citizen science initiatives, whale watch cooperative efforts, and some of the in’s and out’s of her Juneau fluke ID project. My first foray into humpback whale research was working with Suzie on some of these projects in their infancy, and was exciting to see how much they’d grown!\u00a0 We wrapped up our reunion with a quick hike before heading over to Wings of Alaska<\/a> and boarding the 6-seater Cessna 207 turboprop aircraft that would safely transport me over over the mountains and fjords and set me down in Gustavus, AK. There I was warmly greeted by the Park whale biologist (and co-PI on our project) Chris Gabriele.<\/p>\n

Over the next few days I had the chance to meet a number of the Park Staff (fisheries biologists, bear biologists, research technicians, administrators and more!), and importantly Chris and I had the opportunity to talk (face-to-face) about humpback whale non-song vocalizations — also called social sounds — produced in Southeast Alaska.\u00a0 Chris and her colleague Lauren Wild of the Sitka Sound Science Center<\/a> have a new study coming out in the Journal of the Canadian Acoustics Associations on the acoustic properties and usage patterns of the humpback whale “whup” call.\u00a0 The call (which can be heard here<\/a>), which is a putative contact call, plays a large role in my research past and present.\u00a0 I hope to build off of the work they began at the Park to understand more about how humpback whale use this and other vocalizations, as well as how vessel noise may change vocal behavior (including producing the “whup” call) or limit acoustic communication space.\u00a0 More details on that, and the first chapter of my dissertation, in my next blog post.<\/p>\n

\n \"Our<\/a>\n
Our field site requires an elevated viewing platform, visual proximity to both whales and seals, low current, and as much logistical ease as possible (i.e. is there water? Is this dense bear\/moose territory?)<\/figcaption>\n <\/figure>\n

Back to the trip, I would be remiss if I led you to believe that we spent all of our time talking (remember goals 1 & 2!).\u00a0 While initially we didn’t think we’d have access to a boat (hence my initial decision to camp on the island for a few days), much to my excitement the Park research boat R\/V Capelin came available.\u00a0 My second day in the Park was spent on the water scouting for field sites, measuring bottom depths, marking waypoints for locations of interest, and kayaking through non-motorized waterways to scope out potential field sites.\u00a0 I’m happy to report that we found one!\u00a0 After eliminating what looked to be a lovely cliff (with lots of blind spots and bear scat), and a good hike around Bartlet Cove where the Park’s current hydrophone<\/a> is deployed (and where vessels transit daily), it was the north east tip of Strawberry Island that made the final cut.\u00a0 It might not look like much in the photos (did I mention that Glacier Bay is part of a rain forest?), but I think it’s exactly the spot we’re looking for.<\/p>\n

\n \"It<\/a>\n
It doesn’t look like much here, but come summer 2015 we’ll be tracking whales and counting seals right here!<\/figcaption>\n <\/figure>\n

With a field site decided (Goal 2, check!) one of the last things I was hoping to accomplish on my trip was to familiarize myself with the area, both terrestrial and aquatic. I was fortunate to spend another day on the water with Chris during one of her many whale surveys.\u00a0 It was a great opportunity to view whale behavior in the Park, which I’d anticipated would be different than the behavior I’d observed in Juneau or in Frederick Sound (and qualitatively, it was different); but it also gave me the chance to see more of the Park wildlife (otters! so many otters!) and get a feel for how operations work there.\u00a0 Part of getting familiar with an area involves knowing how to have the least negative impact both ecologically and culturally.<\/p>\n

\n \"A<\/a>\n
A Tlingit Canoe sits on the shores of Bartlett Cove<\/figcaption>\n <\/figure>\n

I took a camper orientation which gave me some good tips on how to minimize my impact on the island, but I also spent some time walking through the exhibits and chatting with Park employees, trying to get a feel for both the scientific community at the Park and the rich cultural heritage of the native people in the area.\u00a0 Long before Glacier Bay became a national park it was the ancestral home to the Huna Tlingit people.\u00a0 Near the end of the Little Ice age the glaciers (of which there are MANY) surged forward and the Tlingit were forced to abandon their settlements in the bay and move across Icy Straight to establish a new village.\u00a0 To the Huna Tlingit, Glacier Bay remains their home.\u00a0 In Barlett Cove (where the Park headquarters and the Glacier Bay Lodge are located) the presence of the Tlingit culture is palpable.\u00a0 A Tlingit canoe is on display and current plans are underway for a Tlingit Tribal House.<\/p>\n

In what I thought was a poignant manifestation of the culture of science alongside the culture of people, on the same path as the canoe is a structure housing the recently re-articulated skeleton of a humpback whale named Snow, who was struck by a vessel in the Park in 2007. Snow’s bones were buried, cleaned, sent to Maine for articulation and organization, and then finally returned to the Park for the final installation.\u00a0 In a “Alaska’s such a small place” sort of way, one of my first field technicians, Linsday Neilson, was on the articulation team.\u00a0 The skeleton was complete by the time I arrived, but I did manage to catch her for a long overdue hug on the dock.<\/p>\n

\n \"The<\/a>\n
The recently articulated skeleton of a humpback whale names “Snow”. Snow was struck by a cruise ship in the Park and after 7 years has been returned to the community.<\/figcaption>\n <\/figure>\n

\"The<\/a><\/p>\n

My last day in the Park I headed out early (5am early) and was fortunate enough to catch a ride on the small cruise ship the Baranof Dream <\/a>which was headed up-bay toward the glaciers.\u00a0 I spent the day on the boat as a tourist admiring the spectacular scenery and mingling with the passengers.\u00a0 I spent the following two days as the “marine-biologist in residence”, giving talks about our research in the Park, pointing out wildlife, and harkening back to my days as a naturalist in Juneau (the killer whales were certainly a highlight too).<\/p>\n

\"IMG_0505\"<\/a>After a few days on the boat, I disembarked in my hometown Juneau, Alaska, exhausted, happy, inspired, a little damp and ready to go home….<\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

But c’mon this is Alaska, you never get out that easy!!!\u00a0Despite my efforts to leave straight away I ended up with an extra day in Juneau, and while I won’t go into the details of how the extra 36 hours went (that’ll have to be another blog post) you can see from the photo that it turned out pretty well.\u00a0 Until next time!<\/p>\n

-Michelle Fournet<\/p>\n

\n \"Juneau<\/a>\n
Juneau Girl at Heart<\/figcaption>\n <\/figure>\n

***Follow my monthly blog posts here, or check out my personal blog mfournet.wordpress.com<\/a> for a comprehensive look at my research world***<\/em><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Hello Acoustics Aficionados! A few weeks ago I wrote to you about my upcoming trip to Glacier Bay National Park and Preserve and my big “Solo” adventure into the great Alaskan Wilderness.\u00a0 Well I’m happy to report the trip was an enormous success and — like so many endeavors in science — all of my… Continue reading →<\/span><\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":4933,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"jetpack_post_was_ever_published":false,"_jetpack_newsletter_access":"","_jetpack_dont_email_post_to_subs":false,"_jetpack_newsletter_tier_id":0,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paywalled_content":false,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paid_content":false,"footnotes":"","jetpack_publicize_message":"","jetpack_publicize_feature_enabled":true,"jetpack_social_post_already_shared":true,"jetpack_social_options":{"image_generator_settings":{"template":"highway","default_image_id":0,"font":"","enabled":false},"version":2}},"categories":[638076,215875,1,215851,638074],"tags":[215885,215843,215873,215876,215877,175101,215869,215884,215879,215883],"class_list":["post-502","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-bioacoustics","category-fieldwork-2","category-uncategorized","category-orcaa-students","category-whales","tag-alaska","tag-bioacoustics","tag-fieldwork","tag-glacier-bay","tag-humpback-whales","tag-michelle-fournet","tag-orcaa-summers","tag-social-sounds","tag-summertime","tag-whale-sounds"],"jetpack_publicize_connections":[],"jetpack_featured_media_url":"","jetpack_sharing_enabled":true,"jetpack_shortlink":"https:\/\/wp.me\/s4Dh92-502","_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/dev.blogs.oregonstate.edu\/bioacoustics\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/502","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/dev.blogs.oregonstate.edu\/bioacoustics\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/dev.blogs.oregonstate.edu\/bioacoustics\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/dev.blogs.oregonstate.edu\/bioacoustics\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/4933"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/dev.blogs.oregonstate.edu\/bioacoustics\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=502"}],"version-history":[{"count":23,"href":"https:\/\/dev.blogs.oregonstate.edu\/bioacoustics\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/502\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":536,"href":"https:\/\/dev.blogs.oregonstate.edu\/bioacoustics\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/502\/revisions\/536"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/dev.blogs.oregonstate.edu\/bioacoustics\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=502"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/dev.blogs.oregonstate.edu\/bioacoustics\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=502"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/dev.blogs.oregonstate.edu\/bioacoustics\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=502"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}