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Summertime and the learning was very cool

A Seminole High senior gets his hands dirty to see if marine biology is what he wants to pursue.

By RITA FARLOW
Published August 30, 2006

SEMINOLE - Seminole High School senior Ben Choi spent his summer on the water.

For eight weeks, he pulled in large nets packed with fish, tagging and releasing them; performed fish dissections; and kept detailed logs about his finds.

There were no lazy summer days for Choi, 16, who was named a 2006 Hutton Junior Fisheries Biology Program scholar by the American Fisheries Society. That meant Choi got to spent the summer as an intern for the Fish and Wildlife Research Institute in St. Petersburg.

For eight weeks, Choi worked with institute researchers Ted Switzer and Brent L. Winner on a fisheries-independent monitoring program, a long-term study to monitor fishery resources in Florida's major estuarine, coastal and reef systems.

Choi also was able to participate in a mortality study of hook-and-line caught red drum, which involved a lot of snorkeling where his main mission was to find dead fish.

For his work, Choi received a $3,000 scholarship, which he'll put toward his studies next year at Nova Southeastern University in Fort Lauderdale.

We caught up with Choi last week before he gave a presentation at the institute to share what he learned over the summer.

Why did you apply for the program?

I've been pretty into marine biology for a while now. I took a couple of courses at my high school, so I decided that this summer I'd try to do an internship to see if I really wanted to get into marine biology as a career.

And what did you decide?

I'm still trying to decide between that and dentistry.

Those careers seem pretty far apart, don't they?

I definitely want to do something science-related, whether it's medicine or biology.

Do you know why you were chosen for the internship?

I think the Hutton program is actually trying to promote minorities and women into the field. But also, I'm pretty interested in marine science. I'm a pretty avid fisherman.

What do you love about fishing?

I like to catch really big fish. I definitely like offshore fishing. I do kingfish tournaments. I've been on the water since I was really little, so I kind of knew a little bit about marine biology, because it's related to fishing. I like to be able to outsmart a fish. Being out on the water is a bonus, too.

What was your favorite part about the internship?

I got to snorkel in the net pen itself, looking for dead red drum. It was pretty cool. After we would catch them, we'd place them in the net pen and every 12 hours I'd go check them.

You would just swim around looking for fish?

Just the dead ones.

Sounds like fun. What was the worst part of the job?

The long, hot days in the sun and the mosquitoes, but I didn't mind that. It's fun.

How long were you out on the water on a given day?

Usually, we'd meet at 7 a.m. and depending on how long the sampling takes - if we get a lot of fish - we can stay out until 4 or 5 (p.m.). If we don't get a lot of fish, usually 1 or 2 (p.m.)

Where did you go to study the fish?

For the hook and line mortality study, we went to the MacDill marine protection area (in Tampa Bay).

Tell me about the hook and line study?

We would catch the red fish, using similar methods as any angler would use, tag them, and put them in a net pen and check them every 12 hours to see how many had died, or if any had died.

What did you learn from the collected data?

I've only had two studies completed so far, so I can't make any conclusions at this point. ... The data I'm presenting (at the institute) is from last winter.

And what did that data show?

We only had three fish die on us. Out of 70 fish, there were three mortalities, so the final mortality rate is 4.29 percent.

After spending the summer studying them, what's your take on the red drum population?

Red drum are really highly prized game fish and with more and more anglers targeting red drum, we need to find out how many are dying after they're released. Most people practice catch and release, and while it may be better than catching and killing them, sometimes the red fish die when they're released.

What's the solution to that problem?

First we need to find out what factors affect it, from hook type, handling time, length of fight.

How did it feel to go back to school?

It's a change. I prefer to be on the water, but I realize that my education is a priority.

[Last modified August 30, 2006, 08:06:12]