Looking for an underwater career

[naturalfish]

Does anyone here know about marine biology?

Is Marine Mammology as AWESOME as it sounds???
sooo excited when i think about doing this for a living!

 

[grocha01]

Hi naturalfish,

I have almost finished my marine biology degree, only 6 months left! As for information about marine biology, the field covers such a wide range of topics, it really depends on what you want to do. Im sure anyone on here will tell you, and from personal experience, i can tell you that marine biology is not all about diving with dolphins! I have done quite a few research projects throughout my degree, and a minimal amount of time is spent doing the 'fun' stuff. I have done projects on topics ranging from population density and reproductive potential of the macroalgae species Sargassum, to differences between fish communities in marine reserve and non-reserve areas. Obviously the research diving is a huge perk, but subsequent lab hours and statistical analyses can be extremely time consuming and sometimes mind dulling. Although this is the case, no matter what the project is, i find it so interesting and rewarding continuously learning more about how the underwater world works.

In the near future, i will hopefully be doing a postgraduate honours course, followed by a PhD. In terms of potential for employment, this is the best thing to do. But by saying this, your research gets homed in on a specific subject-instead studying what you once thought you would when you started your marine biology degree, your research can get highly specialised on different aspects of morphology, physiology, etc of a specific organism. Money will never be that great, but it'll definately be a rewarding and enjoyable career!

As for marine mammalogy, i have no idea really, but this site may be useful:

http://www.marinemammalogy.org/strat.htm#para1

Im also very interested in hearing from any other marine biologists about their employment, and in particular, past and present research projects.

Alex

 

[marku]

Hi Naturalfish,
Get certified ASAP! Everybody knows the fun part of marine biology is underwater so it's imperative that you get your c-card already. If you want some firsthand experience before enrolling in a degree, you can try volunteering. I think ReefCheck and ProjectSeahorse accept volunteers for their field surveys; just check out their websites (www.reefcheck.org & seahorse.fisheries.ubc.ca) for details. I recommend the Project Seahorse volunteer program because you get training in field survey methods (and I spent a year working with them ).

Goodluck!
marku

 

[rmediver2002]

You can get some further information from www.adp.fsu.edu the Florida State University Academic Diving Program.

This is a field that for many positions requires a graduate degree although I have friends within the US EPA and FL DEP that dive as biologist with a BS.

Jeff

 

[archman]

Texas A&M Galveston is top-rated for marine mammals, I think it may even BE the top. Like all universities, what determines a good program is the faculty. And we have Bernd Wursig.
http://www.marinebiology.edu/Faculty/Wursig.htm

And Randy Davis and Markus Horning. They do those "seal-cam" things.
http://www.marinebiology.edu/Faculty/Davis.htm
http://www.marinebiology.edu/Faculty/Horning.htm

But like most marine mammalogists, a lot of the marine mammal-type graduates end up working with dead critters, or taking tissue samples from live ones. Very few work with live animals in behavioral or interactive studies. For that type of work, zoos are the place to be.

There's near-zero scuba opportunity with marine mammals, unfortunately. Piggybacked cameras are the current method for filling in our behavioral gaps, and they work pretty well. There's also acoustic monitoring.

TAMU-G has a pretty high dropout rate in the first year, with a very heavy weighting from the folks that come in there "wanting to work with whales and dolphins". Once a lot of these folks find out how much work is involved, and what the field is actually like, interest wanes rapidly.

Research your options very carefully, and avoid getting anything from TV or movies. Check faculty's online resumes, and see what their active research is. Then see what opportunities there are for undergraduates. Most faculty research never involves undergraduates. TAMU-G has a very popular volunteer program with the Texas Marine Mammal Stranding Network, and the Moody Gardens Aquarium. This is an excellent option for undergraduates (or anyone!) to test the waters. It permitted me to swim with four different dolphins (3 adults, 1 baby), and evaluate/dispose of carcasses on beaches. Some of my best college stories!