Class of 2020
Zanesville, Ohio
Research Assistant
Gamboa, Panamá
Hi everyone! My first blog covered the experiences I had during my first two weeks in Panama, and this blog will summarize the last three! (And let me tell you, Gamboa saved the best time for last).
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| Here you see the plastic container that holds water, a metabolic chamber holder, and the metabolic chamber itself. An oxygen probe is aligned with the O2 sensor on the chamber. The temperature probe is placed in the water. The green mesh keeps tadpoles calm during tests by making it darker while preventing mosquitoes from laying eggs at night. Notice that it is impossible to keep the table dry! |
Week three struck a little trouble for my experiment. We realized my tadpoles were not growing fast enough, even with exactly replicated set-up and treatment from previous experiments. Due to this, my tadpoles small size would mean it would take forever to run their metabolic rates as well as be very difficult to dissect, especially because their organs would be developmentally behind from what we desired them to be. If I had 5 or even 4 more weeks instead of 3 more, my tadpoles would have been fine.
However, because we only had 3 more, Dr. Bouchard, Gwen and I had to come up with an alternative plan. Luckily for me, the treatments in my experiment, high and low density, were also tested within Gwen's experiment. Because Gwen only needed 2 tadpoles from each treatment, that meant that she had enough leftover for me to run her tadpoles in my experiment. Additionally, we added another layer to my experiment that consisted of not only running metabolic rates for low and high density treatments, but low predator and high predator treatments as well, which was very exciting. See, there's a bright side to everything. Thank you Gwen!!!
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| Panama Canal, Miraflores |
Despite the hiccup in the beginning of the week, the rest of week three was awesome! My parents actually came all the way from Ohio to visit for 5 days, I was so excited to see them. Although I had limited time to spend with them because our experiment started to pick up in pace, Gwen and I did manage to have time to go to the Miraflores locks with them! It was amazing to see a boat pass through. The one we saw was named Jackie B!
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| My biggest supporters! |
Before my parents left, I took them on a night walk. Here are some of the critters we saw!
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| Capybara- the world's largest rodent!! |
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| Gladiator frog- large tree frogs whose call sounds like a low-pitched croak |
Light green-yellow frog that
we couldn't ID in our field guide
Throughout week four, I ran metabolic rates for low density treatment tadpoles, which took significantly less time than we had anticipated (about 30min per tadpole). Out of the 42 low density treatment tadpoles, I euthanized 14 of them to be dissected. Dissecting them will allow us to determine whether our treatments were affecting the growth and development of the tadpoles.
During week five, I ran metabolic rates for high density tadpole treatments. We hoped that we would see a difference in the metabolic rates between low and high density treatments, and we certainly did! This was especially profound for me because in the previous days with low density treatments, I could run 14 tadpoles in 7 hours. Imagine my surprise when it took 14 hours to run 14 tadpoles from the high density tadpoles (1hr per tadpole) - which I had to do all in one day because I had prepped 14 the night before. I only took on a max of 10 tadpoles in the following ~3 days.
With Gwen's help, I was able to knock out my dissections in 3 days. The dissections had to be done through the microscope because the tadpoles were so small. I loved dissecting. It was amazing to see how complex and detailed organisms as tiny as a tadpole were! I dissected out the brain, the gut, the liver, the pancreas, and the fat body to be weighed on an analytical balance. Additionally, the brains were photographed to be photo-analyzed at a later date. This entire process had really helped strengthen my understanding of growth and development as well as boosted my confidence with dissections!
After the dissections were completed, Gwen and I wrapped up our experiment sites and packed up our things! But before I go, here are a few of the highlights of my last 3 weeks in Gamboa, Panama.
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| Patacones that we made from plantains we found on our walk home - tasted like crispy potato slices! |
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| Empanadas de la Ciudad del Saber ... deliciosa! |
getting caught in full on rainforest
thunderstorms, meeting new friends, traveling to BCI for a lightning talk, laughing at agouti, lifting each other up when the other got discouraged, and growing together as individuals and as scientists, having Gwen with me throughout these wild five weeks made the experience that much more
amazing & memorable.
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| Amigos nuevos- Javier & Rosalinda |
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| Who knew I loved salsa music??? |
2). Going salsa dancing at a discoteca in Panama City! I went with a group of PhD and graduate students that knew the city well and went out often, so I wasn't as nervous about traveling an hour into the city. We took a Saca bus, a metro, and a taxi to get there and Ubered back to Gamboa. Despite the fact that I knew nothing about salsa dancing before that night, the people I went with were more than happy to teach me the basics and I had a great night with great new friends. I wish salsa dancing nights were common in Ohio!
3). Receiving a visit from Mr. Caiman in experimental pond!!! He came near the end of our trip, and I was in shock when I first saw him. He reminded me of a dinosaur - scaly, rigid, poised, and not one bit fazed by human presence.
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| Me (naturally) getting as close as (safely) possible to the Caiman. |
And last but not least...
4). Biking to El Charco trail and going for a hike on my last !
Closing thoughts:
The sign says it all.
My experience in Gamboa, Panama was incredible and left me feeling so alive. Alive in my growth as a strong and determined individual, alive in my development as a young scientist, alive in the richness of experiencing another culture, and alive from being immersed in the simplistic, rainforest way of life for five weeks. I cannot thank the Otterbein Earth & Science Department, Dr. Bouchard, STRI facilities and faculty, and my parents enough for making this
experience possible for me.
Now, with a rejuvenated and energized spirit, I return to school ready to tackle anything junior year has to throw at me! Stay curious.
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