Japan Week 3: Ferry Spotting Surveys

2022-07-22

This week I accompanied Professor Uye and his post-doc, Dr. Hideki Ikeda, on one of their regular spotting surveys. They board passenger ferries to watch and count jellyfish, then they use these data to predict how strong the jellyfish bloom will be that year. Based on this prediction, they can warn fishers if they need to. The ferry we rode goes between Matsue and the Oki Islands, and takes about 2.5 hours one-way.

[Our log sheet, timers, and GPS setup + brightly colored waters]

We didn’t see any jellyfish, which leads Prof. Uye to estimate this year is a small bloom year. While it was disappointing to not see any jellyfish, it is good news for the fishers. We did see many flying fish and four dolphins. The Oki Islands are also a UNESCO Global Geopark and the area is gorgeous, so it was still an eventful trip.

[Enjoying the view as the ferry begins the route]

 

 

 

 

 

While waiting for the return ferry, we had some time to explore the island. I got caught in an intense and surprise rainstorm and almost missed the ferry!

 

 

[Storm clouds rolling in]

 

 

 

 

Later in the week, Dr. Ikeda shared some of his work with me (unpublished, so I won’t talk about it here!). It was another wonderful opportunity to hear about jellyfish research being done in another part of the world. While I am sad that next week will be my final week, sharing sessions like this one make me look forward to the next leg of my journey where I get to continue learning in a new part of the world.