The final stretch

Paul and Sabina returned the FR9 middle transect tiles. We have now re-deployed all but two of the tiles. Those were held back because they require re-drilling. I didn't go on this dive to give my swollen ankle some time to heal. While they were diving, I had time to catch up on data entry and was able to finish the spreadsheet with all the coral polyp numbers by tile and location on the tile.

We had no tiles to process this afternoon, so we had a break from our usual routine. The staff was anxious to use the Zenobia to go fishing. We have been monopolizing the boat since our arrival. Sabina joined the fishing team, and they returned with a yellowfin tuna and an ono.  Here you see Sabina being instructed on how to fillet a tuna.

Sabina filleting a yellowfin tuna

Paul decided to go sailing in the lagoon. Unfortunately there was no wind, so it really turned into an exercise in paddle boarding.

For my afternoon, I took on the task of transferring the Zspar epoxy from the rusting metal cans to the ice-cream buckets generously provided by the cooks, Katie and Jan. This is a very messy job, and Sabina and Paul did not jump at the opportunity to do it. I tried cutting out some plastic scoops to avoid doing it with my hands. It just didn't work. I made sure I had plenty of rags and just dug in and did it with my bare hands. Here you can see the final result with the two parts of the epoxy appropriately labeled vanilla and chocolate.

Zspar epoxy in its new containers

I am still waiting for a spectacular sunset like we had many nights last year. It often starts off looking like we will have one, but then the rain clouds move in. Tonight was lovely, but I expect better.

tonight's sunset

Thursday is "science night", and Paul gave a talk about his research on tidal bores and low oxygen events in kelp forests.