What I am Learning in Marine Ecology.: California Academy of Sciences Field Trip on March 12, 2015

Going to the San Francisco based California Academy of Sciences with my marine ecology class was a great experience. Not only did we get a behind the scenes tour, but we also got to experience what it takes to be a marine biologist at an aquarium. I have a passion for the veterinary field and after learning that the museum has their own wildlife veterinarian, I was very intrigued. The tour guide mentioned that every animal gets an exam once a year and there was even sample x-rays of creatures such as frogs. I take countless numbers of x-rays while working as a technicians assistant and I can say that I have no idea how you would take an x-ray of a frog or fish. I deal mostly with cats and dogs and have assisted in x-rays of an owl but having to x-ray aquatic animals or small amphibians sounds like it would be quite a challenge. It has also opened a new interest in the possibility of becoming a marine mammal veterinarian.

After doing some research it is actually quite difficult to have a career in the marine veterinary field, as there is a very limited number of options for jobs. Not only are there limited job opportunities but also there are also few educational opportunities to pursue aquatic animal medicine. A majority of the United States 30 veterinary colleges have programs that focus on dogs, cats, horses, and food animals but there are a limited number that offer special training in marine science. You may be able to take a class or two that specializes in marine animal medicine but that is not sufficient experience to prepare you for a career in the field.

According to the International Association for Aquatic Animal Medicine (IAAAM) the best way for a person who is interested to pursue a career in this field is to gain all the experience with marine animals possible. They state that working at an aquarium or marine mammal rehabilitation facility while an undergrad will start you on the right path but it requires much more than this. Since there will not be a great amount of exposure to marine animals in veterinary school, there will likely not be any job offers in the aquatic animal medicine field right after graduation. Upon graduation, externships at a facility that specializes in aquatic animal medicine will be the best way to gain experience in the field and become a competitive candidate for future aquatic animal medicine positions.

For undergraduates like me, there are few opportunities to get your foot in the door. Although the opportunities are there, they are also very competitive given their limited nature. After the tour of Cal Academy, I am currently applying to an internship at the Aquarium of the Pacific in Long Beach, CA to work in their Molina Animal Care Center. I have always had a passion for the marine sciences and even considered being a marine biologist so if I am able to have an experience working with marine animals my passion for marine animals and the veterinary field could possibly become a future career for me.

Photo By: Andrew Reitsma/Aquarium of the Pacific

The things that I am most specifically interested in are marine mammals. I know Sea World has been in a very negative light lately but I have always been extremely fascinated by it. It is rare that humans are able to interact so closely with animals and I enjoy being able to. My favorite species of aquatic animals happens to be the sea otter so I thought I would do some research on this topic as well. The sea otter (Enhydra lutris) is an endangered species that is native to the North Pacific Rim. What was once a flourishing species now has a population that is estimated to have declined over 50% in the last 30 years. This reduction in population size is a direct result of human impact. In elementary school we learn that the Russians came to California and killed a great number of sea otters for their fur, but if this fur trapping has stopped why is their population still estimated to be declining? Well this is due to numerous other human activities such as the Exxon Valdez oil spill (IUCN).

I have never heard of this horrific event before so I thought I would look into it. On March 24, 1989 (almost exactly 26 years ago) an oil tanker headed for Long Beach, California hit a reef in Prince William Sound, Alaska and spilt 11 million gallons of oil into the ocean. This was the largest oil spill in American history at the time and became known as the Exxon Valdez spill. The spill had an enormous impact on the marine life in the area and still to this day scientists are finding traces of oil on the Prince William Sound coast that has not biodegraded. The species that was impacted the most were seabirds as there was tens of thousands of birds that died as a result of the spill (PBS). The second most impacted animal was the sea otter with estimates of 1,000-5,000 otters killed by the spill. As we learned in class, sea otters do not have blubber to keep them warm so when oil gets on their skin it effects their ability to keep warm causing hypothermia and also gastrointestinal problems when consumed. In 2009 it was estimated that the sea otter population was the last of the species to return to what is believed to be the pre-spill numbers of about 2,000 but studies on the effects of the lingering oil remain (USGS). Events like this show us that we need to be more responsible about our environmental impact and take better care of our environments.