What It's Like To Return To The Office After Field Work

That's A Moray Monday: The Cinco de Mayo Edition

Try as I might to find a Mexican endemic moray species for Cinco de Mayo, the best I could come up with is an eel with a heavy population density in Mexican waters. So grab some tequila añejo or an icy cerveza and help me toast this celebratory moray. ¡Viva Mexico!

Jewel Moray
Muraena lentiginosa

The Jewel moray is truly a jewel in appearance. The species has an overall glossy purplish brown coloration but is covered with numerous, dazzling, small yellow circular spots along the length of the body (computer-generated detail of spots at left). The distribution of the Jewel moray eel is limited to the lower two-thirds of the Sea of Cortez, along the coast of mainland Mexico and around most of Mexico's islands. It is absent from along the Pacific side of the Baja California peninsula. The species is also reported in Peru as well as the Galapagos Islands.

Reaching a length of up to 61 cm. (2 ft.), the Jewel moray is characterized by its somewhat compressed head and jaws and slightly tapering body. The jaws are very narrow, sharp-pointed, and equal. Teeth are compressed at the sides, very sharp, slightly hooked, and pointing backwards. The Jewel moray sports two tubular extensions above the eyes and two at the extremity of the snout.

Jewel morays are commonly found in shallow water reef areas. It remains concealed in rocky crevices during the day venturing out into the open at night to feed on crustaceans and small fish.

Risk-Free Fugu?

The New York Times reports today that thanks to advances in fugu research and farming, Japanese fish farmers are now mass-producing fugu as harmless as goldfish. Fugu is the Japanese word for the pufferfish and is also a Japanese dish prepared from the meat of pufferfish or porcupinefish.

In what might seem like a natural deterrent to consumption, the liver of pufferfish species are extraordinarily toxic thanks to the presence of tetrodotoxin . Tetrodotoxin--a very potent neurotoxin that shuts down electrical signaling in nerves--may produce dizziness, exhaustion, headache, nausea, or difficulty breathing in individuals who consume it. For 50% to 80% of the victims, death follows within four to 24 hours. The victim remains fully conscious throughout most of the ordeal, but cannot speak or move due to paralysis, and soon also cannot breathe and subsequently asphyxiates. There is no known antidote.

But in the skilled hands of an expert fugu chef, just enough tetrodotoxin left in the preparation of pufferfish flesh allegedly leaves the customer with a pleasant tingling or numbing sensation to the lips and tongue. Not enough to kill, just enough to thrill. But now things may be changing.

Fugu 101
It was previously assumed that pufferfish produced tetrodotoxin on its own. But following an eight year study by researchers from Tokyo Healthcare University, it was found that fugu could be made poison-free by strictly controlling its feed. More than 7,000 fugu were given only feed free of tetrodotoxin-laden bacteria. Not one was later found to be poisonous.

Fugu has been consumed in Japan for centuries. The most prestigious edible species is the Tiger Blowfish (Takifugu rubripes), which is also the most poisonous. The Japanese Ministry of Health and Welfare has created a list which shows which species contain body parts that can be consumed. Strict fishing regulations are now in place to protect the fugu population from being depleted. Most fugu are now harvested in the spring during the spawning season, and then farmed in floating cages in the Pacific Ocean.

Fugu prices rise in autumn and peak in winter, which is apparently the most popular time to eat fugu, as they fatten to survive the cold. The fugu is shipped to the restaurant alive and stored in the restaurant in a large tank, usually prominently displayed. To reduce chances of accidental death from inexperienced preparation, whole fugu may not be sold to the general public.

Since 1958, only specially licensed chefs can prepare and sell fugu to the public. The fugu apprentice needs a two-or three-year apprenticeship before being allowed to take an official test which consists of a written test, a fish-identification test, and a practical test of preparing fugu and then eating it. Presumably, failing in the practical test means not a lot of candidates are around for a make-up exam.

How Is Fugu Like The Green Fairy?
There's certainly an almost romantic mystique that has developed around the fugu tradition that has permeated Japanese culture. The fanaticism and lore around the risky fish has spread to new markets of connoisseurs looking for dining thrills in the US and beyond. Here in San Francisco, we have a fugu-inspired sushi house called Blowfish Sushi that sells itself with the clever tag line, Sushi to die for. A comparable situation combining lore and danger can be seen with the recent resurgence in popularity of Absinthe.

Absinthe (often referred to as The Green Fairy) is a distilled, highly alcoholic, green, anise-flavored spirit derived from herbs, including the flowers and leaves of the herb Artemisia absinthium, also called "wormwood." Absinthe was portrayed as a dangerously addictive, psychoactive drug responsible for wildly psychedelic visions and erratic behavior. Think van Gogh and severed ears.

The scare came from the presence of a poorly-understood chemical compound called thujone found in wormwood. As a result of the presumed danger, its production and sale was banned in the US and much of Europe in 1915. However, research over the past decade found no evidence to show Absinthe to be any more dangerous than ordinary liquor. Now, domestic and imported absinthe can again be quaffed without fear of freak-outs in a growing number of bars and brasseries across the states. But will trip-free absinthe be as desirable as the romanticized absinthe of old? Time (and sales) will tell.

Loss Of Tradition Or Fear Of Competition?
You would think an announcement that fugu can be produced toxin-free might be welcomed. Wild fugu livers (even with the risk of toxin) are a delicacy and in high demand in Japan. Fatty fugu livers are considered comparable to goose liver in quality. And even better, farmed fugu livers don't come with anywhere near the amount of ethical baggage as seen in the force-feeding goose liver industry. The potential for a new market to open in toxin-free farmed fugu livers has many potential investors seeing green. But instead of a roar of welcoming cheer, debate is now raging in Japan over whether this "new fugu" is, to quote Martha Stewart, "a good thing."

Despite the recent study that farmed fugu are toxin-free, neither the Japanese Ministry of Health nor the National Fugu Association is in a hurry to approve the marketing of farmed fugu livers anytime soon. They seem to argue that from a public health perspective, it's just too risky for even a potentially toxic species to bypass regulation.

But The New York Times story suggests that market competition may be more at work than public health concerns. Farmed fugu liver may simply threaten existing wild-caught producers with losing their grip on the fugu market. “They [the National Fugu Association] want to protect their vested interests,” said Tamao Noguchi, a marine toxin specialist at Tokyo Healthcare University and a leading fugu expert. “They won’t accept this for a long, long time.”

I've never tasted fugu so I can't comment on whether the flavor is so transcendent as to stand on its own legs apart from the mystique surrounding the risk. So I can't guess whether risk-free farmed fugu can seriously threaten the traditional, lip-numbing variety. But knowing the precarious situation the commercial seafood industry faces with seriously depleted fish stocks and increased fishing effort, I would imagine that markets are just looking to maintain a zero-sum game in a rapidly declining enterprise. Any new competition would be fought against.

But I still think there's just too much history as well as mystery wrapped-up in the possibly deadly version of fugu that won't see it going away anytime soon.

The Upshot Of My Non-Profit Life

It doesn't happen often, but once in a while--after a flurry of intense work in the field--I can kick my dogs up for some R&R and remind myself what I'm working to protect. This kick-back only lasted about 40 minutes, but how sweet it was!

What you don't see is the rum punch!

How To Kill A Reef: A Continuing Series

I've been spending a lot of time in recent posts talking about the Star Island artificial island project in Turks and Caicos Islands (TCI). I guess it's to be expected considering I've just returned from the TCI, seen the project for myself, spoken to locals about concerns, and heard the official "spin" being used to dissuade concerns.

The Star Island project has received limited attention in the wider Caribbean. Many delegates I spoke with this week from other Caribbean destinations at the sustainable tourism conference in TCI had either not heard of the project or had very limited information of what it entailed. All seemed shocked that such a massive dredging project could get approved without public comment and within the national marine protected area.

I was lucky enough to fly over the project one morning to see for myself what's taking place. What immediately struck me once airborne was how much beautiful beachfront currently exists in the TCI. Why anyone would feel the need to build an artificial island in such a stunning collection of cays, spits, and pristine beaches is beyond me. In addition, we flew over abandoned hotel and resort projects (image on the left) that sit unfinished. If the TCI is looking to attract more guests, why not finish these projects first? Yet the Star Island project exists nonetheless. Interestingly, the project is within visual range of the Premier's mansion.

Since a picture paints a thousand words, here are a few images of the project site:

Approaching the Star Island site.
Barge at Star Island build site. The build site is situated in a mixed habitat of seagrass and coralline algae beds, patch coral reefs and coral heads, gorgonians, and a multitude of benthic and burrowing marine invertebrates and fish.

Close-up of Star Island "hub" that will eventually house high-end residences and feature marinas emanating from the island like rays from a star. Note the rather feeble attempt at sedimentation abatement with the yellow floatation booms. Some are not even inflated and others do not fully contain the construction site.

Shoreline area adjacent to Star Island where sand is being modified. Note the sediment "halo" surrounding the site just underwater.

The Danger In Seeing Nature As "Product"

The theme of the 10th Annual Caribbean Conference on Sustainable Tourism Development that I've been attending all week is "Sustaining the Caribbean Coastal Product." Turks and Caicos Premier Michael Misick referred to the local TCI "product" over a dozen times in his opening remarks to the conference. Delegates in every direction I looked kept complimenting each other on an "impressive product."

Product? When did our environment, our natural resources, become commodified into products? What a dangerous precedent to set for ourselves to regard our natural world solely as a commodity to market and potentially exploit. It seems to me just such a mind-set that leads to the folly of proposed projects such as Star Island here on Turks and Caicos Islands where the status of a marine protected area has been ignored (some may say bulldozed) and public comment and buy-in circumvented in order to line the pockets of developers.

I've heard a lot of allegations of corruption at the highest levels of government here on Turks and Caicos. And for a government to simultaneously talk about leadership in sustainability on one hand while green lighting an environmentally destructive project such as Star Island on the other is the epitome of green washing.

Conference keynote speaker David Suzuki, who is certainly no shill for a greenwashing host government, hit the nail on the head when he said, "The way we see the world shapes how we treat it." Do we look at a reef as an engine for evolution and incredible ecosystem services for the world, or is it a stockpile of resources to extract or manipulate? Ultimately, our actions become the true "product" of our particular worldview.

Premier Misick has made his worldview clear.

Honk If You Love Conch

As I write this, I'm enjoying a lunch of conch fritters. The conch bits inside are chunky, sweet, and absolutely delicious. Normally I would feel guilty about this meal. So why am I chowing on conch with impunity? Read on and find out.

Queen conch (Strombus gigas) was once incredibly common throughout the Caribbean basin. But over harvesting of the species has made conch a very dear commodity. Market prices can be staggering for conch salads, conch stew, and conch steaks

In 1992, Queen conch was placed on the CITES Appendix II List as a species that could be threatened with extinction unless trade in the species is restricted. Harvest of the species is strictly enforced. Each country has a slightly different season, but harvest is generally restricted to late fall through early spring months. This is not to say that poaching or other illegal harvesting does not occur, but with limited resources for monitoring and enforcement, a lot of conch can still enter the market illegally making the industry difficult to manage sustainably.

Enter Chuck Hesse, founder, chairman, and visionary behind the Caicos Conch Farm here in Turks and Caicos Islands (TCI). A graduate of Annapolis and former US Navy submarine officer, Hesse has been perfecting his conch aquaculture enterprise in TCI since 1984. His is the world's only Queen conch farm that raises this magnificent gastropod from veliger to adult snails.

His operation is something to behold. An impressive complex combining larval holding bins as well as settlement tanks, and open system juvenile and adult conch holding pens in the nearby bay. In the aerial shot I took below, you can see the network of holding tanks as well as the circular pens in the bay. As a result of his efforts in conch farming, harvest pressure can be relieved from wild Queen conch stock allowing the resident populations to recover. His operation also means a more regular supply of conch meat throughout the year as well as a more stable cost to local consumers.

Hesse "gets it" when it comes to the connection between ecology and economy. A quote from his website says it best, “All our work is built on the concept that conservation is good for business. So the business has to work for the conservation to work.”

He also believes in the principle of waste not, want not. It's not just the conch meat that gets utilized in his operation. Discarded shells are beautiful and can be made available to both shell collectors as well as for ornamental use such as button or even unique key chain fobs such as the one I received at the tourism conference I'm attending here on TCI.

One unfortunate aspect of Hesse's operation is that one of his farms is located just a few hundred meters away from the ill-conceived Star Island dredging project here on TCI. This project plans to build a Dubai-style artificial island in the middle of the bay which also happens to serve as the primary seawater circulation for the Caicos Conch Farm. Conch require clear seawater for survival. Sediment clouds and increased turbidity from sand dredging can be a death sentence for conch and other marine life (especially corals) that require clear water for filter feeding or photosynthesis.

With more public awareness of the incredible results from the Caicos Conch Farm (as well as some much-needed public outcry against the threats from unnecessary development projects such as Star Island) Hesse may be able to continue to develop his conch farming operations not only on TCI but throughout the wider Caribbean as well. Conch today! Conch tomorrow!

Turks And Caicos Bound

Things may be quiet around MBSL&S over the next few days. I leave early tomorrow morning for a week on Turks and Caicos as guest speaker at the 10th Annual Caribbean Conference on Sustainable Tourism Development. I'll be participating on a panel that will focus on the need for coral reef protection and preservation. The goal is to provide recommendations on how the Caribbean can implement sustainable tourism policies for the economic and social benefit of the Caribbean people. I'm excited to participate as it's my first opportunity to see the reefs of Turks and Caicos first hand.

I'm not excited, however, by the news that the government of Turks and Caicos has plans for building a Dubai-style artificial island smack in the middle of the nation's largest marine protected area. As I wrote about last year, artificial island construction and sand dredging of this magnitude has profound and negative impacts on coral reefs and associated ecosystems. Fortunately, an injunction was put in place last week to temporarily halt the development. Hopefully my voice of caution will join those of other delegates and provide an opportunity for Turks and Caicos decision makers to reconsider their approach.

As an added bonus, I'll also get to kick-it for several days with David Suzuki, who will be delivering the keynote address for the conference. I had a chance to meet Dr. Suzuki a couple years ago at a Bay Area Conservation Biology Conference. He's a bit of a wise-ass in person and I hope to get a chance to chat him up over the course of a few days.

Oh, and don't forget you can still get your coral fix this week by tuning in to the boys over at Deep Sea News for Coral Week. They plan to dedicate posts all week on all sorts of cool coral science and conservation. I suspect we'll hear about everything from stony coastal coral reefs to amazing deep sea coral communities. And I can pretty much guarantee that the words "sperm cloud" will be on everyone's lips following coral week! Expect Craig, Peter, and Kevin as well as a few guest bloggers to make for a great week. Hopefully I'll find that internet access isn't too scarce (or ridiculously expensive) and be able to join in on the fun.

Just In Time For The Weekend: The Science Blogging Drinking Game

What do you get when you combine science blog reading and drinking? You get the Science Blogging Drinking Game! Two great activities that taste great together.

Okay, so there are a lot of rules. And 30 minutes into the game it will quickly become more challenging to read. But once you get going you're sure to catch on. Malaria, Bedbugs, Sea Lice and Sunsets assumes no responsibility for absurd, lewd, crude, or otherwise gibberish blog posts or comments that result from playing the game. Oh, and liver damage is no laughing matter. Apologies to all the science bloggers not mentioned, but I decided to just take a random sample from my RSS reader.

Bottoms Up!

Take a drink if:
• Greg Laden writes fewer than four posts a day on Greg Laden's Blog (Chug if at least two posts have something to do with science)
• Pondering Pikaia features any down-home, deep-south, or Alabama reference
• Kevin drops the "F-bomb" on The Other 95% or Deep Sea News
• Mark Powell uses "IMO" anywhere on Blogfish (Chug if he uses "IMHO")
• PZ Myers uses the word "feculent" to disemvowel a critic or other annoying individual on Pharyngula
• Jason posts a Pucker and Bloat cartoon on Cephalopodcast
• Jim Lemire of from Archaea to Zeaxanthol links to The Other 95% (on second thought, Chug)
• Doug over on Gossamer Tapestry takes yet another vacation and blogs about it
• Bora describes or photographs a recent meal on A Blog Around the Clock
• Craig, Peter, or Kevin of DSN are seen in pictures with (or refer to) children or wives (Chug if seen in pictures with both)
• Chris Mooney posts a photo of himself on The Intersection
• Miriam Goldstein lapses into Yiddish anywhere on The Oyster Garter
• Bug Girl actually posts about bugs
• Karen uses the word "Blighty" in a post on The Beagle Project Blog
• The Brothers Bleiman post anything having to do with deli meats, bodily parasites, or animal automata on Zooillogix
• Cody grinds out more than two posts a month on 90% True
• Sheryl Kirshenbaum writes on any of the following at The Intersection: sea cucumbers, how lucky she is to blog with Chris Mooney, or Science Debate 2008 (Chug if she includes all three in a single post)
• Christopher lists less than two citations per post on Catalog of Organisms (Chug if he lists more that five citations per post)
• Jennifer mentions "Daniel Pauly" or a "smuck" of jellies anywhere on Shifting Baselines

Bonus Round
Chug if:
• Any blogger can top Kevin Zelnio for most ridiculous excuse
• Matt Nisbett posts a comment on Pharyngula
• PZ Myers posts a comment on Framing Science
• Any mention (in posts or comments) of PZ's "trophy wife"

Florida: Selling Crazy Since 1513

Florida has always seemed to attract an abundance of crazy. It all started in the 16th Century with Ponce de León roaming about in full armor in stifling Florida heat looking for the Fountain of Youth, a legendary spring that reputedly restores the youth of anyone who drinks of its waters. And 500 years later, crazy is still going strong.

Case in point. A bill that passed the Florida Senate this week would allow public school teachers to challenge evolution with "scientific information." Called the "Evolution Academic Freedom Act,'' the measure would prohibit school officials from punishing teachers who offer opposing views (such as intelligent design), but the bill loosely defines the permitted information to include "germane current facts'' and "data.'' All this despite the 2005 Dover Trial where a federal judge in Pennsylvania ruled intelligent design is a religious theory.

So here's just a short list of woo that's now fair game in Florida science classes under this call for academic freedom:

Apollo moon landing hoax accusations
Astrology
Biblical scientific foreknowledge
Creation biology
Creationist cosmologies
Flood geology
Modern geocentrism
Intelligent design
Crop circles
Crystal healing
Dianetics
Dogon people and Sirius B
Erich Von Däniken
Face on Mars
Homeopathy
Immanuel Velikovsky
Lunar effect
Paranormal (Channeling, Dowsing, Electronic voice phenomenon, ESP, Levitation, Materialization, Psychic surgery, Séances, Psychokinesis, Spiritualism, Therapeutic touch)
Perpetual motion
UFOs
The Bermuda Triangle
Tutankhamun's curse
Graphology
Phrenology
Primal therapy
Subliminal perception
Quantum mysticism
Biorhythms
Faith healing
Hypnosis
Iridology
Magnetic therapy
Scientific racism
Feng shui
Reincarnation
Shroud of Turin
Zero-point energy
Kirlian photography

Bravo, Florida. Way to punish your children.