The Cnidaria+Ctenophora Analysis group on the PRIMALearning Jellyfish Workshop in South Africa

On the 12^th of February on the morning time, we had the wonderful alternative to go to Cape City to attend a Jellyfish workshop. The “we” in query are the three authors of this weblog publish: Vincent, Vetle, and Håvard. We’re grasp college students all working with jellyfish-related matters, and a few would go so far as to name us jellyfish lovers. Our work is a part of the museum’s Artsprosjekter NorHydro and ParaZoo, and we had been blissful to signify the invertebrate collections and UMB at this occasion.

The workshop, held on the Iziko South African Museum, was organized by PRIMALearning and was a collaborative initiative between the College of Bergen and the College of Western Cape. This gave the three of us, accompanied by just a few different UiB college students not affiliated with the College Museum of Bergen, the prospect to go to Cape City. A few of us for the primary time.

On the primary day of the workshop, we had been greeted exterior the museum by Mark Gibbons and his PhD pupil Michael Brown who was the consultant from UWC and can be instructing components of the workshop. With them was additionally Anne Gro Vea Salvanes because the consultant for PRIMALearning and the College of Bergen, she was additionally joined by our personal UMB scientists Aino Hosia and Luis Martell, who had been additionally a part of the instructing group.

The primary day included introductions from all of the members, and we bought to know one another bit higher. We additionally bought a short introduction to the world of jellyfish and their taxonomy earlier than the evening ended with a scrumptious dinner along with all of the members.

The second day began with lectures in regards to the massive or ‘true’ jellies (Scyphozoa), earlier than we bought to get our fingers soiled taking a look at preserved samples of jellyfish. We had been met with a broad range of scyphozoans that was handed round between the scholars so we might get a shot at figuring out them.

We examined mounted materials of scyphozoan jellies consultant of the three main teams throughout the class:

 

The remainder of the day after the workshop was spent on the seaside, having fun with the solar and native wine. Cape City is known as the windy metropolis, and it did ship on its title, however nothing might cease the sun-deprived Norwegian college students from going exterior to take in some rays.

The third day was Hydrozoa day 1, a subject expensive to our hearts and it was taught by our personal MSc supervisor Luis Martell. A few of us had been a bit drained today as a result of we determined to climb Lion’s head mountain earlier than the workshop began to see the dawn.

However this didn’t cease us from eagerly working with the preserved hydrozoan samples we bought to take a look at. We recognized all hydromedusae and siphonophores with the assistance of a stereomicroscope:

 

Day 4 was field jellies (Cubozoa) day, a category neither of us was very aware of. So we had been excited to find out about these unknown and generally harmful animals.

Fortunately the animals had been much less lethal when preserved and we might due to this fact contact them whereas figuring out them.

 

 

 

This present day ended early so we took the chance to get all the way down to Simon’s City had been we spent the remainder of the day wanting on the native penguins and wildlife on the seaside.

On our final day, we had been launched to the alien world of siphonophores by our personal Aino Hosia. These animals are near Håvards coronary heart (when you ask him on a great day).

They had been a pleasant ending to an superior workshop, and we will truthfully say now that our curiosity for jellyfish has grown, and we sit up for seeing much more of them sooner or later.

On February 19^th the holiday/enterprise journey was sadly over for Vetle and Vincent they usually needed to pack their baggage and put together to depart Cape City and head residence to Bergen, whereas the “barely” extra lucky Håvard stayed behind within the windy metropolis to take pleasure in just a few extra days of leisure.

We wish to thank PRIMALearning for arranging the workshop, the College of the Western Cape for internet hosting and offering us with samples to work with, the Iziko Museum of South Africa for the situation in addition to offering refreshments, and to the College of Bergen for arranging lodging. Additionally, a really particular because of all of the lecturers who offered and had been very affected person with us through the lab work.

-Vetle, Vincent, and Håvard

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