Day 9: The Goby and the youth

Find of the day was the Goby (Caffrogobius caffer) found by the fish team in Kamma Bay at Hermanus. This was a special collection because it was a large specimen about 15 cm long while the rest of the specimens were less than 5 cm long! This goby is endemic and common in temperate coastal areas in rocky and tidal shores. The fish team is studying the evolution of this unique goby and its genus to find out why they are restricted to southern Africa and what their relationship is to other genera in the widespread and diverse goby family.

Find of the Day Gobi Caffrogobius  Caffer

Murray Duncan from SAIAB

Some 30 learners from HM Beets Primary School visited the laboratory at Klipbokkop to experience for themselves what happens with their finds of insects that they collected during the last few days. Many of them looked for the first time through the lens of a microscope and also saw how plant material is pressed to conserve them for future DNA identification.

Learners from HM Beets Primary School

Theresa and Salome process the plates to be sent off to the University of Guelph in Ontario Canada. The plates consist of 95 tiny compartments and is filled with a drop of ethanol and a part of the specimen, in this case insects. These examples are numbered and photographed and will be sequenced at the university as part of the iBol project (Barcode of Life) More than 6,000 zoology samples have been processed in this way and thousands more of the plant species.

Salome and Theresa processing the plates to be sent off to Canada

Some of the scientists left this morning for their different destinations

Mollusk team packing for home

Carla Gairifo Santos from Dept of Science and Technology NRF Centre of
Excellence for Invasion Biology on her way back to Stellenbosch

Kevin Cole conservationist and environmentalist

Mr Kevin Cole (mollusc team) employed by the East London museum for 21 years as a conservationist and an environmentalist. He shared his experience of the week:

“A myriad of colours and shapes have expressed themselves in the great diversity of plant and animal species discovered by scientists. This was during the 2012 Toyota Enviro Outreach, Barcoding of Life programme held at Klipbokkop Mountain Reserve, a unique ecosystem of great natural beauty, near Worcestor. 

Combining decades of field experience in the sciences of botany, ichthyology , malacology and entomology, hundreds of species have been collected. These will assist researchers and future generations in the identification of many species of both indigenous and alien fauna and flora collected from various localities in the field. Bain’s Kloof, Grootvadersbosch, de Hoop and Betty’s Bay to name a few.

A common goal cemented the various disciplines together at the research laboratory set up at Klipbokkop Mountain Reserve. It was encouraging and a privilege to participate in a programme which stimulates a sense of connectedness amongst all the participants. The same connectedness that, undisturbed, is noted between all living matter and the environment which gives it life.

It has been a wonderful week of challenges, surprises and it was a delight to meet and work with committed scientists in the service of understanding and interpreting this part of the Blue Planet we call Earth.”