Ocean Watch
By Susan Scott
Friday, June 1, 2001
A first-grader asked me, "Are you an aquarium?" during a visit to Waialua Elementary School last week. Young students adept
at marine biologyI stared down at my small questioner, wondering if he was telling a joke.
But he was serious. He wanted an answer.
"Well, I like to visit aquariums," I told him.
"My mom thinks you're an aquarium."
"Did she say that?"
"Yes, when she was reading the paper she said you must be an aquarium because you always write about the ocean."
"Do you think she maybe said marine biologist?"
"Yeah!" he said, jumping up and down. "That's what I'm going to be, too!"
I was at the school because I gave a talk and slide show about Hawaii's marine animals to about 150 second- and third-graders. Actually, I gave a shout. The kids got so excited about each animal that appeared on the screen, they couldn't resist calling out its name and then discussing it.
It was fun and enlightening. The children at this school knew more about marine biology than some high school students I've addressed.
During the question period, one future biologist asked me how many symbiotic relationships there are in the ocean.
Countless, I told him, and then talked about a famous example of symbiosis, that of corals and the little plants that live inside them.
The corals get food and oxygen from the plants, and the plants get a secure home and carbon dioxide from the corals. This is symbiosis at its finest and forms the basis of life on our coral reefs.
The boy listened politely, but I had the feeling this stuff was old hat for him.
Another student learned about lion-fish in a classroom video and wanted to know what they eat. I didn't know (he loved that) and told him I would look it up.
Here's the answer to his good question: Lion-fish are famous for the long, fanlike fins they carry at their sides. During the day these beautiful fish rest under ledges and near the ceilings of caves. At night they come out to hunt, gliding over the reef in search of small fish, crabs and shrimp. When a lion-fish finds such a meal, it spreads its lovely fins wide to corner its prey and then quickly gulps it down.
The tips of lion-fish fins are sharp and poisonous, but lion-fish don't use these spines to catch food. They are only for defense.
One class skipped recess to continue asking thoughtful questions: When a sperm whale tries to eat a giant squid, and they fight, which one usually wins? What do giant squids eat? What is the biggest moray eel in the world? What is the most deadly jellyfish in the world?
One of my favorite sets of questions was about my own interest in the ocean.
When I confessed I studied marine animals because I was once afraid of them, the children grew quiet. We talked about fearing the things we don't know and how good it feels to get over it.
Near the back of the room, a small hand was raised and a timid voice asked, "How long does it take?"
"How long does what take?"
"Before I won't be afraid anymore."
I had a soul mate back there.
I love talking to kids about the ocean, and not just for the cute things they say. It's their enthusiasm I like.
Elementary school children haven't yet learned there's little money in marine biology jobs, nor have they heard about the math requirements for a degree in it. (This is an insurmountable hurdle for too many of our kids.)
No, in elementary school, children still dream joyfully about growing up to become marine biologists. I hope many of them do.
Marine science writer Susan Scott's Ocean Watch column
appears weekly in the Star-Bulletin. Contact her at susanscott@hawaii.rr.com.
