STRI Panama - June 14

Top: Group at Playa del Cangrejo (Crab Beach), a STRI research site; Bottom: Group with the Panama City skyline

Greetings from day three of STRI Panama. Our day dawned with the first real glimpses of the sun we have had providing us with excellent weather to enjoy a trip into Panama City to see the STRI facility at Punta Culebra which is beautifully situated right at the base of the Panama Canal as it enters the Pacific Ocean, not far from the construction of the BioMuseo, which we had visited the previous day.

Clockwise from upper left: The group enjoys a lecture by Dr. Mark Torchin; An explanation of the research done in the DNA Lab; Students look at some of the work being done by Dr. Torchin

The first stop at the STRI facility was for a fascinating lecture from Dr. Mark Torchin, a highly respected research scientist, who spoke to the group about the challenges of invasive species in Panama and what those challenges mean for the rest of the world. We then toured the STRI Laboratories getting an up-close look at some of the work that is being done at the facility, including a good explanation of what they do in their DNA labs.

Clockwise from left: Group at Punta Culebra; Ethan Crawley '14 gets friendly with a sea turtle; Mrs. Johnson and Jordan Davis '14 observe stingrays

The rest of the morning was spent at the STRI Punta Culebra education center where the students were able to see Fiddler Crab research being done and get introduced to a variety of aquatic life, including Caribbean and Pacific Starfish, stingrays, some very young sharks and a very old turtle. Of course, what would a stop in Panama be without some observation of some Two-Toed Sloths; which seems to excite our students much more than it does the local Panamanians....go figure!

Lucy Willis '15, Haley Greason '14, Isabel (our friend from the Brader School), and Madison Land '15 enjoy interacting with Pacific and Atlantic starfish

Mid-day included a stop at a local mall for lunch and some very brief shopping and then a late afternoon return to our temporary home in Gamboa for a soccer game arranged by Curtis Kirby '14 with some local players. Despite muddy conditions and playing in sneakers instead of soccer boots our boys held their own. The trip down the hill into Gamboa allowed for the students to also view some ant mounds recommended by our lecturer from the previous evening. The behavior displayed by the ants as they traveled along their long "highways' to and from their working destinations was fascinating.

Clockwise from top: Kevin Cunningham '14 and two of his Varsity Boys Soccer teammates engage in a World Cup Qualifier with Panama, Jordan Davis ' 14 makes a key save as keeper; Leaf cutter ants carry supplies back to their colony for processing.

Lastly, we once again enjoyed a wonderful dinner of chicken, boiled cassava, beans and rice, salad and fruit. After dinner, the students and faculty enjoyed another lecture, this time by Dr. Tomas Sattler, the "Batman".Dr. Sattler provided some great information regarding the bats of Panama and then took us outside to us some sophisticated back track devices that allowed us to hear the bats as they used their sonar to track their meals. Meredith Jennings '14 seemed particularly fascinated with the bat tracking and Alex Ghenea '14 believed that there could be some musical application for the bat sounds. After this nocturnal adventure, we all headed off to bed, eagerly anticipation the next day's expedition to Galeta for snorkling, water sampling and exploration of a mangrove swamp.

Clockwise from upper left: Tommy DiBona '15 challenges a Panamanian player for possession; Captain Curtis Kirby '14 inspires his teammates "Brun-style"; Collin Smith '14 shows his ball-handling skills; Tyler Chub '14 boots the ball.

More to follow......