Pictures of everyone's T-shirts for chapter 46 of Beneath The Surface

 

Alice's blog post in chapter 46 of Beneath The Surface

Hi, Everyone! I'm Alice, little sister to Bella and a casual observer aboard Galeos. My original summer plans had included soaking up the sun poolside but then I suddenly found myself halfway around the world on a research boat. I'm not the researcher in my family. In fact, I'm not even a fan of open water. It's my older sister, Bella Cullen, who is the marine biologist in love with the oceans. Bella came to MMR to learn about sharks and she is getting a first-rate education from her mentor Masen, with tips, tidbits, and a ton of support from the rest of the team too. It was a little jarring to arrive here and see how much they'd already bonded with my sister, to witness the lengths they would go to in order to educate and protect her. It was even harder to process that they apply this same dedication and passion to their work, which right now happens to be sharks. Toothy, massive, scary as all hell sharks—at least to me. The team takes more of a "Girls just want to have fun" view on these fish. Fish is actually the correct term! I looked it up—and made Gopher promise it was right.

So these fish are endangered for a lot of reasons, but they all basically lead back to one source and that's us humans. People like me who are afraid of sharks and don't see a problem with there being less of these fish in the water. People who think shark fin soup makes them cool and debonair. People who have to fish for a living but don't use the right nets, either out of expense or just not caring—we're going to assume the latter here. We need everyone to care about sharks. We need it because these fish are at the top of a very sophisticated food chain and every time we take one down, we shift the balance in a bad way. If we don't start preserving these guys, we're gonna topple it right on over and have no one but ourselves to blame. And blame doesn't fix anything so what then?

Everyone here at MMR—Masen, Bella, Whit, Lee, Gopher—they all want to help fix things. They study sharks so they can save them. This is a really simple way to say it, and maybe in time I'll figure out how to truly explain the beauty of their collected genius, but for right now it's the best I can do. See I've only glimpsed a small part of what they do for sharks, for all of us really. But what little I've seen is enough to inspire me. Back home, back where I avoid open water like a plague, I volunteer on a lot of committees focused on helping people in my community to survive and thrive. Helping others is my passion in life and I believe that every hour of hard work I put in is one less hour of hardship for someone else. I believe we all have to work together and help each other in order for any one of us to truly know happiness. It gives me purpose to be generous.

I have to admit, I wasn't very generous when I first met this team. I only saw them as shark people. I saw them as adventure seekers wasting their intelligence and talents on people-eating monsters. I brought with me a bias that I have carried ever since I lost my father to a bull shark attack. It's funny when I look back on it now, but the person I butted heads with most is the one who has the best understanding of what it will take to get people to care about sharks—Masen knows the key to conservation is changing perception. Show me a struggling family and I can't donate fast enough. Show me a puppy and I will foster it until it finds a home. Show me a lion, a whole pack even, and I will sign every petition to save their species and give them a future. But a shark? What has a shark ever done for me but break up my family?

I love scallops—I know this seems off topic, but bear with me. I love scallops hot off the girl, bathed in butter over pasta, and stuffed inside a potato with other yummy ingredients. But I might not get to have scallops in a few years because we humans are killing too many sharks. Scallops are near the bottom of the food chain. Sitting in the middle are rays. Rays love scallops too. In fact, they love them so much, they don't even wait for them to get big and plump and extra delectable. They just raid the beds and wipe them out. Know what eats the rays and keeps them from overwhelming the scallops? Sharks! And when we have no sharks to eat the rays, and the rays eats the scallops unchecked, then we have no hauls for the fisherman, no income for the households, and no food on the tables of our neighbors. I know all of this because of MMR.

In addition to their own work, they are working with other researchers, and reading countless studies. They are collecting the knowledge and doing their best to put it into simple terms, terms that people like me will understand. Their passion and dedication are visible in everything they do and it’s truly inspiring. You see, MMR isn't just a single research team. What they really are, are volunteers on the biggest, most important committee we have—the committee to save our planet. The more MMR learns about sharks and how to save them, the more they'll contribute to saving the entire human race. That's pretty damn bad ass.

I still don't like sharks but as someone recently told me, I don't have to like them to respect them. Out of respect for the major role sharks play in my life and the lives of all those I care about, I'm going to make my first ever donation to a shark conservation fund and I'm also going to sign a petition to help ban finning. What will you do to help save us all?

Beneath The Surface, chapter 39, Gopher's shirt.

Go ahead...you can snort and laugh at it. We did!!!

Beneath The Surface chapter 37

Pictures from Bella's first successful dive in nearly a decade! Here are a few of the creatures she saw that stood out for her as she enjoyed herself underwater with her team.

Beneath the Surface chapter 36 Pictures

Beneath the Surface by eternallyaddicted featuring black suede flats

Jasper's Hula Lamp

Tiger Eye bracelet Masen gives to Guppy.

Vote EA!!

My lovely readers!  I am so excited and so proud to share this with all of you!  My partner in crime, Eternally Addicted, has been nominated in the poll to find the Top Ten Favourite Fics completed in January for her wonderful story "Somewhere I Belong". If you enjoyed Stretch and Bright Eyes as much as I did, then run on over to www.twifanfictionrecs.com and let them know it!!  If you haven't read all about them yet, then what are you waiting for?  SIB is on Fanfiction at https://www.fanfiction.net/s/8021658/1/Somewhere-I-Belong. You can vote once a day, everyday until March 1st.

Lee's First Blog Post

The importance of photography in research:

                                                                               

I can think of no better way to start this blog than to use a quote from Masen’s favorite shark expert, Chris Fallows.

“To see the magnificence of a great white shark firsthand is the fastest way to change perceptions and separate fact from fiction. This is the only way people will ever learn to love and not fear sharks.”

Chris is not a biologist or scientist; he is a person who felt compelled to observe sharks and learn their secrets, much like our team. He has proven that the right photograph can say so much more than the words in our scientific papers. A dark gray fin gliding across the top of a near still surface evokes feelings of beauty and mystery, while a photo of a cavernous mouth filled with razor sharp teeth can send a shiver down the hardiest of spines.

We’ve been here in False Bay for a month and already we’ve taken thousands of photos. No matter the angle, the lighting, the water conditions, there is a unifying theme in every picture—power. This is not a mindless monster of the sea. This is a cunning hunter, a cautious explorer, and a superior swimmer.

I have to say, I wasn’t sure about this topic when it first popped into my head because I knew I couldn’t write it without making this admission … I didn’t want to come to False Bay. When Masen first broached the subject with us, he was holding a print out of one of Chris’ photos and the first thought that entered my head was that we could fit in that shark’s mouth. Gopher could fit in that shark’s mouth. For all the great whites we saw at Farallon, I never once had that thought.

After our team meeting, I followed Masen into his office at his request. He wanted to show me a different picture to see if it changed my mind at all. The one he chose showed a great white swimming, mouth closed, head tilted upward toward the surface, and the light refracting perfectly to highlight the contrast between its white underbelly and grey top coloring. It changed my mind because as soon as I saw it, I knew that was something I had to do. I had to see this big, beautiful creature at ease in her home and enjoying her life.

One of the most surprising things I’ve found in our photos of these sharks is that there is a huge amount of personality and intelligence reflected in their eyes. They are watching us. I know that sounds scary and that a lot of people will read that and assume I mean it in a scoping out their next meal way, but that’s not my meaning at all. It’s an acknowledgement that we’re sharing the water. It’s a warning that I’m welcome in their home so long as I don’t cause them harm. It makes me wonder what those big gorgeous eyes interpret when they process our faces. Are they able to distinguish features and differentiate between researchers? Do they see Chris out there and recognize him from past expeditions? Can they tell the difference between those of us who want to help them and those that only see them as a source of food and fear?

This blog can go on for thousands of words and I may say something that clicks with a group or two. But my other option is to post a picture, my favorite from our time here so far. Look closely. Find the beauty and mystery here. And if you see it, find your local conservation groups and do what you can to help us save these animals so that your children and your children’s children can see what you’ve seen in this photo.